Opinion: Congress wants bigger trucks on PA Roads, here’s why I’m speaking out

I have spent most of my adult life in some kind of public service, including many years in law enforcement that included plenty of commercial truck inspections, and more recently fourteen years on the Blooming Grove Township Board of Supervisors.

A proposal in Congress would allow states to raise the weight limit for commercial trucks from 80,000 pounds to 91,000 pounds. It now heads to the full House and Senate for a vote.

The ”Pilot Project” amendment in the current Highway Bill would let states spend 10 years running heavier trucks on public roads. These trucks would run on interstates and use local roads for fuel stops, rest and deliveries. The only stated goal is to track how often these trucks crash.

Blooming Grove has only 6.5 miles of local roads, but 13 miles of Interstate 84 and dozens more miles of state highway cut directly through our town. We experience a high frequency rate of motor vehicle accidents, often involving large trucks.

A truck that is at 80,000 pounds and comes up short on stopping distance or having a brake malfunction is already dangerous and often fatal to other motorists. From 2014 to 2024, the latest year with complete data, truck crash fatalities increased in Pennsylvania. In 2024 alone, there were 7,092 large-truck crashes in the state, according to federal data. Tragically, 167 people were killed and nearly 3,000 more injured. We are moving in the wrong direction, and adding 5.5 extra tons to these vehicles is not going to help.

Congress has rejected similar proposals before, and for good reasons. I urge Pennsylvania’s senators and the rest of our congressional delegation to oppose this legislation when it comes to a full vote. The data is clear and those of us who work with the cost and consequences of these much larger vehicles know better than to assume that “more is better.”

Nick Mazza
Chairman, Blooming Grove Township Board of Supervisors