According to the Detroit News earlier this week, the Wayne County sheriff's division has written about 1,400 citations for overweight trucks since January 2004.
This netted about $900,000 in fines in a year-long effort to deter companies from running overloaded trucks on area roads.
To enforce the weight limits, Sheriff Warren Evans assigned a division of six deputies. Evans said the goal was to prevent serious traffic accidents and road damage.
The deputies issued many of the citations to trash haulers from Canada. About 150 trucks a day deliver Toronto's trash to Michigan, an amount estimated at 1.1 million tons a year. In most states, the maximum gross vehicle weight is 80,000 pounds, but Michigan’s is 164,000 pounds, primarily because of a large volume of international commerce. Area politicians have debated reducing weight limits, but arguments that this would hurt business and put even more rigs on the road have discouraged changes.
However, Gov. Jennifer Granholm signed a bill in November allowing the length of trucks to increase to 65 feet from 59. The law, which takes effect in 2006, also reduces fines on truckers for violating weight restrictions.