Residents told the Pulaski County Board of Commissioners that traffic associated with solar construction and contractor schedules is causing safety concerns at local roads and intersections; Sheriff Chris Schramm said he has increased patrols and will continue targeted enforcement.
The topic matters because residents described repeated near-misses, damage to roadside property and fears for schoolchildren’s safety as contractor traffic and altered work-hour schedules coincided with bus routes and school travel times.
Multiple residents testified about vehicles traveling at high speeds on county roads near construction sites and about what they described as unsafe driving by contractor crews. One resident said tire marks extended into her front yard and described “racing cars” and workers who would not follow requests to slow down. Another resident reported an accident at a local intersection that resulted in people being taken to the hospital and said the vehicles involved bore out-of-state plates.
Sheriff Chris Schramm responded that the department has increased patrols in affected areas and uses targeted shifts when bus traffic is present. He said he has personally spent overtime on patrols, dispatched multiple officers and will continue to schedule enforcement through peak times, but warned the department cannot be everywhere at once and called for residents to report violations promptly. “We’re not sitting on our hands. We’re out there as much as we can,” Schramm said.
Commissioners and commenters tied the traffic issue to larger development pressure from renewable-energy projects and to resource constraints for sheriff and emergency services. Several residents asked the county to pause further large projects until enforcement, road impacts and emergency-service capacity can be assessed.