AAA OKLAHOMA PRESIDENT/CEO CALLS ON CONGRESS TO REJECT EFFORTS TO ALLOW HEAVIER BIG TRUCKS

Measures facing lawmakers would substantially increase weight limits.

Tuesday, July 5, 2011 – For Immediate Release – This summer, Congress will decide whether states should be permitted to increase allowable tractor-trailer truck weights from the current 80,000 pounds to 97,000 pounds. AAA Oklahoma is calling on lawmakers to reject these measures.

In the current issue of AAA Oklahoma’s member magazine, Home & Away, AAA Oklahoma President and CEO Neal Krueger writes, “AAA Oklahoma has long been a strong advocate for roads that are safer and easier to travel, and bridges that meet the highest design and safety standards. Unfortunately, these basic needs of Oklahoma’s motoring public are increasingly under attack due to a current push in Congress to allow 18-wheelers to grow from the current 80,000-pound standard to 97,000 pounds, a 20 percent increase.”

Mr. Krueger’s comments appear in an article in the July/August issue of Home & Away magazine, which is currently arriving in the homes of 350,000 AAA members across Oklahoma.

Provisions to boost large truck weights are included in the Safe and Efficient Transportation Act of 2011, via U.S. Senate Bill 747 and U.S. House Resolution 763.

“Heavier trucks are more dangerous trucks,” Krueger writes. “The reasons are easy to understand. Bigger trucks carry more weight and energy into crashes; as these crashes become more severe they become fatalities. In addition, heavier trucks require more highway to stop, and they’re more likely to roll over because they have a higher center of gravity.

“AAA Oklahoma also has grave concerns over the increased damage to roadbeds and bridges these heavier trucks would cause. The punishment that big rigs bring to bear on roads becomes exponentially more brutal as more tons are added. With roads and bridges in Oklahoma already in woeful condition and highway funding resources scarce, AAA feels allowing heavier trucks is a step in the wrong direction.”

The auto club is urging its members to contact members of the Oklahoma Congressional delegation and voice their opinions of these two bills.

For more information about large trucks, AAA suggests visiting www.AAAPublicAffairs.com and clicking on Truck Safety in the On the Road section.

AAA Oklahoma serves 350,000 members across Oklahoma with emergency help on the road, auto travel assistance and a wide range of personal insurance, travel, financial and automotive services through its 40 retail branches, regional operations center and the Internet at www.AAA.com.