Of trucks and courts and fees…
Here's a link to my full story at spokesman.com on the temporary restraining order issued today by a Grangeville judge to block ITD from issuing permits for four giant truckloads of oil refinery equipment to travel Highway 12 from Lewiston to Lolo Pass. The judge set a Friday hearing on a possible preliminary injunction. Meanwhile, Gov. Butch Otter talked about why he's a supporter of the shipments. Also, the Idaho Transportation Board, at its regular meeting Thursday in Coeur d'Alene, is scheduled to consider raising fees for over-legal trucks, after a department review found that the current fees don't fully cover the department's administrative costs to issue the permits. Under the current fee structure, each of the giant loads proposed for Highway 12 would be subject to a $1,000 state fee; the proposed increase would raise that by up to $35.