THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, February 16, 1996 TAG: 9602140148
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 03 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TONI WHITT, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 61 lines
In the '70s, truckers got some respect. There were movies and TV shows about truck drivers: Convoy, Smokey and the Bandit, and BJ and the Bear. They had their own songs. One of the key phrases of the decade was ``keep on truckin'.''
In the '90s, things seem to have changed. The city is looking for ways to keep truckers from parking their vehicles at home. There have been complaints from some folks who don't want to hear the trucks or see them parked in their neighbors' driveways.
During a City Council meeting on Monday, truck drivers and business owners fought a new ordinance to prohibit or limit truck drivers from coming into residential neighborhoods.
The ordinance was aimed at all commercial vehicles larger than one ton. Currently, the large vehicles cannot be parked on city streets, but city ordinances do allow one commercial vehicle at a residence.
The city had proposed two alternatives. One would have prohibited all trucks from parking in residential areas. The second would have allowed one truck as long as it was parked in a garage or otherwise hidden from view.
After nearly a dozen truck drivers spoke out against both alternatives Monday, the council sent the proposed regulations back to the planning department and the planning commission to come up with other options. They asked that different sizes and types of trucks be placed into different categories rather than have them lumped together as commercial vehicles larger than one ton.
Tow truck owners were out in force Monday night. They said the new ordinance would ruin their business.
When police call tow trucks to accidents or to stalled cars, the trucks have to be at the scene within 30 minutes. Most businesses send the tow trucks home with the drivers so that they can respond quickly in the middle of the night.
Billy Ray Turner, who owns Turner Towing, said the new ordinance would kill his business.
``I have five wreckers, and they stay at the drivers' homes,'' Turner said. ``They have to get to a call within a certain amount of time. This (the proposed new ordinance) makes it impossible. This is how we make our living. If you pass this, you'll take our livelihood.''
Truck owners said they didn't understand the reason for hiding trucks from their neighbors' view. They would still have to drive in and out of the neighborhoods.
Speakers who drive tractor-trailers said that they couldn't park away from their homes for fear their trucks would be broken into or vandalized.
Council members agreed that the ordinance was anti-business and asked the city staff to really consider what problem needed to be solved - whether it was the visual impact of trucks in residential sections or the noise from trucks. They also asked that different vehicles be put into different classifications based on size. And finally, they asked that the staff consider if neighborhood complaints could be solved under existing laws. by CNB