Kraft Foods Inc. and Home Depot Inc. are among a growing list of companies supporting an increase in the weight limit of trucks allowed on US highways to better cope with high diesel prices, Bloomberg reports. According to Kraft, the company's fleet would drive 33 million fewer miles a year with higher weight limits nationwide.
Proponents say increasing the weight limit to 97,000 pounds (43,998kg) from 80,000 pounds (36,287kg) will be more efficient and save on fuel costs, while opponents argue that larger trucks pose a danger to US bridges.
Last month, the US Senate passed a measure that would allow trucks on Maine and Vermont interstates to run with weights of up to 100,000 pounds. Twenty- eight states already allow a limited number of heavier trucks on interstates by permit, for certain vital commodities or for shipping containers loaded from ports, Bloomberg reports, citing the shippers group Coalition for Transportation Productivity.