The telecommunications company Verizon has made it a policy to not ask for a police detail when roadside work is done, said Police Chief Paul Magee.

“Officers on patrol have found Verizon employees working in the road, sometimes blocking full lanes of traffic,” Magee said. “Officers were told by Verizon employees they are being directed to work without a police detail until they are caught.”

Police details are required when roadside work is done on the town’s busier roads. Magee said the department has enforcement options, but he hoped to resolve the issue with Verizon through a warning before handing out citations.

On Monday, he sought support from Selectmen to send Verizon a letter asking them to request police details in the future. Town Counsel has also supported Magee’s efforts.

Magee wrote in a letter to Selectmen that: “It is also clear that this conscious disregard is a corporate policy and not a series of isolated incidents.”

In the past, Verizon routinely requested details when needed.

With only two officers on patrol at any given time, Magee said assigning one of them to the roadside detail puts the public safety at risk. An additional officer is needed for those situations, he said.

“It’s for the public safety and their own safety,” Magee said.

Selectmen unanimously supported Magee. In the letter, Magee wrote that his department will move forward with enforcement if details aren't requested in the future.

“Please be advised that the Town intends to take and all actions necessary to make [the practice] stop,” he wrote.