If Congress decides to pass the Safe and Efficient Transportation Act, even heavier commercial trucks could be driving all over our Texas highways soon. Congress must decide whether the efficiencies of larger truck loads outweigh safety and road damage concerns on our nation’s highways. If passed, the Safe and Efficient Transportation Act would raise the weight maximum of commercial semi-trucks from 80,000 pounds to 97,000 pounds in Texas and most other states. Currently, commercial tractor-trailers must purchase a permit to be overweight, but if the Safe and Efficient Transportation Act passes, this will no longer be the case.
Supports of the bill say that trucks with heavier loads will reduce traffic, decrease fuel use and could even keep the price of goods down for consumers. On the other side of the argument, those against the proposal say heavier trucks will damage roads and bridges that are already crumbling around Texas and the rest of the USA. Driving safety is also a concern, as heavier trucks need 25 percent more room to stop and could cause even more Texas truck wrecks.
As a personal injury lawyer in Fort Worth, I can see both sides of the argument. I’m all about less 18-wheelers bulking up our highways and causing wrecks, but I’m also concerned about the additional weight being added to these big-rigs. I see clients who have been severely injured in truck accidents all the time at my law practice. I can only imagine their fate if they had come into contact with a semi-truck weighing 97,000 pounds.
What do you think? Will an increased weight limit decrease the amount of trucks we see on the road or will it just decrease our safety driving in Texas?
Category: Truck and Bus Accidents
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