Representative Mike Michaud represents Maine's 2nd District in the United States Congress.

On Monday, April 7, I attended a regional transportation summit in Manchester, New Hampshire that was sponsored by the New England Council. The purpose of the summit was to bring together transportation leaders, experts, and industry representatives to think cooperatively about the regional transportation needs of New England, as well as explore particular issues facing various states.

At the summit, I moderated a panel discussion on regional transportation planning for New England. We had a very interesting discussion about how the region could act together in advocating for updates to federal transportation policy. Current demand is exceeding the capacity of our region's transportation network and I believe that as a region we have a powerful voice.

I mentioned to the group that the House and Senate have both passed my bill to create a Northern Border Regional Commission, which would be charged with investing up to $60 million per year in federal resources for economic development and job creation in the most economically distressed areas of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and New York. While some were aware of the bill, others were not. Panelists and attendees alike agreed that the model for cooperation that I created in the bill for the northern border counties of our region would be applicable for future transportation collaboration in the New England region as a whole.

I was pleased to be joined in Manchester by fellow panelist State Representative John Piotti of Unity, Maine. While he and I discussed regional collaboration, we also highlighted a specific federal transportation issue that directly impacts our state’s economy - truck weight limits on the Interstate System north of Augusta.

Currently, Maine's Interstate highways north of Augusta are subject to the federally mandated truck weight limit of 80,000 pounds. However, Maine's state limit is 100,000 pounds and it would be difficult to lower it due to the demands of Maine's major industries, especially forest products, and the through traffic from the surrounding states and Canadian provinces which all have 100,000 pound limits on all of their roads.

Unfortunately, as a result of the mismatch between these two sets of regulations, heavier trucks must divert off the Interstate highways in Maine onto state roads that pass through a number of our communities. This increases the cost of shipping Maine products to market, makes trucks burn more fuel and carry less freight, and ultimately puts us at a competitive disadvantage to neighboring states like New Hampshire who currently enjoy higher truck weight limits on their Interstate.

State Representative Piotti discussed how trucks pass through the smaller communities that he represents, posing serious safety risks as they go by schools and through town centers. The diversion of trucks off the Interstate has negative impacts on safety, the economy, and the cost to the system. However, an in-depth study completed by the State of Maine demonstrated that raising the weight limits on the remainder of the Maine Interstate System would not only decrease crashes and save lives, but it would also save money and improve road conditions - a goal we all share.

I have been working on the truck weight issue for years now and I am pleased that transportation leaders from around New England got the chance to hear firsthand about the importance of this change and what it would mean for road safety and Maine’s economy. Changing federal truck weight limits on Maine's Interstate would also directly help our forest products industry survive, especially at a time when they are facing record high diesel prices.

As a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, I will be working with my colleagues in Congress to help increase the focus on the need to update and improve our current national transportation policies. But one thing remains irrefutable: if we do not back up policy changes with an overall significant increase in funding, the capacity crunch and maintenance and construction backlogs that our states currently face will increase exponentially. The longer we put off needed repairs and upgrades to our infrastructure, the more expensive they ultimately become.