Raise the Hammer

I don't want to sound like I'm harping, but living where I do this is a constant problem. I've made it a pet project of mine over the years. A few points to clarify and answer some of the above questions:

1. Yes, truck routes are common everywhere. Hamilton's only truck restriction downtown is on King from Welling to Queen. From Queen to the 403 it's just as bad as Main and York.
2. I've personally followed trucks on occasion over the years just to see where they are going. The vast majority are headed to the NE industrial district. In fact, of all the trucks I've followed (I know it's not very scientific, but it's my only choice considering the lack of care at city hall) I've never seen one end it's destination west of Sherman. Most went much further east, some all the way to Eastport Dr, right next to the QEW!.
3. We were told during Red Hill/Linc construction that we'd finally be able to retool the truck routes to get them off downtown residential and commercial streets.
4. To the first poster who said this could easily have happened on a two-way. I'm not so sure. I've sat at Victoria and Main and watched these guys turn. They fly around that corner into the far left lane on Main. If Main was two way, they'd need to slow right down and make a very slow, safe turn in order to keep to the right on Main. A trailer wouldn't have enough speed to come off and start rambling towards buildings and people if this turn was being made onto a two-way.
5. Think of great places you've visited - Byward Market, Ottawa. Quincey Market, Boston. Old Montreal. Hess Village, Hamilton. Gastown, Vancouver. And of course any number of towns and cities in Europe. Imagine turning those places into 4-5 lane, one-way freeways with timed lights and non-stop transport trucks. That's what we've done here. There is no reason why any trucks headed to our industrial area can't use the Linc/Red Hill/Burlington St, or 403/QEW/Burlington St. I have a friend who drives truck and he says Hamilton is the only city they shortcut through. They wouldn't dream of doing it in TO or London or Ottawa. I asked him why. He responded "all those one-way streets and timed lights".
6. Please email your councilor and the mayor about this huge safety issue. The Chamber of Commerce is pretty much useless as they'll never support anything that involves improving the livability and business success in Hamilton if it means redirecting traffic or some basic traffic calming. But council is worth contacting. They should have a vested interest in making Hamilton a great place to live and do business in.