Truck Traffic Is An Essential Part Of Everyday Life In Hillsborough County

Truck traffic is an essential part of everyday life in Hillsborough County. Trucks are an important means of sustaining the community by delivering products to stores for purchase, transporting raw materials and finished products for industries, hauling materials for the construction of roads, schools, businesses and homes, and serving other vital functions.  Trucks share the roads with personal automobiles, however, and their size and weight cause drivers and pedestrians to be concerned about potential hazards.

Hillsborough County officials are responding to complaints by citizens that trucks are using county roads that are not suitable for use by large vehicles.  Citizens are concerned for the safety and health of their communities and have expressed their displeasure about trucks using roads near or adjacent to their homes.  A major goal of this study is toencourage mutual appreciation of the important role which trucks play both in expanding the economy of the region and also in preserving and enhancing residential areas.

HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY TRUCK ROUTE PLAN

Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) intends to address the problem of large trucks on roads unsuitable for their use by developing and adopting, by ordinance, a Truck Route Plan for the county.  This plan is being developed by a project team composed of the MPO staff and a group of transportation consultants.  Information is being gathered concerning current truck problems by interviewing the parties that would be most directly affected by an ordinance (businesses, the trucking industry, and enforcement agencies) to gain insight into their concerns and needs.  The plan will also incorporate an assessment of the suitability of individual road segments based on engineering, safety and land use criteria.

The goal is to develop a methodology and a plan that identifies a network of truck routes and ensures safe, efficient truck operations while satisfying the public need for adequate protection and separation.  To accomplish this goal it is important to develop a plan that is acceptable to all parties involved, technically achievable and enforceable by the county law enforcement officials and the court system.

The methodology employed in this planning process is based on making maximum use of existing, readily available data sources that have previously been identified for use in this project. These data include the following:

Functional classification of roadways, Responsible governmental jurisdictions, Roadway and pavement characteristics  Bridge characteristics, Railroad grade crossings, Truck traffic volumes, Truck accident data, Truck terminal locations  County and city comprehensive plans. The sources of these data include county and city agencies and the Florida Department of Transportation.  Using these existing sources is important in that it enables the development of the Truck Route Plan to be consistent with other ongoing aspects of transportation planning and engineering in Hillsborough County.  Another source of data will be the public involvement program which involves gaining public input to the truck route  planning process and to the plan itself.