Indiana To Use Cameras To Crack Down On Overweight Trucks
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The state of Indiana has come up with a new way to try to get a handle on overweight trucks that roll along Interstate highways and cost taxpayers more money in road repairs.
The Indiana Department of Transportation planned to install cameras along I-94 in LaPorte County, where more than 10,000 trucks pass through each day.
INDOT spokesman Scott Manning said weight measuring sensors in the road will know when a truck is possibly over the limit. When a sensor detects an overweight load, a camera will take a picture of the truck's license plate.
"An overweight vehicle can cause as much damage as 96,000 or more regular cars," Manning said.
During the pilot program, truckers whose overweight loads set off sensors will be mailed a letter informing them they were caught on camera, and if the program works, INDOT plans to ask the Indiana legislature to approve an enforcement component allowing the department to issue fines to violators.
