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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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State
Rep. Mark Longietti |
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Pa. lawmakers push for changes in overweight vehicle road bonds
Road repair costs grow each year, yet bond amounts have not been increased since 1978
HERMITAGE, Dec. 20 – As Pennsylvania House Democrats continue to look for ways to improve roads and bridges across the Commonwealth, state Rep. Mark Longietti, D-Mercer, and House Majority Leader Bill DeWeese, D-Greene/Fayette/Washington, are backing a proposal that would update Pennsylvania’s regulation of road bonds for overweight vehicles and increase the bond amounts, which have not been raised in almost 30 years.
Longietti, who introduced the legislation (H.B. 2133), said current law allows municipalities to set a 10-ton vehicle weight limit on certain roads that have been found to need such a restriction. Vehicles that exceed the 10-ton limit can apply for a permit and post a bond of up to $12,000 to ensure money is available to repair a road if the vehicle damages the roadway.
“Unfortunately, the bond amounts for these overweight trucks have not been increased since 1978, yet over that same time frame, the costs to repair our roads in Pennsylvania have increased dramatically,” Longietti said. “Each year over the last three years, road repair costs have risen by nearly 36 percent. The $12,000 cap just isn’t enough in today’s economy and the local taxpayers are left footing the rest of the bill.”
DeWeese, who has discussed this issue numerous times with his local township supervisors and officials from their state organization, has been an advocate of updating the regulations concerning the posting of road bonds for several years. He said the legislation would require the state Department of Transportation to revise its bonding schedule by Jan. 1, 2009, and continue to update it every three years thereafter.
“The stress and strain that overweight trucks have on smaller roads in communities across this Commonwealth are hefty and come with an ever-increasing price tag,” DeWeese said. “We know that fixing our transportation system is a priority and through this legislation we can update antiquated bonding regulations and provide additional relief for local governing bodies.”
In addition to updating the bond amounts, Longietti said his legislation would reverse the burden of proof in favor of the municipality when damage to a roadway occurs.
“Instead of the municipality having to prove that the permitted overweight truck caused damage to the road, which is the current practice, my bill would presume that the vehicle caused the damage and would require the vehicle’s owner to prove otherwise,” Longietti said. “Without surveillance cameras running 24/7, which are costly and unrealistic, local entities are faced with an insurmountable burden of trying to prove a permittee caused damage to a road.”
Both Longietti and DeWeese acknowledge that this legislation was drafted in conjunction with and has the support of the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors. Longietti said that local township officials, including supervisors from Delaware Township in Mercer County, asked that the law be updated due to uncovered damages to local roads by overweight limit vehicles.
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CONTACT: Bill Thomas |