DPWH defers enforcement of new weight limits for trucks

The government has pushed back the implementation of the revised maximum allowable gross vehicle weight (GVW) for trucks and trailers to July 31, 2014.

 

Public Works and Highways Secretary Rogelio Singson had already deferred the implementation—which would have started on Feb.1—to give truckers time to upgrade their transport fleets.

The new prescribed maximum GVW depending on the configuration of trucks and trailers was supposed to take effect in June 2013.

 

Under the law, trucks and trailers classified under Codes 12-2 and 12-3 with load exceeding prescribed GVW of 41,500 and 42,000 kilograms, respectively, and load per axle of more than 13,500 kilograms are considered overloaded.

 

Code 12-2 covers semi-trailer trucks with three axles on the truck and two on the trailer. Truck-trailers with three axles on the truck and another three on the trailer fall under Code 12-3.

 

An amount equivalent to 25 percent of the Motor Vehicle User's Charge Fund—a fee that the Land Transportation Office collects upon vehicle registration and based on the age and weight of the vehcile—is imposed on trucks and trailers caught overloading.

 

Singson said overloaded vehicles cause severe damage to the country's roads, forcing the government to spend for repairs. — JDS, GMA News