LEBANON, N.H.—Gov. Jim Douglas is continuing to express frustration over weight limits on Vermont's interstates, where truckers want to travel now that they're barred from a bridge across the Connecticut River.
"We have to get the feds to give us permission, even for the temporary use of the interstate, and it's very frustrating," Douglas told the Valley News of West Lebanon, N.H. "New Hampshire has higher weight limits than we do. What sense does that make? An interstate highway system, you'd think, would be uniform."
Douglas' comments came as truckers continued to be barred from a bridge on U.S. Route 4 linking White River Junction and Lebanon, N.H. That bridge has been operating under a 20,000-pound weight limit since it was discovered that rust and corrosion had caused it to deteriorate.
Truckers who might switch from that bridge to the nearby Interstate 89 bridge across the river have been limited by an 80,000-pound weight limit on Vermont's interstates. New Hampshire's limit on the interstates is 99,000 pounds, meaning the heaviest of trucks can't cross the river because they're not allowed to enter Vermont.
Truckers, Vermont transportation officials and U.S. Reps. Peter Welch, D-Vt., and Paul Hodes, D-N.H., have asked for a federal waiver that would allow the heaviest rigs to join the lighter ones and use a short stretch of Vermont interstate to get to White River Junction.
Congressional approval would be needed for such a change, but Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., is taking a go-slow approach to that idea.
"Senator Leahy believes that there are serious problems that need to be considered about proposals to raise the weight limits on Vermont's Interstates because of the damage that putting more weight on these highways would cause to Vermont's already deteriorating roads and bridges," Leahy spokesman David Carle said in an e-mail.
States that allow heavier trucks on their interstate highways charge a "significant premium" -- often through tolls -- to pay for damage to roads and bridges.
Douglas argued that such reluctance transferred the burden to the state. "We're just putting these loads on our state highways, so the wear and tear goes there. It seems just a reverse of what makes sense. The interstates are built to more substantial specifications in terms of endurance and safety. Our state highways go through a lot of village centers, and certainly are not as conducive to hauling large amounts of goods as the interstates are."
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Information from: Lebanon Valley News, http://www.vnews.com
