Truck officer makes first patrol in county

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The multi-county truck regulatory officer spent his first day in Stutsman County Monday. It was a productive one.

“Three out of the five trucks I stopped were overweight,” said Tim Gillespie, truck regulatory officer. “They averaged about 1,500 pounds overweight with the worst about 7,500 pounds over.”

One driver was warned while two were issued citations, he said. The largest fine issued was $220.

Gillespie serves the four-county area of Stutsman, Barnes, LaMoure and Dickey. He was hired for the position this spring and will randomly move from county to county stopping and weighing trucks he has reason to believe are loaded beyond the legal limit.

As a representative of the four county governments, the patrols will largely occur on paved county roads. Most of those roads have a total weight limit of 80,000 pounds.

“It is important to see him around and keeping everybody legal,” said Chad Kaiser, Stutsman County sheriff.

Kaiser said the concept of a Multi County Truck Regulatory Committee has been in the works for more than a year. The office is funded through contributions by the four involved counties. Gillespie is headquartered in Valley City but will patrol the four counties equally.

“We’ll see him in Stutsman on a random schedule,” Kaiser said. “The intent is to keep the overloaded trucks off the roads and prevent the damage they do. It’s especially important now when the roads are so soft.”

Gillespie sees the job as not issuing tickets but being a presence that deters illegal activity.

“The main goal is not to cite people,” he said. “But to let everyone know we’re looking for overweights and protecting our roads.”

Sun reporter Keith Norman can be reached at (701) 952-8452 or by e-mail at knorman@jamestownsun.com

Tags: local news, news, trucks, roads