Semi trucks have still occasionally been seen parking on service roads in the west end of town despite the erection of no-parking signs .
Semi trucks have still occasionally been seen parking on service roads in the west end of town despite the erection of no-parking signs.
Olds' chief administrative officer Norm McInnis said he has noticed trucks "intermittently" parking on the service roads parallel to Highway 27 between 61 Avenue and Imperial Road.
He said the town's parking bylaws are being enforced with tickets and the town's community peace officer has been speaking with drivers.
Conversations with truck drivers have not gone poorly, McInnis said, though some have complained about the lack of parking alternatives.
"They're branding us as being (truck unfriendly) and there's no place for truck drivers to park and the town should come up with a solution to that," McInnis said.
Bryan Yoos owns a trucking business in town and has his own yard for parking.
"We try to get them in there … but there's the odd time where one or two of them got to sit on the streets," Yoos said. "It's not like I'm parking my stuff all over town just to find a place to park it. My stuff is parked where my shop is."
Yoos said he was also frustrated by congestion in the area caused by visiting truckers who parked on the streets but disagrees with the town putting up the signs.
"It's an industrial part of town. As long as the guys are parking without blocking anybody's exits, any of their places, I don't know why they would want to shut the trucks from parking there," he said.
However, the town's position is that truck parking is a cost of doing business and a responsibility for trucking companies to assume, McInnis said.
At a council meeting on May 26, the town decided to post signs that would restrict parking to 30 minutes on the south side of the north service road between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., Monday to Friday.
Parking on either side of the south service road – where trucks have been seen – was disallowed.
This has resulted in drivers parking their vehicles elsewhere in town.
"There's some now going on the little service road that is just in front of No Frills, so where the gas bar is there. And we noticed some truck parking over by the Auction Mart," he said.
"(54 Street) is a truck route so they can't park there. It's just causing other logistical problems so we're moving the problem from one area to others."
Like speeding, McInnis said the solution to the matter would be ongoing enforcement.
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