SENATOR COLLINS SECURES COMMITMENT TO PERMANENTLY LIFT TRUCK WEIGHT LIMITS IN MAINE
"Increasing the federal highway truck weight limit on Maine's interstate highways has always been one of my top priorities in the Senate," said Senator Collins. "I have worked hard to convince the Administration that it simply makes no sense to force heavy trucks off the federal highway and onto our smaller roads in Maine. This increases the wear-and-tear on our secondary roads and jeopardizes the safety of both drivers and pedestrians. I am delighted that the Administration understands the argument and has agreed to my request to help make permanent the temporary provision allowing trucks on Maine's federal interstate system."
Brian Parke, President and CEO of Maine Motor Transport Association praised Senator Collins for her efforts to secure this commitment from the President, "By making the pilot project permanent, Maine truckers will be able to transport more goods across the state more efficiently and more safely. Trucking companies will not have to worry about a day where their drivers are forced back onto the secondary roads to deliver the freight that drives our economy. I applaud Senator Collins for all her efforts and hard work to come up with a permanent solution to this important issue."
Last year, Senator Collins successfully included a provision in the FY 2010 Omnibus Appropriations bill that created a one-year pilot project that allows trucks weighing up to 100,000 pounds to travel on Maine's federal interstates, such as I-95, 195, 295 and 395. The pilot project is set to expire on December 17, 2010, when the heaviest trucks in Maine would be forced to divert back to secondary roads through downtown areas. The Federal Highway Administration is currently conducting an assessment of the pilot program's impact on safety, commerce and road wear and tear.
The U.S. Department of Transportation first notified the State of Maine in 1994 that it was in violation of federal vehicle weight requirements by allowing heavier trucks on the federal interstate. As a result, northbound trucks weighing more than 80,000 pounds were forced off Interstate 95 in Augusta. Maine State law already allows these heavier trucks to travel on smaller, secondary roads that pass through cities, towns, and villages, creating safety concerns.
In June 2004, Wilbur Smith Associates, a nationally recognized transportation consulting firm, completed a study which found that extending the current truck weight exemption on the Maine Turnpike to all federal highways in Maine, including Interstates 195, 295 and 395, would reduce heavy truck traffic through several communities such as Saco, Old Orchard Beach, Freeport, and Bangor and Brewer, and result in a significant decrease of three fatal crashes per year.
Last year, Senator Collins was appointed to a seat on the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee. During a Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee hearing, Senator Collins raised the issue of Maine's truck weight disparity with Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood who pledged to help address this issue. Senator Collins then continued to work with her colleagues on the Senate Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee to have her provision included in the FY 2010 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations bill. Since then, she has worked with the Administration to make the provision permanent.
Unfortunately, Senator Collins has faced stiff opposition to her efforts to make Maine's truck weights provision permanent. In a July letter, California Senator Barbara Boxer expressed her opposition to extending Maine's pilot program. However, in a letter sent to leaders of the full Senate Appropriations Committee this week, Senators Collins and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) wrote in strong support of the President's request to make the pilot program permanent. (The temporary provision approved last year also affects federal highways in Vermont.)
Full text of Senators Collins' and Leahy's letter is as follows:
Senator Daniel Inouye, Chairman Senator Thad Cochran, Vice Chairman
Senate Committee on Appropriations Senate Committee on Appropriations
The Capitol, Room S-128 The Capitol, Room S-128
Washington, D.C. 20510 Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Chairman Inouye and Vice Chairman Cochran:
We are writing in strong support of President Obama's request to make permanent the pilot programs created in the FY 2010 Omnibus Appropriations Act that allow trucks complying with Maine and Vermont's weight and safety laws to travel on the federal interstate highways in our two states. President Obama has proposed that such a provision be included in the FY 2011 Continuing Resolution. Should these pilots expire as planned on December 17, 2010, the heaviest trucks in Maine and Vermont will be forced to divert back to secondary roads and through downtowns and villages from Houlton, Maine, to Burlington, Vermont.
Current federal law restricts trucks weighing more than 80,000 pounds from regularly using the interstate highway system, though exemptions have been granted to some states-including New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and New York. For too long, Maine and Vermont have been at a competitive disadvantage, while our next-door neighbors have enjoyed the economic benefits that come with higher highway truck weight limits. The heaviest truck traffic in Maine and Vermont has had to travel over smaller roadways, creating significant safety concerns for pedestrians and motorists and putting pressure on our already overburdened secondary roads and bridges.
We are pleased that the Administration appreciates the positive impacts that the pilot programs have had in our states. Indeed, in language he sent to House and Senate leaders, the President aptly justified permanently raising the weight limit by noting that "continuing the program will improve safety on local roads and increase efficiency of commercial trucking in the region."
We have heard from truckers, business people, and state and municipal leaders in both states who support making the pilot programs permanent. Additionally, a preliminary study of the Maine pilot program by the Maine Department of Transportation demonstrates the numerous benefits that are already accruing from the pilot, including improved safety, lower fuel consumption and emissions, and greater competitiveness for businesses in Maine. The pilot program has allowed businesses to receive raw materials and ship products more economically, thus helping to preserve and create jobs.
For these reasons, we ask that you include the President's language to make the Maine and Vermont pilot programs permanent in the Continuing Resolution.
Thank you for your consideration of this request.
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