New Jersey Scuttles Plan to Extend Big Truck Access

A New Jersey Department of Transportation plan to expand big truck routes in the state has been shot down by local opponents.

Thursday, Acting Transportation Commissioner James P. Fox withdrew a plan that would have allowed the state to expand by 65 miles the roadways allowing 102-inch-wide trucks. According to the DOT, the plan had been in the works since October, but for the most part the public wasn’t aware of the proposal until news reports early last week.
Mayors and local officials along affected routes attacked the plan, which had been formulated before the inauguration of New Jersey’s new governor, James McGreevey, a Democrat. In announcing that the plan had been withdrawn, Fox took a political shot at the G.O.P.
“The previous administration proposed this regulation, and it was developed without the appropriate outreach to local officials and communities affected by it,” the acting commissioner said.
New Jersey Motor Truck Executive Director Gail Toth called the decision to withdraw the proposal "unfortunate."
Toth said the proposed changes had been well researched and would have resulted in fewer trucking miles in the state and more efficient service to various state businesses.
"DOT did not create the proposal in a vacuum," Toth said.