While there has been a lot of hand wringing about keeping Georgia competitive with neighboring states, it is important to note that while some surrounding states allow heavier weights, they are targeted toward specific, critical industries. HB 189 is all-encompassing and does not include any additional revenue that local governments would desperately need for increased infrastructure damage. The bills include no additional requirement for upgrades to heavier trucks to make them safer. Read More +…
Chattanooga Times Free Press (GA): Opinion – Heavier trucks are a bad deal for Dade County, Georgia
“Think about the impact here locally. We already see lots of trucks coming off the interstates and using state roads like 136 going over Lookout Mountain. In Trenton, we have an industrial park where big trucks must use local roads to access the facilities. Often, we see trucks breaking off the shoulders of streets because of their heavy weight. It’s city and county taxpayers — not the owners of these trucks — who’ll foot the bill for additional repairs to…
Morgan County Citizen (GA): Local governments rally against proposed truck legislation
“In an email, Mestres said the increased load would affect both Morgan County roads and bridges. “Morgan County secondary roads are not built to a 90,000-lb. standard for five-axel commercial trucks. The county has been working hard to rehabilitate our roadways by resurfacing utilizing Transportation Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (TSPLOST) funds. Many of our roadways have less than three inches of asphalt before you get to a rock/dirt base. The 12.5 percent weight increase will increase the potential…
AP: Georgia considers heavier trucks despite official opposition
Opponents warn taxpayers will pay more for infrastructure repairs, essentially subsidizing truckers. They also fear that heavier trucks could pose more danger to people riding in lighter passenger vehicles. McMurry estimated that it could cost billions more to rebuild damaged state highways and to replace state bridges that wouldn’t meet the new weight standard, suggesting Georgia might have to increase fuel taxes. “We’ll have to redirect our funding and spend billions — let me say that again, billions — more…
WTVM-9 (GA): Heavier Trucks Will Kill
If Georgia votes for heavier trucks, those trucks won’t be able to use interstate highways where the weight limit is capped at 80,000 pounds. The heavy trucks will instead only drive on state, county, and local roads, creating dangerous driving conditions where we live. And heavier trucks will tear up the asphalt and weaken bridges faster, leaving local taxpayers to foot road repair bills out of their already overburdened city and county budgets. We urge you to contact your local…
The Hill: Bigger trucks on highways: The return of a bad idea to Congress
Congress has been remarkably clear headed and consistent in its opposition. Any increase “to truck size or weight would present both an unacceptable risk to motorist safety, including the safety of truck drivers themselves, and an unaffordable strain on roads and bridges in our communities,” several dozen lawmakers said in a joint letter back in 2020. “Congress has repeatedly rejected proposals to increase truck size and weight in a bipartisan fashion, and a large coalition of stakeholders — including public…
Georgia Recorder: Georgia House panel rolls with bill to allow bigger rigs on state, local roads despite safety and damage worries
“It is not good engineering practice to increase the legal loads until they break the bridge and then decide to back off,” she said. “We’re spending more on bridges per year than we ever have. But with these weights we’ll have more restrictions in place than we ever have before and the damage to our infrastructure cannot be reversed.” House Bill 189 will still need to clear the full House and Senate chambers and be signed by Kemp before it…
ABC 9 (GA): Georgia House of Representatives considers raising truck driving weight limit
Thursday, Georgia’s House Transportation Committee voted 18-11, advancing a House bill increasing the weight limit of large trucks from 80,000 pounds to 90,000 pounds. 80,000 pounds is currently the same as the federal limit on interstate highways. After a five-and-a-half hour hearing, despite a furious counterattack from the Georgia Department of Transportation, the bill advanced to the full House. “The fact is allowing heavier weights on the highways and bridges shortens the lifecycle of our bridges and pavements,” Meg Pirkle, the…
WSB-TV (GA): Lawmaker wants to up weight limit for trucks on state roads… but is it safe to do so?
But GDOT Commissioner Russell McMurry said while he supports farmers, loggers, and truckers, Georgia’s highways are not built for 90,000-pound trucks, and most non-interstate bridges aren’t rated to carry them. “The simple fact is our bridges in the state are not designed to hold this additional weight. In fact, 97% of the bridges in Georgia are designed to hold 80,000 pounds or less,” McMurry said. And then there’s safety. Steve Owings founded a highway safety organization after a speeding truck…
WSB-TV (GA): Some Georgia government officials seek to ban heavier trucks in Georgia
ATLANTA — More than 100 local government leaders across Georgia signed a letter asking legislators to oppose a bill that would increase the weight of heavier trucks across Georgia. House Bill 189 would increase the weight of semi-trucks to 90,000 pounds, which would add five tons to the current 80,000-pound limit. Heavier trucks would only be allowed to drive on state and local roads because the maximum weight on interstates is 80,000 pounds. The letter details the safety and maintenance…