Data Center Trucks Still Turning Through Buckeystown Despite Routing Agreement

A voluntary agreement intended to steer data center construction trucks away from a busy Buckeystown intersection has not brought full compliance, according to Frederick County Sheriff Chuck Jenkins.

Jenkins told The Frederick News-Post that he has seen improvement but continues to receive reports of trucks using the intersection of Buckeystown Pike and Manor Woods Road.

The distinction matters: Jenkins said departures from the agreement are not enforceable traffic violations simply because they break the agreed route. He is seeking cooperation from developers, contractors and haulers.

The plan followed a significant traffic backup associated with construction at the Adamstown data center campus. Jenkins met with representatives of Catellus and Rowan, who agreed to route construction trucks from Buckeystown Pike onto English Muffin Way and then New Design Road.

At New Design Road and Manor Woods Road, trucks can continue toward a campus entrance or turn onto Manor Woods to reach other entrances. The aim is to avoid turning at the Buckeystown Pike–Manor Woods Road intersection.

Aligned was not represented at that meeting, but a spokesperson said its contractors already required the requested route.

Jenkins said he had observed loaded quarry trucks heading north as requested rather than taking the shorter route through Buckeystown. However, residents also sent him videos showing trucks making the discouraged turns.

The newspaper reported seeing several trucks turn at the Buckeystown intersection Friday and, on three occasions during the month, observed trucks travel from the intersection onto the data center campus.

Nikita Tjarva, an employee of nearby Nelcars Auto Services, told the newspaper he had not noticed a reduction since the agreement was reached Oct. 2. He said traffic made pulling out of the business more difficult. Owner Sebastian Sanchez also described ongoing disruption from truck volumes.

Developers offered a different assessment of compliance. Rowan spokesperson Nathaniel Brown said the company’s construction team believed implementation was working fairly well. He said GPS trackers notify the team when trucks speed or leave the designated route, and larger loads receive escorts.

A spokesperson for Aligned said contractors communicate the route, monitor restricted areas during heavy hauling and address departures when identified. Contractors have removed noncompliant drivers from the project, he said.

Catellus senior vice president Michael Kuykendall did not respond to the newspaper’s requests for comment.

Jenkins said continued coordination with transportation managers and haulers is the way to make the arrangement work. The report describes an ongoing compliance problem, not a newly adopted legal truck ban.