Residents along County Road are asking Turner officials to slow speeding motorists who are using it as a short-cut to the Maine Turnpike in Auburn.

Town Manager Kurt Schaub told the approximately two dozen people at Tuesday night’s Select Board meeting that vehicle navigation systems, mobile devices and Google Maps are sending more vehicles down the road, which runs between state Route 4 and Skillings Corner Road.

Tractor-trailers also appear to be using the the road more, Schaub said.

Residents suggested putting a double-stripe yellow centerline along some sections to indicate there is no passing.

The issue has come up before, Schaub said, but the advice the town received was there are very specific rules for striping roads.

“We need to do a little more homework,” he said.

The road is posted for 35 mph but since it is a back road and relatively smooth, vehicles tend to go faster, he said.

The Maine Department of Transportation sets speed limits in consultation with Maine State Police. The MDOT typically does a study to determine speed limits.

One resident pointed out that when a local rural road was previously striped, people drove faster at night because they could see the road better, Schaub said.

“County Road, statistically, is no different than most other roads in town,” he wrote in an email to the Sun Journal. “People are driving faster and not paying attention like they should and it causes problems.

“If we are going to (stripe) it, we need to have an engineer look at it,” he said.

The cost to paint stripes would be about $2,000 to $3,000 and it would be a recurring cost, he said.

Once one local road was striped, it would open up requests for others, and would it really accomplish the goal of keeping motorists and residents safe, he asked.

Schaub provided a list of crashes on County Road since 2015 that showed there have been more deer/vehicle collisions and vehicles off the road than major crashes. There was one fatal crash involving a pedestrian and a vehicle in 2022, according to his information.

“Selectmen are trying not to create a recurring maintenance issue,” he said, “but at the same time, it is sympathetic to what residents are saying. It’s a delicate balance with trying to balance safety and finances. We’re looking for the right balance.”

Speaking in a phone call, resident Larry Angello said people are concerned about more drivers speeding and not staying in their lane.

Willian Gagne, chief deputy of the Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office, said there have been complaints about speeding vehicles on County Road. “However, this is probably the most common complaint we receive throughout the county,” he wrote in an email.

“In July 2022, we covered the fatal car-pedestrian crash, and afterwards, (Sheriff) Eric (Samson) and I met with the select board and residents to discuss speeding and traffic concerns on County Road,” he wrote. “More recently, we’ve received complaints about vehicles doing ‘donuts’ and failing to stop at the stop signs at County Road and Fern Street.”