Dyna said:
We have a lot of major highways, never mind streets, whose roadbeds
were laid down before the construction of the interstate system began
nearly a half century ago. Back then the axle weight limit was 8 tons.
The federal law establishing the Interstate System forced us to accept
a 9 ton axle limit, and STAA forced 10 ton axles on our aging streets
and highways. In the two decades since STAA took effect we still
haven't seen much of the thousands of miles of county roads and city
streets rebuilt to accomodate 10 ton axle loads. It would thusly be
more cost effective to require another axle under 40 ton trucks
bringing axle loads back under 7 tons and diverting more heavy freight
to the railroads which can better handle them. As a Lakevile Council
Member you might thusly want to look into upgrading the "Dan Patch"
line that connects our two cities.
Wendy replies:
Seems reasonable to me to require another axle....we face the same challenge
with regard to inadequate road beds. Up to now, I have only heard the
argument about how to pay for 10 ton roads, not the background about why we
need them, or possible alternatives.
As for Dan Patch, it is now down to about a 5 mph safety level, due to years
of non-use, and was deemed not to be cost effective for commuter rail. The
owner does not appear to have any interest in rebuilding it for cargo
purposes. We do try to promote the use of the rail spur in our industrial
park, though. It helps keep quite a few big trucks off the road.
Dyna says:
And next time you come to Minneapolis looking for an argument, please
come a little better prepared.
Wendy replies:
If I came off cranky, I apologize - I should know better than to send emails
while in a bad mood. If I came off stupid, I apologize doubly. I should
have thought more about what you meant by 40 tons before replying. I
appreciate your perspective on the axle thing.
Wendy Wulff
Lakeville
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