Truck drivers in Crawfordsville, Indiana could face steep fines for deviating off of designated routes in the town.
A proposal presented Monday to the City Council’s Traffic, Parking and Safety Committee would increase the fine from $100 to $2,500 per violation.
The proposal is an effort to send a message to drivers who have damaged property in the town. Residents in the west side neighborhoods of Crawfordsville repeatedly experience damaged yards and sidewalks from trucks attempting to turn around on side streets.
“We’ve started to pick up enforcement, but I’ll tell you that the penalty is not a real deterrent for the trucking companies,” Mayor Todd Barton told the committee.
Councilman Mike Reidy, a west-side resident, suggested posting the fine on “no truck” signs to warn drivers.
Drivers could face these hefty fines but the designated routes they’re supposed to use may not even be included in the navigational systems used in their trucks.
“I was told that part of the problem is that the GPS takes them that way unless they have the sophisticated trucker GPS which takes them down truck routes,” said councilman Andy Biddle. “But a lot of them don’t have those because they’re so expensive.”
According to Barton, it’s also difficult to provide maps of the routes because drivers from multiple companies deliver to the same companies.
The proposed increase is similar to the truck route fines charged in other Indiana communities.
Designated routes on the west end of Crawfordsville include Jennison Street from the western city limits to Washington Street and Bluff Street from Covington to Garden streets.