BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
A new city report shows the South Blair Bypass has reduced truck traffic on Washington Street, but some business owners say the decrease falls short of what they had hoped for.
According to the report, the number of trucks on Washington Street has dropped from around 1,700 to 1,300 per day since the bypass opened. The South Blair Bypass project was designed to redirect truck traffic away from the downtown area.
Tammi Japp, who owns Main Street Boutique, said she expected a much larger reduction when the bypass first opened.
"I had hoped back when the bypass first opened that the truck traffic would decrease I would say minimum 50 percent," Japp said.
Japp spoke with us in August, following years of community concern over truck traffic in Blair. That concern intensified after an 11-year-old boy was killed by a truck in 2019, prompting residents and business owners to push for safer streets.
Despite the new route, Japp said she remains concerned that truck drivers continue to pass through the neighborhood.
"I think there are some people who are Leary of parking right on Main Street because of how they're rushing by all the time and I know when I park I'm always like wait for the trucks wait for the traffic to get by," Japp said.
The city said it will continue tracking traffic numbers going forward.
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