City Council earlier this month passed a resolution restricting tractor-trailers from traveling on a portion of Kenyon Road, and neighbors say they are pleased with the difference.

“We noticed it right away,” said Sandy Edwards, who has lived on Kenyon Road since 1971. “We immediately noticed a big difference.”

Edwards said the restriction has reduced the noise level and made it easier to get out of her driveway, among other benefits.

“You can go to your mailbox and don’t feel like you’re going to get run over,” she said. “Little things mean a lot.”

The city has been working toward providing another route for trucks to travel for several years. The Kenyon Road Connector, a cut-through in the CenterPoint Intermodal development, had to be completed before truck traffic on Kenyon could be restricted.

Public Works Director Eric Nielsen, in the Dec. 7 City Council meeting where the restriction was approved, listed the reasons that the narrow, two-lane road is not ideal for truck traffic.

The section where trucks are no longer allowed, between Kenyon Court and Holland Road, has a 25-mile-per-hour speed limit, Nielsen said. There is fairly high-density housing. A high school and community college are located within the stretch of road.

Just to the north is YMCA Camp Arrowhead, Councilman Tim Johnson noted in his comments during the meeting.

“For the residents out there and the schools and Paul D. Camp (Community College) and the Y, it’s a good day,” Johnson said.

Councilman Roger Fawcett added his agreement.

“It’s a very needed piece that needs to be shut down to trucks,” he said.

Edwards said the truck traffic on the road didn’t get bad until several years ago, when the warehouse industry started to bloom in the area. The CenterPoint development, which features tenants such as Ace Hardware’s Suffolk Import Redistribution Center and NEXCOM’s Northeast Distribution Center, includes only a few of the many warehouses in the area. California Cartage, farther north on Kenyon Road, as well as the Target Upstream Distribution Center on Manning Bridge Road, all contribute to the traffic.

Nielsen said the Department of Economic Development had checked with warehouse operators and did not report any objections to the truck restriction.

For her part, Edwards hopes the restriction continues — and, so far, everyone seems to be obeying the rules.

“I really haven’t seen anybody abusing it,” she said.