Ohio roads may be the victims if Congress decides to increase nationally the tonnage limit on roads and bridges.

Today a vote is scheduled by the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee to allow bigger and heavier trucks on the roadways.

Statewide that could cost Ohio $40 million, says the director of the County Engineers Association of Ohio.

For Lawrence County, it could mean more bridges and roadways out of commission quicker.

“This is a big deal,” Lawrence County Engineer Doug Cade said. “We have 411 bridges in the county and basically it would take the legal limit from 40 tons to 50 tons and all of our bridges and roads are designed for 40 tons.”

While an increase of 10 tons may sound minimal, translating that into pounds means an increase of 20,000 pounds from 80,000 to 100,000 pounds.

“What that does effectively is if someone takes (an upgraded) legal load across the bridge, it will break that bridge down faster and the road faster,” Cade said. “On some of them it will break it down instantly — some of those timber bridges like the six that washed away this spring. Sometimes a trash truck will break it down. You add another 20,000 pounds, it will break it down faster.”

County bridges were hit hard in 2011 when heavy rains caused massive flooding, washing out bridges and causing landslides whose repairs are expected to reach into the millions.

The committee vote could give its nod to allow up to 97,000 pounds for single-trailer trucks and more than 100,000 pounds for double and triple-trailer trucks on U.S. roads. If the committee approves the change, the bill would then go to the full Congress.

Cade said the idea for the tonnage change is based on a study conducted on the highways in the state of Maine.

“Those roads are designed for a heavier weight limit than what is across the country,” the engineer said.

A study done on roadways in Vermont shows the damage the change could cause.

Should the legislation pass, county crews would have to post a reduced weight limit on all county roads.

“Then when we replace bridges we will have to build a much sturdier structure so therefore it will be more expensive,” Cade said. “Every local official and citizen needs to be concerned about this. We are barely, and in some case not able, to keep up with our current needs. If we do things like this, it will tear down our transportation system faster.”