Fish respond quickly to stimuli or incentives. Characteristically, they grow in proportion to the size of their tank or environment, gradually engulfing all living matter. Trucking in the city of Auburn carries a corresponding analogy. Witness Grant Avenue and the downtown Arterial. Larger trucks in increased numbers descend upon these arteries as they have become developed over the years.

On the surface, all seems well. After all, trucks have transformed the transportation industry. Our quality of life has improved accordingly, and most truckers do laudable work. Yet, as with any undertaking of marketable proportions, benefits must be weighed against costs.

Large interstate carriers are, by their very nature, intimidating and tend to monopolize the traffic lanes they share with lesser vehicles. Over time, mega-axle machines break down asphalt and curbs, passing on the cost of repairs to municipalities. The operators of such carriers practice no special allegiance to local safety ordinances as they travel these cross-town thoroughfares. Their vehicles may be regularly found taking short cuts over side streets, and speed limits are commonly ignored.

Given this scenario, the proposed feeder road bypass will not alter the public's perception of trucking in general - lack of respect for people and property. With due deference to responsible truckers, the proposed feeder road will only shift the public's concern from Grant Avenue and the Arterial to the North Street/York Street corridor. Institutionalized change is called for.

In years past, trains would transport items of bulk proportions to waiting carriers. Within the city limits, carriers would travel more openly defined corridors and adhere to strict schedules of delivery.

Former local carriers like Red Star, Stott & Davis and Ockenden Dairy would hook up with long haulers to make local and regional deliveries. They enjoyed widespread community acclaim inasmuch as they originated locally as family-owned businesses. These carriers and others once numbered among Auburn's top employers in terms of manpower and productivity.

Of course, we cannot reclaim the past. However, certain rules of decorum must be installed and observed for trucking to enjoy uninterrupted success. Overall, these concern the safety of the consumer. Law enforcement has taken new steps in this direction, but more needs to be done by legislators on a countywide basis. A universal ordinance has the potential for installing permanent and far-reaching standards along the major arteries.

Such an ordinance may include restricting large carriers to the right lane only and setting fines for speeding, tailgating and late-night travel through residential neighborhoods. Finally, with the completion of the feeder road bypass, regulating large trucks to only one sector of the twin corridors of the downtown Arterial may alleviate peak periods of congestion.

Fogarty writes from Auburn