A few months ago we ran a news article that discussed the possibility of heavier trucks on highways. We came across an article this week in Minnesota’s Star tribune that discussed how heavier trucks on the road may not be coming any time soon despite political influences around the country.
In fact the article gives many reasons why increasing weight limits to nearly 100,000 pounds is not likely in the short term despite all the advantages. According to the article issues like road maintenance and bridge repairs all must take place before heavier trucks can be allowed on America’s highways. Bridge repairs are certainly a major issue in Minnesota after the tragedy of a few years ago when a bridge collapsed.
The article listed a pretty alarming number when it cam to the amount of money needed to bring roads up to speed. The article listed an infrastructure gap of over 1.5 trillion dollars in America.
The main reasons that many are behind the increase in allowable weight are often related to cost cutting. Issues like reduced fuel costs and reduced per-item shipping costs are at the top of the list along with reductions in pollution from those cuts.
This issue will be debated for quite a while. Here is address for the complete article from the start tribune: http://www.startribune.com/opinion/editorials/80027422.html?page=2&c=y