It appears that the complaints from residents of Trzebień about US Army soldiers who were driving over roads and destroying the village’s infrastructure have had the desired effect. Following interventions by local government officials from Bolesławiec County and the Bolesławiec municipality, the Ministry of National Defence sent its representatives twice to inspect the site. Ministry officials confirmed that the United States Army’s vehicles are too wide for our roads.
What next?
Construction of a special access road from A18 to the training ground has been commissioned. Will this bring the ordeal of Trzebień’s residents to an end? We will return to the subject.
Let us recall. In June, we reported that local government officials from Bolesławiec County met in Trzebień (Bolesławiec municipality) with the consul general of the United States. The meeting—as a Reader informed us—concerned problems related to military vehicles travelling through the village.
Reader:
The problem for residents is the large vehicles of the US Army and the Polish Army, which simply do not fit on the roads that are too narrow and lead through Trzebień to the nearby training ground. As a result, there is considerable damage and situations that are unsafe for the residents of this locality. Among other things, a roadside shrine was demolished.
And added:
Shame! It turns out that the US army is more interested in the problem than the Polish one. To this day, the Ministry of National Defence has not responded to appeals from the local government and residents.
Then, at the beginning of May, in the article Desperate residents of Trzebień write to Błaszczak. The reason? US Army, we reported that residents of Trzebień had written a letter to the head of the Ministry of National Defence, Mariusz Błaszczak. The document stated:
[...] We live near the Trzebień Mały military camp, where military exercises take place. For several years now, US troops have been stationed in the territory of the Republic of Poland. The Polish state authorities had known about the arrival of the aforementioned troops for a long time. To date, nothing has been done in the Trzebień area to designate a suitable route for the passage of oversized military vehicles.The roads running through our village are not adapted for this type of transport. As a result of the passage of convoys in 2016, 2017 and this year, in April, the road, verges and roadside infrastructure of the village were damaged [...].
We live in constant fear for our safety and that of our children. Military vehicles and vehicles servicing the military drive along the narrow road where we live. The passage of heavy transports is extremely troublesome. They cause noise, air pollution and pose a danger to pedestrian traffic, especially children on their way to school.
We cannot even move freely along the narrow verges, because passing vehicle convoys literally push us into the ditches. [...]
Soon, military traffic is expected to increase. We no longer have the strength or the patience. The residents are determined.