“Supporters of a pilot program to lift the federal limit of 80,000 pounds to 91,000 pounds say doing more with less — fewer trucks carrying more freight — will lower costs and address the shortage of drivers.
The Heavier Truck Pilot Project, which has been debated in several sessions of Congress, would allow the increased weight for 10 years, with the goal of gathering data to measure the effects of the policy.
Opponents argue that advocates overlook the damage to roads and bridges, or the increased risk to other drivers, citing previous studies.
“In 2016, the U.S. Department of Transportation did a study and basically came up with two conclusions about heavier trucks,” said Steve Casstevens, a retired police chief in Illinois and past president of the International Association of Chiefs of Police. “Number one: 91,000-pound trucks would be 47% more likely to be involved in crashes than 80,000-pound trucks, and there is absolutely no data out there that says heavier trucks will be safer.”