Dayton Business Journal...
Ohio highways may soon welcome heavier trucks
by Adrian Burns
Monday, December 12, 2011 

More overweight trucks could be on the way to state highways if a bill passes in Congress. 

Kraft Foods Inc.    and Home Depot    are lobbying for rules that would give states more leeway to allow 97,000-pound trucks on interstate highways, up from 80,000 pounds, Blooomberg reported Monday. 

Such a measure could benefit companies across the interstate-heavy Midwest, including in Ohio. 

As diesel prices have soared, trucking companies have sought new ways to move cargo using less fuel, including loading more freight onto semi-truck trailers, the story said. That effort has resulted in a host of state-level weight limit increases, including breaks in Ohio for those moving steel coils and other materials. 

The Dayton area has long been a hub for trucking companies because of its central Midwest location and the intersection of Interstates 75 and 70. The industry also serves many companies that have chosen to build in the region because of the access to highways. 

The area is home to numerous regional and national trucking companies including ABF Freight Systems, which employs 630 people in Huber Heights and is the largest subsidiary of Arkansas Best Corp.   

More recently, Ohio reportedly was in talks with communities and shale drilling companies over who will foot the bill for roads damaged by oil and gas exploration-related activities. 

The crux of the debate over weight increases is the belief by some that heavier trucks do more damage to roads. The expense for repairing damaged road typically falls on cash-strapped states and municipalities – in other words, taxpayers. But trucking companies argue an economic boost for raising weight limits. 

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