Florida Gov. Charlie Crist recently signed into law a transportation bill that will allow heavier trucks on designated state roads. The bill authorizes vehicles weighing up to 88,000 lbs. on certain roads. The 80,000 lbs. limit remains for the Interstates.

The bill also exempts APUs weighing up to 400 lbs. from the weight requirements. Both laws go into effect Thursday.

Florida has just become the latest test case for heavier trucks, which several industry groups support. But the bill faced resistance in Florida.

“What it all boils down to is safety,” said Steve Casey, executive director at the Florida Sheriffs Association. “The well-being of the hundreds of thousands of motorists who travel on Florida’s roadways is being put at risk for the sake of special interests. The heavier the truck, the more difficult it is to control. There’s a danger factor that all Floridians should be aware of as far as this legislation is concerned - the fact that they are being ignored is beyond distressing.”

The Florida DOT said raising the limit would require $150.7 million more annually to repair damaged infrastructure.

“Beyond the safety ramifications, Florida just doesn’t have the transportation maintenance funds to make this legislation work,” said Fraser Howe, PE, chairman of the American Society of Civil Engineers committee which published the 2008 Report Card on Florida’s Infrastructure. “We’ve seen countless state and federal studies that show increased damage occurs to our roads and bridges as a result of higher volumes of heavy big rigs. While the Florida legislature passes legislation that would damage our highways, they are cutting the Dept. of Transportation’s budget. The pieces just don’t fit.”

Opponents also point out the safety issues that come with heavier trucks.

“The dangers of increasing tractor-trailer truck weights are well known – they are harder to stop, steer and more vulnerable to rollover during a crash,” said Tom Guilmet, the executive director of the Florida Safety Council. “But, by far, the most compelling objection to heavier trucks is the fact that they will cause more deaths and injuries on our highways.”

But while a number of organizations fight heavier trucks, some are pushing for the increased productivity these trucks can provide.

“With truck traffic growing 11 times faster than road capacity, with overall traffic congestion still expected to double by 2035, this is the time to act to allow for higher gross vehicle weight limits on our highways,” Harry Haney III, associate director–logistics operations for Kraft Foods, said in comments at the National Private Truck Council’s (NPTC) annual meeting. “Now is the time to act on this – it’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity.”

Florida’s law says companies must submit a planned route for approval before the truck can enter the roadway. As the war wages on for heavier trucks, this may be a small battle worth watching.

The FedEx Express and UPS battle over classification of FedEx Express workers continues to drag on and now the Teamsters, who have always been lobbying in the background, have created a website and actually, pretty funny, video of the situation, located at www.FedExDriversArentPilots.com.

The video is in response to the language inserted in the House version of the FAA Reauthorization bill, which James Oberstar (D-MN), chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said will be on the president’s desk by July 4. The language, which is not included in the Senate version of the bill, would reclassify thousands of FedEx workers under the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Currently, all FedEx Express employees are classified under the Railway Labor Act (RLA), which governs airlines.

The difference between the two comes down to the ability to unionize employees. Under the RLA, unionization must be done on a national basis. NLRB allows unions to form on a building-by-building basis, something UPS and the Teamsters would be more than happy to see happen.

FedEx created Brownbailout.com to promote its argument against the provision.

The Teamsters press release states: “FedEx Express claims it is an airline. So why aren’t flight attendants on the delivery trucks?” The video shows a flight attendant inside a delivery truck providing safety instructions, including telling the passenger where the nearest exit is: “the door right next to you.” She then goes on to begin her speech about what to do in the case of a water landing only to stop herself and say, “Wait, we’ve never had one of those.”

There are two different videos located here, including one where the driver of a truck is calling for ground control.

“FedEx brought its special status through political arm-twisting, plain and simple,” Teamsters general president Jim Hoffa said. “But now Congress must do the right thing and close the loophole. Americans are tired of giveaways to corporations, especially to a company that can’t even be upfront about what it really does.”

Interestingly, in an effort to build political pressure, FedEx has threatened to cancel a $6.7 billion aircraft order with Boeing if its classification changes. No doubt, this is putting pressure on Boeing to lobby on behalf of FedEx.

“If that were to happen, I can promise you that the board of directors of FedEx Corp. would reduce the amount that we invest in [FedEx Express], to the point where it was just purely a sustenance level,” said CEO Frederick Smith, according to a report in the Commercial Appeal of Memphis.

Oberstar ripped Smith in the Commercial Appeal for his characterization of the provision.

“I object vigorously to his mischaracterization and misrepresentation. He knows better. He knows how the legislative process works. He’s been involved in it for 25 years. He ought to be telling the truth rather than misleading the public,” Oberstar said.

