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Silverdale residents press Cowley County to study truck traffic, commissioners greenlight engineering review
Summary
Residents of Silverdale Township urged Cowley County to install No Commercial Traffic and speed signage on 155th and 256th Roads, citing heavy truck traffic and bridge damage; commissioners voted 3-0 to hire the county engineering firm to study signage and traffic options.
Residents from Silverdale Township told the Cowley County Commission on Jan. 20 that increased heavy-truck traffic connected to Hy‑Grade Aggregates has damaged low-water bridges and created safety risks on portions of 155th and 256th Roads.
Brett Martin, Silverdale Township trustee, and several nearby residents described trucks hauling rock, faster driving and at least one incident where a truck backed into a yard after encountering another truck on the narrow road. Resident Jerry Hankins raised concerns about water and air quality related to blasting. Hy‑Grade Aggregates manager Tom Leis said he had spoken to drivers asking them to slow down and reported that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency inspected the pond systems designed to catch run-off and issued no citation.
County Administrator Lucas Goff said traffic counters that also record speed have been deployed and must remain in place a few more weeks before engineers can recommend signage. Commissioners noted that the counters appeared to prompt drivers to slow and directed staff to commission an engineering study. Commissioner Wayne Wilt moved, Vice Chairman Alan Groom seconded and the motion to employ the county’s engineering firm for a traffic and signage study passed 3-0.
The study will analyze traffic counts, speeds and the condition of low-water bridges, and present recommended signage or other mitigations. Officials did not set a specific timeline for the engineers’ report at the meeting.
