The town of Edgartown’s decision to bar a sightseeing tour van charter business from its downtown streets is sound, the state Department of Public Utilities has ruled.

“The decision by the Edgartown selectmen that [tour van] service should be limited to two-way streets is reasonable,” the DPU wrote in a decision released this week. The ruling upholds the town in its dispute with businessman Ron Minkin, who wants to operate a summer sightseeing tour van business in all the Island towns using five 14-passenger vans.

Mr. Minkin had won approval for his business from all the Island towns except Edgartown, where in January the town selectmen decided to block the tour vans from coming past Church street in the downtown area. An agreement between the town the other major sightseeing transport companies on the Island stipulates that they must stop at Church street.

Mr. Minkin, who had pressed his case based on the fact that he was using small vans, not large tour busses, appealed the decision to the state DPU, which held a hearing on the dispute in late March. Testifying for the town at the hearing were town police chief Antone Bettencourt, selectman Michael Donaroma and a traffic expert from Fay Spofford Thorndike.

In the ruling issued this week the DPU backed the town’s concerns about public safety on the narrow, one-way streets which see extreme traffic congestion in the summer months.

“The department finds that the town of Edgartown’s concerns for public safety in downtown Edgartown are valid,” the ruling states.

Edgartown town counsel Ronald H. Rappaport notified the selectmen of the ruling at their weekly meeting Monday.

Reached by telephone Tuesday, Mr. Minkin said he was unhappy with the decision but will live with it — for now.

“I think it’s a terrible thing they’ve done,” he said. “I’m an American, they’re stopping business . . . I have eight good people who want to go to work and they’re deprived of this job because of the state and local government.”

He said he plans to return to the selectmen with a revised plan that will not include vans.

Meanwhile, Mr. Minkin said he will operate his Islandwide tours but may leave Edgartown out of the tour.