BILL ANALYSIS �
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
AB 1706 (Eng) - Transit bus weights.
Amended: August 6, 2012 Policy Vote: T&H 8-0
as proposed to be amended
Urgency: No Mandate: Yes
Hearing Date: August 13, 2012
Consultant: Mark McKenzie
This bill may meet the criteria for referral to the Suspense
File.
Bill Summary: AB 1706 would permanently allow the operation of
existing overweight transit buses and those that are in the
process of procurement prior to January 1, 2013, regardless of
statutory bus weight limits. The bill would also allow transit
operators to purchase new overweight transit buses to replace
existing buses of equal or lesser weight, or to incorporate a
new fleet class under specified conditions, until 2015.
Furthermore, the bill would require state agencies that adopt
regulations to consider vehicle weight impacts and the ability
of vehicle manufacturers or operators to comply with statutory
vehicle weight limits.
Fiscal Impact:
Unknown, likely moderate costs in any fiscal year to
various state agencies to consider vehicle weight impacts
and the impact that regulations may have on the ability to
comply with statutory weight limits (various special funds).
Unquantifiable minor to significant impact on pavement
maintenance costs by allowing the operation of overweight
transit buses (state highway account, local funds). Due to
the numerous factors that may result in pavement
degradation, it is impossible to calculate the isolated
impacts and costs associated with continued operation of
overweight transit buses on state highways and local streets
and roads.
Background: Existing law imposes a general gross weight limit of
20,000 pounds on any one axle, or 10,500 pounds over any one
wheel, of a vehicle operated on public streets, roads, and
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highways, as specified. Regardless of this general weight
limit, existing law authorizes a bus of any kind to have a gross
weight of up to 20,500 on any one axle. The bus weight limit
has been in effect since 1975.
Existing federal law establishes a maximum axle weight limit of
20,000 pounds for buses operating on the Interstate Highway
System, but this limit is currently suspended. Federal law
currently prohibits specified states, including California, or
any political subdivision of such states, from enforcing a
transit vehicle weight limit of less than 24,000 pounds on the
Interstate System.
Proposed Law: AB 1706 would permanently exempt existing transit
buses, and those for which a transit provider has initiated
procurement by January 1, 2013, from the statutory vehicle and
bus weight limits. The bill would authorize a public transit
provider to procure and operate a transit bus that exceeds the
current weight limits until January 1, 2015 under the following
conditions:
If the new bus that exceeds weight limits is the same or
lesser weight than the bus it is replacing.
In order to incorporate a new fleet class, as defined,
into its inventory. Under this exception, a transit
provider must adopt certain findings of necessity at a
public hearing and allow an opportunity for a city or
county on whose roads the bus would travel an opportunity
to document concerns in the public record.
As of January 1, 2015, the existing statutory transit bus weight
limits would apply for any bus for which procurement was
initiated on or after January 1, 2013.
Staff Comments: State law since 1975 has mandated that the
weight on any single axle of a transit bus may not exceed 20,500
pounds. Due to numerous state and federal mandates, including
Americans with Disability Act requirements and mandated
emissions reduction equipment, transit buses today may often
exceed that weight, especially when carrying a large number of
passengers. Some local police departments have cited transit
buses for violation of existing weight limits, and some local
governments provide for permits to operate overweight vehicles.
This bill would provide an exemption from bus weight limits for
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transit buses that are on the road now, or that are in a
procurement process by the bill's effective date, and allow for
limited continued procurement and operation of overweight buses
for two years. In the meantime, stakeholders must come to an
agreement on how to address the ongoing problem of overweight
transit buses and bus weight limits.
Allowing the operation of overweight vehicles on the state's
highways and local streets and roads contributes to the problem
of pavement degradation at a time when the roadways are in an
ongoing state of disrepair. A current needs assessment
indicates that in order to fully fund necessary maintenance and
preservation of local streets and roads, an additional $80
billion in funding is needed over the next ten years. In
addition, the Department of Transportation estimates an annual
need of $7.4 billion for the State Highway Operation and
Protection Program (SHOPP), which funds a large portion of
pavement maintenance and replacement work on the state highway
system. There is currently an annual shortfall of $5.4 million
because the SHOPP only receives approximately $2 billion
annually for maintenance work. Since there are many factors
that contribute to pavement degradation, it is impossible to
quantify the isolated impacts that overweight transit buses may
have on pavement lifespan and the costs associated with those
impacts, although it is undeniable that they are a contributing
factor.
Recommended Amendments: This bill was significantly amended in
policy committee, but several inadvertent errors were discovered
when it came into print recently. Agreed upon amendments would
clarify that all existing buses and those that are in
procurement by the operative date are permanently exempt from
the statutory bus weight limits, and would clarify that buses
procured pursuant to the bill before January 1, 2015 may also be
operated until that time. This analysis reflects the proposed
amendments.