Our nation’s and our state’s infrastructure is aging, and among the biggest threats to the long-term stability of our bridges and roadways is the wear and tear caused by overweight trucks.
Across the country, weigh stations currently enforce the United States’ standard 40-ton (or 80,000 pound) interstate highway weight limit, but such stations are located almost entirely between cities. In urban areas, catching overweight trucks can be a challenge, as police checkpoints for weight violations can be burdensome and worsen highway congestion.
New York City has not been exempt from such challenges. The Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (BQE), an essential corridor for commuters and much of the city’s commerce, has long suffered from the burden of vehicles exceeding weight limits — especially punishing for the triple-cantilever section of the roadway known as “BQE Central” in downtown Brooklyn.
However, thanks to the first-in-the-nation use of weigh-in-motion (WIM) technology to enforce weight limits, we last week announced encouraging results: overweight trucks on this critical stretch of I-278 have declined by 60%!
Our success is not just a win for the BQE, but proof that it is time to expand WIM use across New York State. And the timing is right: the original state law authorizing NYC DOT to use this innovative technology on the BQE’s triple-cantilever is set to expire later this year. Written by local Brooklyn state legislators, the original 2021 law has already demonstrated its effectiveness in protecting one of the city’s most important aging roadways; it is now critical that Albany act to keep it in place and expand it across the city and statewide.
Overweight trucks are a significant threat to public infrastructure. Roads and bridges are designed with strict weight limits for a reason: excessive loads accelerate structural deterioration, leading to costly repairs and safety hazards. When the BQE was first constructed in the 1940s, trucks were significantly lighter than they are today.
NYPD has found some freight trucks with weights twice the legal limit, which dramatically increases stress on our roadways and bridges. The costly maintenance and repairs needed because of these overweight vehicles is a price the rest of us have to pay.
Before WIM was implemented, we detected an alarming 7,920 overweight trucks each month on the Queens-bound BQE. That number plummeted to a bit more than 3,000 in the first year of enforcement. Without automated weight enforcement, violations would have continued largely unchecked, damaging all other roadways on which these trucks drove.
WIM uses roadway sensors to weigh trucks in real-time as they drive. If a vehicle exceeds the maximum weight threshold, cameras capture identifying information, and the truck’s owner is issued a fine by mail of $650. The system is designed to be fair, as it also allows for a generous 10% weight overage (at least two tons — or the weight of a large SUV!) — before issuing a violation.
As with automated enforcement against violations of speed limit or red-light running, WIM operates 24/7 without disrupting traffic and changes driver behavior. Shippers and trucking companies that use the BQE now know the law governing weight limits, and that it will be strictly enforced.
Given our success, WIM technology should not be limited to a single segment of roadway. NYC DOT has begun identifying other vulnerable infrastructure as potential candidates for expansion.
One example is the Washington Bridge, opened in 1889, connecting my home community of Washington Heights to the Bronx. In 2024, a year after having to make emergency repairs caused by excessive overweight trucks, we dramatically reconfigured this bridge to prioritize bus and bicycle traffic. But the bridge remains a designated local truck route, so it could benefit greatly from increased weight monitoring.
In fact, if we can achieve weight compliance on the BQE, we should be able to achieve similar results on other highways, bridges, and truck routes.
Beyond improving infrastructure longevity, WIM enforcement carries cascading benefits. Every year, we spend millions to fill potholes and make emergency repairs — at least partially caused by excessive truck weight. By reducing the damage, New York could realize long-term savings, allowing us to address other pressing infrastructure needs.
As I told legislators when I went to Albany last week, modern problems require modern solutions. Over the last decade, we have seen time and again that automated enforcement is an effective tool for improving road safety and holding bad actors accountable. Now with proof that this kind of enforcement can also protect our infrastructure, it is time to build on our success and benefit more communities across the state.
Rodriguez is New York City’s transportation commissioner.