18 wheelers problem downtown Abbeville

An Abbeville police officer was dispatched to downtown Abbeville Tuesday morning to help fix a problem with traffic.

Abbeville City Councilman Francis Plaisance was at city hall when he noticed 18-wheeler trucks constantly passing in front of the courthouse and going straight on South State Street.

Abbeville has an ordinance which states that 18-wheelers can not pass through downtown Abbeville unless the truck has business downtown.

The city has a truck route which directs trucks to drive on the La. 14 bypass to North Airport Road and then turn on Jacquelyn Street. The trucks would reconnect with South State Street by the Sportsman.

A majority of the trucks that travel in front of the courthouse are headed to Intracoastal City.

“There must be some big project going on south of here, because there was a large amount of trucks,” Plaisance said.

The Abbeville Police were called and SPO. Nick Picard was dispatched to the scene.

Picard was by the courthouse all day writing tickets to drivers of 18 wheelers.

Abbeville Police Chief Rick Coleman said when an 18-wheeler drives downtown, it creates a dangerous situation. The trucks have been known to knock down street signs or hit parked cars.

“It is a serious problem,” Coleman said. “We are losing signs daily. There is not enough room for the trucks.”

Coleman said it is a mess on Sundays when 18-wheelers try to go around Magdalen Square while there is church. Large trucks have trouble making turns in front of Piazza Office Supply with cars parked for church.

“At first we were warning drivers,” Coleman said. “Now, we are writing tickets. They usually get mad because most of them are not from here. They are from out of state delivering a large piece of equipment.”

Coleman said his units will continue to write tickets as long as trucks attempt to travel downtown Abbeville instead of on the truck route.