In 1995, FedEx Express was reclassified by Congress under the NLRB only to have Congress rescind that in 1996. Oberstar called that “an arbitrary action by the Senate leadership.”

While Smith’s threats would seem to be just that – threats – this issue needs to be resolved once and for all. Would Smith actually not invest in FedEx Express, essentially killing the company? It would seem pretty foolish to shut down a profitable business. But could the landscape of package delivery change if the provision passes? Possibly. If FedEx Express is unionized, what impact would that have on delivery services? It might cost a little more to ship a package, but if FedEx can’t compete with the unionized UPS on a level playing field, maybe the FedEx Express business model needs fixing.

However it is resolved, the American public, itself trying to recover from the worst recession in decades, is going to grow tired really quickly of billion-dollar businesses bickering.

Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue has signed into law an innovative taxing measure to improve the transportation infrastructure in the state. The law, though, is fraught with problems, and merely amounts to politicians being able to say, “I told you so,” when residents complain about the condition of the roads in the state.

According to a press release from the governor’s office, the law breaks the state into 12 special tax districts. Each district will get together and form a transportation committee which will recommend projects in need of funding. They could be new roads, repaving, installation of traffic lights, etc. Once the list is complete, it will be put to voters in that district during the 2012 presidential election. If the voters approve the list – with its accompanying 1% hike in the sales tax in that district – then the state would fund those projects. If the voters reject the list, the region would receive no funding.

We have worked extremely hard to bring a level of accountability never seen before in our transportation planning process,” Perdue said. “Now, voters in each area of the state will have a chance to approve a plan that meets the needs of their area of the state while also connecting to the state’s transportation network.”

Sounds nice, until you get inside the heads of voters. As politics always play a role in these decisions, say for instance, that during the committee’s negotiations, three projects are suggested for Town A and just one project for Town B some 30 miles away, why would voters in Town B OK the tax hike? Especially if there were projects in Town B that residents felt should have been included.

From the politician’s standpoint, though, this is a win-win because it gives them an out.

“These district lines are important because they recognize our state’s regional business centers, and the areas from which those centers draw consumers,” Perdue said. “This approach will mean dollars spent in a region remain in that region, and the projects will benefit the entire region.”

In other words, if a district rejects the sales tax increase, “we told you so.” Residents will have no recourse because they voted no to the projects, the politicians will say.

If the state was so concerned about spreading the funds out appropriately, there is another option: just ask for a 1% increase in the sales tax statewide to fund transportation projects and then funnel that money to each district according to its needs/size.

Doing the voting in this manner leaves the voters in each region no choice but to approve the sales tax increase lest funding goes to another region. That is not really the democratic process at work. But it is one way to ensure money is generated for infrastructure.

MAN Latin America said this week it has given three customers in Brazil trucks that feature dual-fuel technology which can blend biodiesel on board the vehicle.

The trucks, part of the company’s Constellation line, include two separate tanks, one that handles traditional diesel and a second which accepts B100, or 100% biodiesel. An electronic onboard system monitors the parameters for the use of biodiesel and adjusts the fuel supply as needed. This allows the truck to continue operating in areas where biodiesel not meeting European DIN EN 14214 standards is not available, MAN said in a press release.

“It is important to develop products that are adapted to the respective market. This is the only way to achieve sustainable solutions internationally,” said Yvonne Benkert, CSR manager of the MAN Group.

The trucks can run on B100 or pure diesel, depending on the availability of fuel and the current requirements of the application. In Brazil, the use of 100% renewable raw materials for fuel is common and can cut CO2 emissions by up to 90%, MAN said.

They don’t make things like they used to. That’s what Jackie Tennant may be saying these days as her truck’s transmission passes a major milestone.

Tennant, 62, has been an owner-operator for 35 years. Throughout her 4 million miles or so of travel, she has gone through a lot of parts – tires, brakes, and even a few engine overhauls. But transmissions? Not many.

Tennant recently reported to Roadranger that her Eaton RTLO 13-speed manual transmission has surpassed the 2 million mile club. A very select group no doubt.

And not only has the transmission powering her Kenworth W900 tractor passed the test of time, its needed no major work to get there.

“Amazingly, I’ve never had to tear it apart once,” she said. Since the transmission went into operation 15 years ago, Tennant estimates she has replaced brakes 15 times, changed tires about 23 times and had the engine overhauled twice. But the transmission keeps on shifting.

Tennant, who is leased to Intel Carriers in DeForest, WI, hauls refrigerated freight from the Midwest to Texas and Florida. Along the way, one thing is clear: the Eaton transmission has lasting power, and Tennant really knows how to shift.