Georgia senators further whittle down truck weight changes

The Senate Transportation Committee voted Monday to allow trucks moving agricultural and forestry commodities to carry up to 88,000 pounds.

Jason Getz / Associated Press file

A plan to boost weight limits for trucks on Georgia state highways is proving a heavy lift against determined opposition.

After the scope of the bill was cut down earlier in the House and still garnered barely enough votes to pass, the Senate Transportation Committee on Monday took a few more logs off the truck.

The committee, on a 7-4 vote, approved a new version of House Bill 189 that would allow trucks moving agricultural and forestry commodities to carry up to 88,000 pounds (40,000 kilograms) on state roads. Now, the limit on state roads is 80,000 pounds, but trucks are allowed a variance of up to 84,000 pounds.