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Diesel Edges Up 0.2¢ to $3.85 a Gallon
Diesel rose two-tenths of a cent to $3.85 a gallon, its third increase in four weeks, while gasoline gained a nickel, the Department of Energy reported. Gas rose to $3.439 a gallon marking its fifth increase in six weeks, DOE said following its weekly surveys of filling stations. Both fuels fell by less than a penny last week, with diesel down 0.6 cent and gas down 0.2 cent. This week's diesel uptick was just its third increase in the past 10 weeks. It had fallen for six straight weeks from late November through the start of the year. Trucking's main fuel fell 22.7 cents in those six weeks. Through Monday, gasoline has cumulatively gained 21 cents in six weeks. Diesel is now 41.2 cents over the same week last year, while gas is 33.8 cents over a year |
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Provisions for Heavier Trucks Removed from House Transportation Bill
Provisions for heavier, longer trucks contained in a transportation reauthorization bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives Tuesday did not survive the bill's first hearing.
By a 33-22 vote Thursday, the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee removed provisions that would have allowed states to let trucks up to 97,000 pounds run on interstate highways.
The committee substituted instead an amendment that calls for a study of the impact of bigger trucks on safety and roads.
Currently, trucks are limited to 80,000 pounds on the interstate system, except where exemptions have been granted, most recently in Maine and Vermont.
The committee vote also removed a provision that would have required states that already allow longer combination vehicles - those with three trailers - to expand the number of routes on which the trucks can travel.
American Trucking Associations spokesman Sean McNally called the committee action disappointing. |
