Jul
15
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Teamsters President Hoffa Says “NO” to Larger Trucks on America’s Highways
What If They Were Heavier, and Longer?
Had enough of the “big rigs” on the highway? Well, Congress is looking at new weight and size limits, and Teamster President James Hoffa says “no” to bigger trucks.
In a House subcomittee hearing July 9, Hoffa is quoted as saying:
“Bigger trucks are more dangerous trucks. Lifting truck weight and size limits would turn big rigs into time bombs.”
A background paper prepared by the Subcommittee on Highways and transit staff, the report stated:
“In 2006, nearly 5,000 people were killed in crashes involving large trucks, and an additional 106,000 were injured. Truck size and weight laws impact safety on roads. . . . [M]ultiple factors contribute to truck crashes [but] truck weights and lengths affect stopping distances, braking, and vehicle stability and control.”
The Teamsters Union represents 140,000 truck drivers who operate double-or-triple-trailer rigs in states where permitted.
Rep. Peter A DeFazio (D-Ore), seems to think increase truck sizes on all national highways is a good idea. He’s quoted as saying:
“I don’t think anybody could say the current system makes sense. We have a total failure and we have to look toward the near future.”
And the American Trucking Associations gave a favorable nod to the idea, saying increased trucking productivity will reduce congestion, save fuel and improve safety and air quality.
The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), has gone on record rejecting the idea of larger trucks with heavier loads, citing dire safety implications, and that heavier loads will hasten the deterioration of the nation’s roads and bridges.
The Railroads Weigh In
The Association of American Railroads disagrees with that notion. President and CEO Michael Sid of YRC North American Transportation is quoted as saying:
“According to the U.S. DOT, trucks weighing over 80,000 pounds pay only about half of their highway cost responsibility. Longer and heavier trucksunless accompanied by sharp increases in taxeswould exacerbate this inequity and based on a DOT study divert between 100 million and 225 million tons of freight annually from rail to highways”.
A statement from the Association of American Railroads (AAR) said moving all that freight by highway would increase consumption of diesel fuel by 500 million to 1.1 billion additional gallons of diesel fuel and produce 1.6 to 3.8 million tons of additional pollutants and 5.6 to 12.3 million tons of additional carbon dioxide each year.
More than 600 freight railroads are operating on over 173,000 miles of track in the United States, Mexico and Canada. Annual revenues, according to the AAR, top $42 billion, and account for more than 40 percent of all freight transportation.
As for moving freight efficiently, the AAR makes this claim:
“What’s more fuel efficient than the newest hybrid car? A freight train. In 2007, major freight railroads in the United States moved a ton of freight an average of 436 miles on each gallon of fuel. This represents a 3.1 percent improvement over 2006 and an astonishing 85.5 percent improvement since 1980″.
While many diesel locomotives still don’t meet Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) Tier I or Tier II emission standards, retroactive to locomotives built from 1973 and must be applied to all re-manufactured units, the list, according to AAR’s Adam Burns, the list is growing.
Some smaller lines, have been using biodiesel blends in their locomotives, although the larger companies still appear reluctant to try the new fuel, even in small amounts.
Stay tuned.
Posts Relative to Semi-Trailer Trucks and Railroads
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