Palmerton Borough Council last night passed an ordinance to officially close the “high truck route” in the borough.

The high truck route is an alternate route through borough side streets that high trucks take to avoid the low clearance (12 feet) of the Chestnut Ridge Railroad Bridge which spans Delaware Avenue.

Under the new ordinance, heavy trucks and tractor-trailers are prohibited on all streets except Delaware Avenue and Mauch Chunk Road, meaning if a truck’s clearance is higher than 13 feet, the driver must travel through Bowmanstown and out Fireline Road or on Route 209 to reach the Aquashicola and Little Gap areas.