It’s getting heavier for Maine trucking attorneys and their Vermont trucking attorney peers. On Tuesday, the Senate brought both states closer to permanently allowing 100,000-pound trucks to travel on their interstate highways.
A funding bill approved Tuesday by the full Senate included an amendment permitting the heavy trucks on interstates, sponsored by Senators Susan Collins (Republican, Maine) and Patrick Leahy (Democrat, Vermont). Both states already let trucks up to 100,000 pounds travel on many non-interstate highways, but last year a pilot program approved by Congress allowed such heavy trucks on Maine and Vermont interstates as well.
Senator Collins has said that permitting heavy trucks on interstates would improve safety, because it’s less dangerous for them to travel on interstates than on state and municipal roads.
A transportation subcommittee in the House of Representatives, however, has approved a different spending bill. Since it does not include the heavy-truck provision, the two versions may require further finessing.
