(ATLANTA, Ga.) — Heavier trucks that weigh 10,000 pounds more than what’s currently rolling could be coming to local roads if some lawmakers get their way. A new bill introduced into the Georgia House wants to up the weight limit of trucks that can drive on state roads.

But the Georgia Department of Transportation says not so fast. The bill would not affect interstates, that’s federal. It would only impact state roads.

But GDOT points out that trucks can only weigh 80,000 pounds on the interstates. But some Georgia truckers and businesses want to have 90,000 pounds on those state roads.

Big rigs are critical to Georgia’s supply chain infrastructure. Everything from logging, to poultry, to Georgia ports need to have tractor trailers rolling down state roads to deliver products.

“The truck and logging sector is under enormous pressure today,” said Wayne County Republican lawmaker Steven Meeks.

Meeks, himself a farmer, wants to up the weight limit for big trucks on state roads to 900,000 And asked a House committee to pass his bill.

“Those pressures are even greater today with a shortage of truck drivers. Our input costs, our fuel costs, our insurance costs are all factors that play into that,” Meeks said.

But GDOT Commissioner Russell McMurry said while he supports farmers, loggers, and truckers, Georgia’s highways are not built for 90,000-pound trucks, and most non-interstate bridges aren’t rated to carry them.

“The simple fact is our bridges in the state are not designed to hold this additional weight. In fact, 97% of the bridges in Georgia are designed to hold 80,000 pounds or less,” McMurry said.

And then there’s safety.

Steve Owings founded a highway safety organization after a speeding truck killed his son. He said heavier trucks take even longer to stop. “Adding 12% to the weight is like adding 12% to the speed and coincidentally, the trucker that killed my son was going 12-miles over the posted speed limit,” he said.

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