Over 80 Members of Congress have signed a letter to T&I Chairman DeFazio expressing opposition to bigger trucks.…
Inside Sources: Industries Battle Over Bigger Trucks on Interstates
“Congress already gave the OK to states to raise maximum truck weight limits from 80,000 pounds to 100,000 pounds for a period of 120 days to aid in moving critical supplies across the country during the pandemic and the recovery. But a coalition of law enforcement officers sent a letter to governors asking them to make sure the change is temporary. “Limits on the size and weight of trucks are essential to ensure that our highways are safe and to preserve our…
Law Enforcement Leaders Press Governors on Truck Weight Limits
ALEXANDRIA, VA – APRIL 23, 2020 — The law enforcement leaders of the Coalition Against Bigger Trucks are asking the nation’s governors to ensure that truck weight limits are returned to safe levels after the pandemic crisis passes. Congress has allowed temporary increases in weight limits in response to the pandemic. Any increase in truck weight limits to help weather this crisis should remain only temporary, they recently wrote all governors. The weight increases must “ be strictly limited to…
CABT Statement on Emergency Weight Increases
April 3, 2020 — As the COVID-19 pandemic reaches every corner of the United States, government and business are looking at ways to provide the needed services that citizens require, including medical supplies, food and water. Our country is in an extraordinary time and extraordinary measures must be taken. This is why the Coalition Against Bigger Trucks has not opposed the efforts of some governors who have used the emergency declaration powers given them by Congress to temporarily raise truck…
Joint Infrastructure Letter to Congress
A letter to members of Congress expressing significant infrastructure concerns associated with proposals to increase semi-truck size and weight.…
The Chattanoogan (TN): Bigger Is Not Always Better
“I am quite confident a similar study conducted today would have similar conclusions knowing highway congestion has grown over the past three years and our bridges and highways haven’t gotten any younger. According to the Federal Highway Administration there are 20,177 bridges in Tennessee and 10,955 (or 54 percent) are in fair-to-poor condition. Need I ask the question whether-or-not heavier tractor-trailer rigs will further negatively impact these aging structures and unnecessarily risk the lives of all of us using them…
SUN This Week (MN): Longer, heavier trucks would devastate roads
“Dakota County is dealing with estimates of a nearly $600 million shortfall over the next 20 years in terms of transportation funding. Coming up with the necessary funds to maintain our infrastructure under existing conditions poses a difficult challenge that will demand efficient use of limited resources. The additional damage, and costs, caused by bigger trucks would be forced upon county taxpayers. We value the industries that make Dakota County prosperous and seek to maintain the delicate balance between growth…
Kansas City Star: Bigger, heavier ‘Twin 33’ trucks would make Kansas highways more dangerous
“Heavier trucks would also mean that we would be mingling passenger cars with commercial vehicles that have been proven to have crash rates anywhere from 47% to a shocking 400% higher than current weights, according to a 2015 study by the U.S. Department of Transportation. This legislation would bring that heightened risk to every state in the union, including Kansas. The study found a number of other issues with the proposed Twin 33s, but one data point that sticks out…
KLCC Oregon: Oakridge Police Chief Travels To DC To Express Concerns About Larger Trucks
Oakridge Police Chief Kevin Martin traveled on behalf of a group called the Coalition Against Bigger Trucks. The organization is concerned that an upcoming transportation bill in Congress will include a provision to allow longer and heavier trucks on the nation’s highways. Martin said it’s a recipe for disaster. “I’m not an engineer, but if you add weight and length but you don’t upgrade the brakes and engine and transmission and that kind of stuff, then it’s an accident waiting to…
Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier (Iowa): Buchanan Co. engineer to speak on trucking in Washington
“Brian Keierleber, county engineer of Buchanan County and past president of the National Association of County Engineers is in Washington this week. He strongly opposes any increases to truck length or weight. Keierleber plans to meet Tuesday with members of the Iowa congressional delegation, including his Rep. Abby Finkenauer, and Sens. Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst. “Iowa has the unfortunate distinction of having the highest number of bridges rated as poor by the Federal Highway Administration in the nation,” said…