Farm Progress America, December 21, 2023

Mike Pearson takes a look at the proposal to add speed limiters to trucks carrying over 26,000 pounds on highways.

In the first draft, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration had proposed a speed limit of 68 mph. That rule was rescinded.

However, a final rule is due out later this December.

Bureaucrats at the FMCSA argue that by making trucks travel slower than passenger vehicles will make the roads safer.

Truck drivers disagree. Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, Inc. says the different speeds will actually increase the chance of an accident. The claim is that by making trucks travel 10 mph slower will increase the chance of accident by 228 percent.

Illinois Representative Mike Bost, a former truck driver says he is concerned it will lead to more accidents.Another congressman says he is concerned it will mean truck drivers will have to make up time they lose on the highway and that will increase their speed in construction zones or city streets.There is no definite time for the rule's final release. Farm Progress America is a daily look at key issues in agriculture. It is produced and presented by Mike Pearson, farm broadcaster and host of This Week in Agribusiness .