Lane closure prompted by complaints over heavy truck, commuter traffic on Tracy’s Hansen Road

Aaron Leathley, The Record
·2 min read
Signs and barriers marking lane closures put up by the San Joaquin County Department of Public Works block southbound traffic on Hansen Road at Von Sosten Road in rural Tracy. Area residents have complained about semitruck traffic on the road.
Signs and barriers marking lane closures put up by the San Joaquin County Department of Public Works block southbound traffic on Hansen Road at Von Sosten Road in rural Tracy. Area residents have complained about semitruck traffic on the road.

The usual surge of traffic along Hansen Road in Tracy was disrupted Thursday after San Joaquin County's Department of Public Works installed concrete barriers, posts and diagonal yellow markings in the southbound lane.

Public Works blocked parts of the lane north of Interstate 205 in response to residents' complaints that semitruck and commuter traffic associated with the nearby Prologis warehouses threatens their quality of life and safety.

"I understand these people's frustration," said Chris Zarate, a road maintenance worker who helped install the barriers.

Many drivers approaching Hansen on Thursday turned around upon seeing the new concrete barriers and signs blocking entrance to the southbound lane.

But some dodged the blockades and drove several hundred feet down the lane before turning around. One silver sedan sped south in the northbound lane, skipping the barriers entirely.

"That's going to be expected," Hansen Road resident Raymond Dart said. "We'll see what happens in a week."

Traffic along Hansen Road in Tracy was disrupted Thursday after San Joaquin County's Department of Public Works installed concrete barriers, posts and diagonal yellow markings in the southbound lane.
Traffic along Hansen Road in Tracy was disrupted Thursday after San Joaquin County's Department of Public Works installed concrete barriers, posts and diagonal yellow markings in the southbound lane.

Dart and many of his neighbors have pressed the county to abandon the single-lane solution and close Hansen Road entirely, except to emergency vehicles.

But County Counsel J. Mark Myles determined that that option could violate the California Vehicle Code. Officials are studying several other potential traffic-calming solutions.

Some commuters and truck drivers found the single-lane closure disruptive.

Amazon driver Gordon Buyck, who was delivering packages on Hansen Road, worried about missing the deadline for returning to his warehouse in Livermore.

"It's going to slow me down for sure," Buyck said. "If I don't (get there in time), it looks bad for me."

Nicole Brumfield, a manager at a FedEx facility in the Prologis warehouse park, said she had to go around Hansen Road to get to work that morning. "It's going to be time-consuming."

The closure may also delay Hansen Road residents while entering and leaving their homes. But it's worth the "minor inconvenience" if the traffic problem is fixed, Dart said.

Public Works officials plan to study the barriers' impact on traffic for at least 90 days, after which the Board of Supervisors will consider the results, Deputy Director of Engineering Najee Zarif said.

Record reporter Aaron Leathley covers business, housing, and land use. She can be reached at aleathley@recordnet.com or on Twitter @LeathleyAaron. Support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.

This article originally appeared on The Record: SJ County lane closed along heavily traveled Tracy warehouse district