The City of Cranbrook is clearing up communication on their load restrictions, noting that many of the City’s industrial and arterial roads allow for 100% Legal Axle Loads.
Last Wednesday, February 12th, the City of Cranbrook implemented 70% load restrictions on City streets while some other streets were reduced to just 50%. Communicating with commercial and industrial businesses over the past number of days about the issue, the City of Cranbrook said the majority of industrial and arterial roads align with Provincial numbered highway restrictions to allow for 100% loads.
The load restrictions were originally put in place to protect the city’s roads from further damage.
“When the frost first comes out of the ground the soils underneath the pavement become very saturated and unstable, which can quickly lead to significant pavement damage and unsafe road conditions from heavy loads,” said Mike Matejka last week, Manager of Infrastructure. “We’ve had this occur a few times over the past several years and want to be as proactive as possible to protect our roads.”
To try and clarify where the load restrictions are in place, the City of Cranbrook had made a map showing the major routes were 100% loads are permitted. Although, the City said that should those roads begin to show damage from heavy traffic, additional restrictions may be put into place.
“As this is the first year for this citywide program to take place, the City of Cranbrook is focusing on communication and education with industry, rather than enforcement, to make sure minimal impacts occur to business and construction operations, while also protecting the road infrastructure from significant damage heavy loads can create,” said the City of Cranbrook.
Looking ahead, the City will be creating a sign-up program where maps and updates will be available through automatic emails so the community can be quickly informed of any changes.
Previous: Cranbrook Places Load Restrictions to Minimize Road Damage (February 12, 2020)
