Strickland weighs in on truck scale issue

BILL SPARKES/Acorn Newspapers WATCH OUT FOR POTHOLES- Many commercial trucks travel through Moorpark. Some, like the one above, originate from the nearby quarries while others use Los Angeles Avenue to bypass the Camarillo Grade. The heavy truck traffic inconveniences residents. Assemblymember Audra Strickland proposes a bill to keep the Highway 118 weigh station open full time. Assemblymember Audra Strickland (R-Moorpark) recently introduced a bill that would fund full time operations at the truck weigh station on Highway 118, west of Moorpark.

The existing facility is temporary and the California Highway Patrol doesn't have the resources to man the station full time. Strickland's bill, if approved, would change that situation.

According to local officials, some truckers use Highway 118 to avoid the scales and potential fees on the 101 Freeway between Thousand Oaks and Camarillo. Some may also opt to use the alternate route because the grade is very steep and hard on heavy commercial vehicles, Supervisor Judy Mikels said in an earlier article about the subject.

But the shortcut concerns Moorpark residents because the trucks can cause havoc on Los Angeles Avenue and other local roads.

"It is one of the top issues for Moorpark," said Strickland, who lives in Moorpark. If the bill passes, the California Department of Transportation will have to fund the weigh station and provides moneys to the California Highway Patrol so officers can ensure that the commercial vehicles using the rural route are safely loaded.

The CHP and Caltrans have requested this, said Joel Angeles, Strickland's chief of staff. Authorities will then be able to more frequently check that the height, width, length or weight of those vehicles is lawful. The existing facility is not open regularly enough to catch and discourage truckers who may be breaking the law.

The local facility is fourth on a Caltrans list of priorities but Strickland is trying to expedite the process, Angeles said.

Moorpark officials are pleased. "We are a strong supporter of the bill and will do what we can to support Strickland on that," said Hugh Riley, assistant city manager.

Moorpark has long been asking for more funding to enable the CHP to increase hours of operation at the existing facility, he said. "We should have a much larger facility that is operated more frequently," Riley said.

Simi Valley Councilmember Glen Becerra echoed Riley's enthusiasm. Although Simi Valley residents are not directly affected by the truck traffic, safety is important, he said.

Truckers are sophisticated enough to know when the scales are open, so it's important to ensure that both the 101 Freeway and rural 118 scales are open concurrently, Becerra said. That would improve safety for vehicles going through the area and deter shortcuts through the city of Moorpark.

"You don't want to push the trucks out onto the steep grade on the 101 Freeway without being safe," Becerra said.

In an earlier article about truck traffic, Mikels said a study of the rural highway corridor found that while the scales are not always open, Highway Patrol officers are trained to spot trucks that might have problems.

"They do a good job at just pulling off the trucks that should be inspected," she said.

At a recent Moorpark City Council meeting authorities confirmed that vigilance has increased; more citations were issued in 2005.

The Ventura County Transportation Commission and the CHP are working to get a permanent weigh station built on Highway 118 and the project is ready to go, but it would cost $20 million and funding for construction is not available, Mikels said.