MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — City Council chose to table a proposed Home Rule Amendment that included the ability to regulate truck weight on state roads that fall within the city’s corporate limits, possibly providing an opportunity for an alternative “win-win” resolution in an on-again-off-again legal dispute that has spanned years.
The amendment, which was placed on the Council’s informal Committee of the Whole agenda, is now being kept in reserve while City Manager Paul Brake attempts to come up with an alternative solution that he said wouldn’t immediately “put certain individuals or entities on the defensive.”
“We’re looking for a solution,” he said. “It’s not so much regulating, but part of reaching that solution could be through regulation. We did leave that possibility open as part of this Home Rule Amendment.”
“But looking at more from a holistic perspective and looking at the improvements that DOH is making and see what progress that we can make and if there’s reasonable efforts that are put forth, then it’s not necessary to have an ordinance amendment like this.”
The City of Morgantown has lost bids to regulate truck traffic through their downtown streets twice, most recently in 2016 at the West Virginia State Supreme Court. The state’s highest court then ruled that a municipality didn’t have the jurisdiction to regulate state roads.
“The goal is to move the trucks outside of the downtown area,” Brake said. “But they have to have a roadway system that’s fast and efficient for their purposes.”
As of now, downtown Morgantown remains the most efficient means of truck commerce.
“The intersections on Greenbag Road get congested easily,” said Bill Austin, MPO Executive Director. “If the intersections get congested, everything gets held up.”
A 2015 study by the Morgantown Monongalia Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) concluded that sufficient work on widening Greenbag Road for additional truck traffic could cost between $6 and $10 million. The entirety of the Greenbag Road project was expected to cost upwards of $30 million, if adopted as recommended by the study.
Austin remains optimistic that the project could one day be completed, though perhaps not all at once.
“Think $15 million dollars in the first phase, and around $15 million dollars in the second phase,” he said. “You always look at ways to phase projects out because of potential funding shortages.”
Ten years from now, Austin expects that area to look exceptionally different — possibly with an even more ambitious project than what the MPO outlined in 2015.
“I am optimistic, in one way or another, that this project will happen,” Austin said. “It is difficult to say, though. Maybe between 2021 and 2024.”
Meanwhile, it was Morgantown City Manager Paul Brake who suggested the better alternative, rather than bringing forth the Home Rule Amendment, would include opening a dialogue with Department of Transportation Secretary Tom Smith, along with the Mayor and Deputy Mayor and Division of Highways District 4 Managing Director Don Williams.
“That doesn’t mean we can’t revisit what we postponed (Tuesday) night,” Deputy Mayor Mark Brazaitis said. “We still have the option of moving it forward in October. We still have it in our arsenal so to speak.”
The DOH announced last week that 143 projects in Monongalia County would be under work over the next three years, including parts of Rt. 705, Mon Boulevard, and Greenbag Road — the last one considered perhaps the best alternative for how to redirect truck traffic without initiating controversial ordinances possibly beyond the scope of the municipality’s jurisdiction.
Brake said the work on Greenbag Road is a start — though much more is needed to make the area a viable alternative for truckers who currently make use of Morgantown’s downtown roadway system.
“I think with the road improvements that the DOH is making — as what was referenced to Greenbag Road and Rt. 7 — that’s a good example of making those intersections better for trucks to go through,” he said.
Austin said Greenbag Road, at present, isn’t equipped to handle the type of heavy truck traffic that has caused years of legal battles between Morgantown and trucking companies. The hope, if the project is completed, is that Greenbag Road would offer competitive travel times compared with downtown Morgantown’s roadways.
“This project would make it much more competitive in time savings,” Austin said. “It would not necessarily make it faster, but much more competitive — closer in time. It would be a more comfortable drive — most truckers do not like driving downtown.”
Brake said an opportunity to replace confrontation with dialogue was one he couldn’t avoid.
“(Smith) brings a kind of a new vision to the transportation organization,” Brake said. “So, I think having the opportunity to have that conversation with him and talk about what our community issues are here.”
“The problems that occurred, they didn’t start overnight. And we’re not going to solve them that way,” he added.
The decision to recommend tabling the amendment may have been a surprise to Council, something Deputy Mayor Mark Brazaitis said as much during Tuesday night’s meeting.
But, Brazaitis added, he’s open to any solution that reaches Council’s end-game: a reduction in downtown truck traffic.
“We’re opening up that conversation,” he said. “We’re going to take a look at all of the stakeholders concerns and issues and sit down and figure out what might work for all of us. I’m all for win-win-win solutions here. This is going to re-open that conversation, and we’ll see if we can finally make it happen — or at least make some kind of dent in the situation.”
Brazaitis did not comment on whether City Council representatives have been in touch with representatives from industries that primarily use the downtown road system for truck commerce.
The Department of Transportation did not respond Wednesday to an e-mail asking for confirmation of such a dialogue between Smith and Brake.