Senate approves ME truck weight exemption
The U.S. Senate yesterday passed a transportation appropriations bill that includes Sen. Susan Collins' pilot program to exempt Maine highways from the federal truck weight limit.
Currently, trucks weighing up to 100,000 pounds are allowed to travel on Interstate 95 from the New Hampshire border to Augusta, but the limit then drops to 80,000 pounds, forcing trucks onto secondary roads, which Collins argues creates unsafe conditions. Maine's congressional delegation has worked to gain an exemption since 1994, when the U.S. Department of Transportation first notified Maine that it was in violation of federal vehicle weight requirements. Collins shepherded the provision through a subcommittee vote in late July.
While the Senate's transportation appropriations bill includes Maine's federal truck weight exemption, the House of Representatives' transportation bill does not. Collins told the Bangor Daily News that she will work to get the Maine exemption into the final bill. If she's successful, the pilot project would begin as soon as the final bill passes, the paper reported.
The pilot project is intended to assess highway safety and wear-and-tear, as well as impact on the state's commerce.
Go to the article from the Bangor Daily News >>
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