Senator Susan Collins (R-ME)
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Susan Collins, a member of the powerful Appropriations Committee, today announced that the Administration has agreed to her request to make permanent the pilot program that allows trucks weighing up to 100,000 pounds to travel on federal interstate highways in Maine. At Senator Collins’ request, the President included this provision in the Fiscal Year 2011 Continuing Resolution, an appropriations bill that would continue to fund the federal government past October 1.
“Increasing the federal highway truck weight limit on Maine’s interstate highways has always been one of my top priorities in the Senate,” said Senator Collins. “I have worked hard to convince the Administration that it simply makes no sense to force heavy trucks off the federal highway and onto our smaller roads in Maine. This increases the wear-and-tear on our secondary roads and jeopardizes the safety of both drivers and pedestrians. I am delighted that the Administration understands the argument and has agreed to my request to help make permanent the temporary provision allowing trucks on Maine’s federal interstate system.”