01025701

English

http://pubsindex.trb.org/orderform.html

Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting 2006 Paper #06-0959

Overweight vehicle enforcement remains a problem in most U.S. states. Most port-of-entry and mobile enforcement crews perceive they are understaffed and/or under funded. There are few ports equipped with cutting edge technology to adequately identify overweight truck violations. Some ports are closed more hours than they are open. Operators of illegally overloaded vehicles often escape penalties. Consequently, there is often little deterrent to illegally overloading vehicles. Billions of dollars are spent each year to replace and repair U.S. highways. Yet, only a tiny fraction of trucks are weighed. It seems likely that the fees and fines collected from overweight vehicles are not commensurate with the actual cost of pavement damage. This research is intended to explore this problem and attempt to estimate a dollar cost figure for pavement damage due to overweight vehicles operating in the State of Arizona. Both the literature and our survey indicate that overweight vehicles likely constitute a substantial share of traffic and account for a significant portion of the pavement wear. The rough estimate produced in this research for the State of Arizona implies that there may be a favorable benefit/cost ratio for enhanced motor carrier enforcement efforts. The same may be true for many other states, as well.

BTRIS, HRIS

06-0959

CD-ROM

12p

01020180

2006

Transportation Research Board 85th Annual Meeting

References (20) ; Tables (6)

Arizona; Benefit cost analysis; Gross weight; Law enforcement; Pavement distress; Trucks; Vehicle weight

Administration and Management; Highways; Motor Carriers; Security and Emergencies; I10: Economics and Administration

Jun 8 2006 11:26AM