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More than 100 shippers and shipper associations recently teamed up to launch the Coalition for Transportation Productivity (CTP) to urge Congress to raise the federal vehicle weight limit on interstates.

CTP supports the Safe and Efficient Transportation Act of 2009 (H.R. 1799), which proposes to increase the interstate weight limit to improve trucking productivity, boost highway safety, protect the environment and foster a stronger economy. Introduced by Rep. Michael Michaud (D-Maine) in March, H.R. 1799 would allow individual states to increase their interstate vehicle weight limits to 97,000 pounds for vehicles equipped with a sixth axle.

The bill would allow the same amount of freight to be carried on fewer trucks, reducing total vehicle miles and the number of truck accidents, coalition members believe. A study conducted earlier this year by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation found that if a law like H.R. 1799 had been in place in 2006, there would have been 90 fewer truck-related accidents in the state that year.

“America’s freight transportation infrastructure is on the verge of becoming overwhelmed over the next decade,” said CTP Co-Chairman John Runyan in a prepared statement. “Freight hauled by trucks in the U.S. is expected to double by 2025, and truck traffic is growing 11 times faster than road capacity.”

CTP members include the American Forest & Paper Association, National Association of Manufacturers, National Industrial Transportation League, Boise Cascade L.L.C., Coca-Cola Co., General Mills Inc., Kraft Foods Inc., R.R. Donnelley & Sons Co. and Weyerhaeuser.

However, the Association of American Railroads opposes any increases to truck weight and size on freeways. The association backs the Safe Highways and Infrastructure Preservation Act (H.R. 1618/S. 779), which would freeze truck size and weight on the 161,000-mile National Highway System. The bill would extend the limits on large trucks from the 46,000-mile Interstate Highway System to other roads and highways, and prohibit a state from enacting new laws that would permit any truck trailer longer than 53 feet.

H.R. 1618/S. 779 currently has 89 co-sponsors while H.R. 1799 has 20 co-sponsors.