NORTH BEND, Wash. — The North Bend City Council wants to pass rules to keep semi-trucks from clogging city streets.
According to the Seattle Times, 900 trucks exit Interstate 90 into North Bend every day because it's the last place to park between Seattle and Ellensburg, on the other side of Snoqualmie Pass.
It's proposing permanently banning semi-truck parking on city streets. Currently, truckers only have about 140 spots to park in at a privately owned lot, Truck Town, and more are needed in and around North Bend.
The Seattle Times says when the pass closes because of weather events, another 300 to 400 trucks park along the shoulder of I-90 because they have nowhere else to go.
The Times reports that North Bend is considering banning street parking in town because of how loud the trucks are, how they contribute to traffic, the exhaust they send into the air and the wear and tear on city roads.
The city also wants to prevent any new truck stops from being built or the expansion of existing ones.
There's already an interim ordinance on city books, and “no truck parking“ signs are common around the city, but on April 5, the city council will meet to possibly make it permanent.