PennDOT Approves New Signage for Upper Nazareth Road

“No Trucks Allowed” will soon mean just that in Upper Nazareth Township.

Upper Nazareth Police Chief Alan Siegfried announced at Wednesday’s township meeting that the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation to remove the “Except Local Deliveries” portion of the “No Trucks Allowed” signs on Newburg Road near Township Line and Silver Crest roads.

“As soon as Shawn gets a wrench in hand those signs will be gone,” Siegfried said, with a nod toward Shawn Shupe, road supervisor for Upper Nazareth’s Department of Public Works.

Supervisors last month asked PennDOT to approve the signage change on state-owned Newburg Road in an effort to reduce truck traffic in the neighborhood.

Tractor trailers making wide turns at intersections not designed for heavy truck traffic -- such as Newburg and Silver Crest roads -- have knocked down signs and mailboxes and have disrupted traffic patterns in the area.

Members of the audience on Wednesday mentioned that the area became a traffic mess again during recent storms that caused PennDOT to close a portion of Route 512.

Siegfried emphasized that trucks heading for legitimate local businesses in the area, such as fuel oil delivery trucks and UPS and FedEx vans, will not be cited.

In another development directed at reducing truck traffic in the same area, township solicitor Gary Asteak said he sent a proposed intermunicipal agreement between Upper Nazareth and East Allen townships to East Allen’s solicitor for review.

The to cite trucks that travel illegally on the East Allen side of Township Line Road. The center line of that road forms the border between the townships. East Allen relies on Pennsylvania State Police for coverage, while Upper Nazareth has its own police force.

Once the agreement is finalized, it must be adopted via ordinance by both townships to take effect, Asteak said. One provision of the agreement states that revenue from fines generated by traffic stops on the East Allen side of the road by Upper Nazareth police will be collected by Upper Nazareth, the solicitor said.

In other business, supervisors will hold workshops to discuss the 2012 township budget throughout October. For dates and times, call the Upper Nazareth municipal office at (610) 759-5341.

The Upper Nazareth Township supervisors meet the first and third Wednesday of each month at the , 100 Newport Ave.