Plans of Exxon Mobil Corp. to transport massive pieces of freight starting this fall from the Port of Lewiston is being looked at suspiciously by American citizens concerned about a possible environmental disaster if one of the massive pieces of heavy haul freight should happen to end up in the Clearwater or Lochsa rivers. The Idaho Transportation Department has stated that it’s their job to issue permits for long haul loads of large size, such as the ones in question, as long as the loads in question can be transported without damaging roads or bridges along the proposed transport route. They want to have freight shipping services take the freight loads along US 12 through the Lochsa River canyon, over the Lolo Pass and then through northwestern Montana, before finally reaching the Kearl Oil Sands in northeastern Alberta.
This is a trip that would make any trucking company proud to complete as this job entails hauling 200 oversized loads of Korean-made freight along transport routes that travel across rough terrain in many areas, according to sources. Sources surrounding this affair also indicate that the largest load would weigh in the neighbourhood of about 580,000 pounds and be up to 210 feet in length, which is going to be a massive transport job for any firm. These shipments would in fact exceed legal weight limits for the Idaho stretch of the transport as a typical tractor-trailer is around 90 feet in length and weighs about 80,000 pounds. This fact is certainly one that’s going to catch the eye of observers looking on and this is certainly the case as a few concerned politicians have also been heard recently commenting on the proposed transport of these massive pieces of freight.
Tags: freight, freight shipping, freight transport