If ever there was a time for the U.S. DOT and state governments to be cautious about leasing public infrastructure to private investors, it's during financial uncertainty, two top lawmakers said Tuesday, Nov. 4. They sent a letter to U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters, urging her to tighten up the guidelines and develop stricter criteria for public-private partnerships for infrastructure.

One state's recent announcement of steep price increases for oversize and overweight permits appears to have come with little notice, although truckers with oversize and overweight loads have begun making their voices heard. Ohio is no longer issuing 365-day permits and the 90-day permit fee jumped from $20 to $306 on Oct. 16, and will rise to $528 in March and $750 in July, which will be 36 times the previous cost.

With the clock winding down on the legislative calendar in New Jersey, the topics of consideration at the statehouse include hazardous materials and trucking on the New Jersey Turnpike. One bill that would give the Delaware River Port Authority the authority to inspect hazmat carriers and cargoes. State law now limits such inspections to the State Police, police officers of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and specially designated state Department of Transportation and Department of Environmental Protection personnel.

The Federal Highway Administration has launched a new taxpayer-funded office dedicated to the tolling of congested roadways. Officials with FHWA announced Friday, Oct. 31, that the new Office of Innovative Program Delivery will promote congestion pricing while working with states to reduce traffic and pay for roadway improvements.

The bad news? Truckers entering most U.S. ports still will need a Transportation Worker Identification Credential at least by April 2009. The good news – a recent power outage may have bought some drivers a few more weeks to enroll in the program. Compliance requirements for workers with TWIC cards at Captain of the Port zones in Buffalo, NY, Detroit, Lake Michigan, Sault Ste. Marie and Duluth, MN, have been postponed from Oct. 31 to Dec. 1.

No one is going to be directly observing truckers - and other transportation workers - giving urine samples for drug testing, at least for now, thanks to an emergency stay granted by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.