Walker Township Supervisors awarded a bid for road repair work to Schuylkill Paving in the amount of $77,265.

The township received two bids:

• Schuylkill Paving, $49/square yard. Total base bid was $54,920, plus the three alternate streets, total bid $77,265.

• Lehigh Asphalt, $92/square yard. Total base bid was $106,260. With the three alternate streets, total bid $148,302.

The work to be done includes patching and repairs to shoulders, fixing potholes, and making some base repairs. The streets to be fixed include sections of Valley Road and Catawissa Road, with three alternates: Kettle Road, Mountain Road and Reynolds Road.

The township budgeted $100,784 for the road projects, so the supervisors approved the base bid plus all three alternate streets.

“I think we’re getting a good deal,” Supervisor Craig Wagner said of the Schuylkill Paving bid.

Speeding tanker trucks

Walker Township residents Margaret and David Bensinger addressed supervisors about a problem with large tanker trucks along Valley Road.

“The trucks come zooming down the road past our house, and they often cross over the center of the road to make the curves,” Margaret Bensinger said. “Someone is going to get killed.”

“They come around the curves, and the middle of the trailer is on the yellow line,” David Bensinger added.

Supervisor Matthew Koch said he also has heard the trucks.

“They blow the Jake Brake from the top of our hill all the way to the crossroads. They had 12 tankers going down there on Sunday, and they were holding it in there the whole time. I went out to yell at them, they said ‘I don’t care what you do; it’s a safety device, and I’ll blow it as much as I want. You can take me to court.’”

Another problem spot is a metal-grate bridge on the road. The trucks end up in the middle of the road to cross the bridge.

“You can’t fit a 53-foot trailer in an 8-foot lane and not cross the road. The bridge is like pulling straws; you never know who you’re going to meet trying to cross it.”

Police Chief Doug Springer said he would see about having someone watch for the trucks to see what can be done.

“We’ll look for him,” Springer said. “We’ll address it.”