1.0 Introduction

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) contracted with Cambridge Systematics, Inc. to conduct the Truck Size and Weight Enforcement Technology Project in collaboration with personnel from the Office of Freight Management and Operations, under the guidance of a Technical Review Committee comprising representatives of FHWA, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Joint Program Office of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA), and the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA).

The primary project objective is to recommend strategies to encourage the deployment of roadside technologies to improve truck size and weight enforcement in the United States.  The project consists of seven discrete but interrelated tasks.  The results of each task will be described in a series of memoranda, which in Task 7 will contribute to the final deliverable, an implementation plan.  The plan will identify the benefits and downsides of various roadside technologies to different stakeholders and recommend strategies to communicate benefits and mitigate issues.

This memorandum is a deliverable of Task 2.  The task objective is to evaluate the state of the practice for using roadside technologies in enforcement activities.  Task 2 was supported by an expanded data collection effort designed to capture the “best practices” of states with differing approaches to utilizing technologies.  Emphasis was placed on weigh-in-motion (WIM) activities during State site visits and phone interviews.  Information about other technologies used by states for enforcement, especially technologies used in association with WIM, also was captured.  A list of participating states is included on page 23.   Summarized information about their usage of technologies is provided in template format at the end of the memorandum.

The intent of Task 2 is not to evaluate WIM or any other technology, but to evaluate the activities that are built around the technology.  The focus is on how a technology is deployed, and how it works with other technologies, to support roadside enforcement.

This deliverable represents collaboration between Cambridge Systematics and FHWA.  The report was vetted through the participating states and the Technical Review Committee.

previous | next