Rails oppose increase in truck size/weights

NITL (The National Industrial Transportation League) -- Logistics Management, 7/22/2008

Efforts to increase federal truck size and weight limits (Notice, July 11) has another opponent, the Association of American Railroads (AAR).

Citing federal statistics, a statement issued by AAR President Ed Hamberger charged that trucks weighing over 80,000 pounds pay only about half of their highway cost responsibility.

“Longer and heavier trucks — unless accompanied by sharp increases in taxes — would exacerbate this inequity and, based on a U.S. Department of Transportation study, divert between 100 and 225 million tons of freight annually from rail to highways,” Hamberger said.

AAR also targeted fuel use and pollution concerns. “Moving this much additional freight by highway would require the consumption of between 500 million and 1.1 billion additional gallons of diesel fuel, producing 1.6 to 3.8 million tons of additional pollutants and 5.6 to 12.3 million tons of additional carbon dioxide each year,” Hamberger said.

The American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association also opposes the effort.