March 4, 2005

Damaging truck bill

Extra weight would hit Fayette, other counties

What would House Bill 8's proposed expansion of the overweight-truck exemption mean for Fayette County?

Two roads in Fayette are now approved for use by extended-weight coal trucks carrying 120,000 pounds, which is 40,000 pounds more than the normal weight limit.

They are New Circle Road from about mile post 5 to about mile post 13, and U.S. 60 from the Clark County line to the Woodford County line. Coal trucks carrying 120,000 pounds can come into Lexington on Winchester Road and Midland Avenue, go through the heart of downtown Lexington and out Versailles Road if the drivers choose to do so.

In HB 8's original version, it would have opened up many other Fayette County roads to extended-weight trucks since the bill automatically added into the extended-weight system any road that had 50,000 tons of any natural resource hauled on it in any given year.

But even an amended HB 8 that limits overweight trucks to roads certified as coal-haul routes would mean that huge rigs carrying 120,000 pounds of gravel, sand, oil or other natural resources would be free to travel back and forth through the heart of Lexington, tearing up some of the city's main arteries and posing an additional danger to motorists and pedestrians.

And under the amended version, more than 60 other Kentucky counties would see a similar increase in road damage and danger to their citizens.