"Allowing heavy trucks to stay on federal interstate highways in Maine has always been one of my top priorities," said Senator Collins. "A uniform truck weight limit would keep trucks on the interstates where they belong, rather than on the secondary roads that pass through our small towns and villages. A one-year pilot project allowing heavier trucks on the interstates would permit an assessment of the impact of the safety, commerce and road wear and tear. I believe the result will be improvements in safety, decreases in energy use and emissions, and economic benefits.
"It took a great deal of work to convince my colleagues to approve this pilot and I am delighted to have won Senate passage," said Senator Collins.
In 1994, the U.S. Department of Transportation first notified the State of Maine that it was in violation of federal vehicle weight requirements. Maine's Congressional delegation has been working since then to change the law, which forces northbound trucks weighing more than 80,000 pounds off Interstate 95 in Augusta. As a result, heavy trucks traveling I-95 to Houlton are forced onto smaller, secondary roads that pass through cities, towns, and villages, creating safety concerns. Interstates 295, 395 around Bangor and Brewer, and I-195 around Saco are also affected.
In June, following an Appropriations hearing during which U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood pledged that he would help address this issue, Senator Collins, who is the only Maine delegation member to serve on the powerful Appropriations Committee, wrote to her colleagues requesting that a one-year pilot project be included in the FY 2010 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations bill.
Senator Collins' legislation is strongly supported by Maine Governor John Baldacci as well as public safety and business groups including: the Maine Department of Public Safety, the Maine Association of Police, the Maine Troopers Association, the Associated Builders and Contractors of Maine, and The Lane Construction Corporation.