Disturbing the Peace: Heavy Truck Traffic Frustrates Bethlehem Residents
Photo by Derek Redd Trending
BETHLEHEM -- Kim Martin at times is roused from sleep in the dead of night by large trucks using their engine brakes as they travel Ridgecrest Road through the village, and also by the noise caused by the trucks hitting small bumps in the road.
This has been an on-and-off problem for years, as the natural gas industry has bloomed in Marshall County, which sits just on the Bethlehem border a few hundred yards from Martin's home. Coming with that natural gas and oil extracted from the Marcellus Shale is a steady stream of oversized trucks carrying sand, water and other equipment to drill sites; large trucks that oftentimes take up more than the lane in which they're traveling, due to their size; trucks that clog the narrow, two-lane road through Bethlehem, with homes located on both sides.
Martin lives in one such home. She said following a period of relative quiet, the truck traffic has increased in recent months as drilling has picked back up following COVID-19.
A NOT-SO-QUIET VILLAGE
Residents will tell you that the noise and general level of traffic caused by all the trucks has changed life greatly over the past decade for those living on Ridgecrest Road, which carries W.Va. 88 into Marshall County.
No longer is it easy to get out of your driveway; no longer is a trip across the street to visit a neighbor to talk about that first cutting of the lawn for the season a recommended practice.
"I've lived here all my life, and in the past 10 years, there's been a huge uptick in traffic," Martin said. "… Once they started ramping back up again, the traffic has almost exponentially increased; it's almost doubled as far as the oil and gas trucks. They used to go through three at a time, but now it's like six or eight (trucks) at a time."
In addition to the noise issue, Martin said many of the trucks are speeding through the residential area, posing a hazard for those living there. Residents have taken to posting unofficial road signs in an attempt to curb speeding through the area, but to no avail.
"They're going between 40 and 60 (mph). I have never seen them go this fast," Martin said. "... Every little bump they hit, you can hear. It's so loud, it wakes you up at night and in the early morning hours."
Posts made to a Bethlehem Facebook page by several people agree that the heavy truck traffic is causing a slew of problems ranging from safety to road damage, while also asking why little is being done by the village police department to slow traffic down.
"I pass three at a time several times a week when I leave for work in the morning," village resident Jessica Sheedy told the Facebook group. "These trucks also need an escort, because they are traveling around turns just honking their horn to let oncoming vehicles know they are coming around the turn."
Martin added that she'd heard of at least one resident in the process of moving out of Bethlehem due to the trucks.
MAYOR: ‘WE DON’T HAVE THE RESOURCES’ TO POLICE TRUCKS
Bethlehem council member Aaron Snider lives on Ridgecrest Road. Snider, who will become the village's mayor in July, as he is running unopposed in the municipal election, said he had inquired in the past as to what could be done.
Snider said he would like to see a more consistent police presence on Ridgecrest Road, and said he would be speaking to the police department about that once his term as mayor begins.
"Usually, the police officer at Bethlehem sits at the AEP substation, about (a half-mile) out on Ridgecrest. The truckers are coming up over a hill, they see the police officer and slow down," Snider said. "That's something that has been brought up by council; I know a majority of people in council would rather see a police presence on Chapel (Road) and Ridgecrest.
"I know (police officers) like to sit on (Interstate) 470 a lot. That's something current members of council have tried to bring up to the mayor, but I think the mayor sees it as 'We'll make more revenue on 470,' but really, that's not what it's about," he said.
Bethlehem mayor Don Junkins disputed that sentiment, saying that Bethlehem has fewer police officers on staff than would be ideal, but that he, too, would like to see more consistent patrols on both Ridgecrest Road and Bethlehem Boulevard below the Char House, which is a staging area for oil and gas trucks.
"The police, I want them on Ridgecrest, Bethlehem Boulevard East and Bethlehem Boulevard West," Junkins said. "… We don't have the resources, as far as police, but I'd like to have our regular daytime police do their thing, but I'd like to have someone there on day turn, just focusing on Ridgecrest Road and Bethlehem Boulevard east and west.
"We get a lot of hearsay -- 'You don't do this, you don't do that,' -- but talk is cheap. ... I understand their concern, and I would like to regulate traffic if we could. … In the last six weeks, there's been quite a flurry of activity of water trucks and sand box trucks."
Snider added that he regularly hears from residents who voice their concerns with truck traffic. For the time being, Snider said, though Bethlehem police can pull trucks over while passing through the area, W.Va. 88, being a state road, is administered by the state, and new signage prohibiting engine braking would need to come down from the state level.
"My hands are tied a little bit, as to what I can inquire (about) and do," Snider said. "Route 88 is a state road, so the village of Bethlehem can pull people over, but as far as new signs or postings, we've got to talk to the state. It's a whole process with that. We definitely see it -- we have the same issue on Chapel Road, on the opposite side.
"It's definitely something that concerns a lot of residents, and they have every right to be concerned. As mayor, I plan on being more invested in trying to figure out a solution to that with the state."
NOT JUST A BETHLEHEM PROBLEM
The truck traffic issue continues as you exit Bethlehem and enter Marshall County. Sheriff Bill Helms said his department obtained permission for extra overtime, which is made available to any deputies who want to patrol W.Va. 88 as it leaves Bethlehem and enters Marshall County, as well as Robert's Ridge and other areas of the county.
"We center on 88, Robert's Ridge, Lindsey Lane, (U.S.) 250, where we know the trucks are running," Helms said, "You go where you get the most calls, so 88 is where we're focusing right now."
Helms added that personnel from the county Public Service Commission will sit at the area near the county line, conducting surveys on traffic, which feeds back to the police.
In the meantime, Bethlehem residents are left with one immediate recourse - look both ways before they cross the street.
"Just pulling out of your driveway becomes an obstacle, because it's so dangerous," Martin said. "There's been some close calls from the elderly getting their mail. It's just making it miserable for people."