After a recent move to raise the maximum gross weight for 10-wheel trucks invited instant outrage among vested interest watchers, the public was left as confused as ever as to whose side to take. A well-informed look at the basic engineering and bean counting principles involved should help bring the issue back into proper focus.
Highways are common properties built and maintained by taxpayers' money.
Like other public infrastructures, they must be designed, constructed and used properly to ensure safety and cost-effectiveness. Regular overloads will accelerate the deterioration of roads and bridges on the highways. Therefore, the authority needs to control the traffic loads to protect highways from being damaged before due time. It has been a known fact that many 10-wheel trucks are regularly overloaded. This causes roads and bridges to deteriorate very fast and their service lives have been shortened considerably.