Political Quotes

“As the Senator knows, I filed an amendment yesterday that I hope will not be necessary. The issue concerns truck weight limitations on interstate highways and potential sanctions on the States of New Hampshire and Maine. Last year's appropriations legislation for the Department of Transportation included an amendment sponsored by Senators Cohen, Snowe, Gregg, and myself which established a moratorium on the Department of Transportation's authority to withhold highway funds from New Hampshire and Maine because of their allowance of heavier trucks on Interstate 95. That moratorium is set to expire on September 1, 1997. Under section 127 of our surface transportation law, States may not allow trucks over 80,000 pounds on the Interstate System without risking the loss of highway funds, even though many State roads allow 100,000-pound trucks, as is the case in New Hampshire and Maine. While I do not wish to get into a policy discussion on truck weights, there is a safety argument to be made in keeping these heavier trucks on the Interstate System, which is built to higher standards.”