Dunn County highway staff briefed the committee July 9 on a surge of heavy truck traffic over County Road BB after an Interstate 94 closure, describing damage risk and repeated disregard of the roadways weight-posting. Staff said citizens counted as many as 239 semis on the route during a single incident and that many through drivers ignored posted weight limits and the bridges restriction.

"We did put a traffic counter out after this event just to make sure, and we are seeing vehicles greater than 40 feet in length consistently on a daily basis," a highway staff member said. The counter tracks length, not weight, so staff said it cannot confirm whether vehicles were loaded but said the frequency and length of trucks raised safety and structural concerns.

Highway staff told the committee they have already requested permission from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation to install an advance advisory sign on State Highway 25 warning drivers of a 20-ton bridge and "no through traffic." Staff also proposed upgraded signs at the 25/B B intersection, improved legibility, and optional additions such as wind-activated whirly birds or $1,000 flashing yellow lights to increase driver attention. The county notified state patrol and the sheriffs office and said law enforcement has a role enforcing the restriction when interstate closures divert traffic.

Staff said replacing the bridge is a longer-term solution but cautioned that even if the bridge makes the DOTs priority list, replacement would likely take about five years from application to completion. "We are looking at maybe making a headline story on this particular bridge, with the TDA, to kinda maybe say there's structures out there like this that are gonna be very high cost to replace," a highway staff member said.

The committee discussed enforcement and the difficulty of physically stopping trucks during interstate detours. Staff said the county does not want to place highway employees in traffic-control duty to block through trucks but will enhance passive measures and coordinate with law enforcement during future detours. Staff also said they might develop a public plan for how to respond when I-94 closures occur to limit heavy traffic on local roads.

No vote or ordinance change directly resulted from the briefing; staff said they will install improved signage and continue outreach with DOT and law enforcement while seeking the DOT bridge-priority list and considering public messaging to reduce risky detours.