Oct 15, 2009 2 min read

NEWELL -Borough officials believe a new engineering study will be needed to resolve a vehicle weight-limit issue, but the borough doesn’t have the money to conduct the study. The weight-limit issue arose following complaints about the noise and weight of a truck with a refrigerated shipping container on it that runs continuously. The truck had been parked on Cassin Avenue.

The existing ordinance sets a 10-ton weight limit, with a stipulation that delivery vehicles are permitted to travel through the borough. However, borough officials discovered that the weight limit was set roughly 35 years ago and cannot be grandfathered in.

A new engineering study is now needed to verify the actual weight capacity of the road.

Last month, the borough’s water and sewer authority manager, Romeo Gallo, said that he was involved in the engineering study of the road in the early 1970s. He said the 10-ton weight limit was set because the road was constructed without a base foundation and could not support more than 10 tons.

The truck in question weighs much more than the allowed weight limit, Gallo noted. Without a new study, council cannot accurately determine the exact weight limit allowed on Cassin Avenue, and with the current economic situation a new study is not feasible, council said. Council noted it would monitor the situation.

In other matters, council is reviewing Fayette County zoning regulations in light of complaints stemming from a resident possibly operating an automobile repair shop without the property being properly zoned.

Council is scheduled to meet next on Nov. 9.