Browsing the governor’s executive orders, as one tends to do on the Wednesday night before Thanksgiving, I noticed that there were a couple of orders issued recently that relaxed the motor carrier regulations regulating hours of truck operation for drivers transporting propane. The executive order cites a need for the use of propane to dry crops, an excess of which is needed due to early heavy rains that delayed planting of Indiana’s crops. However, the order does not limit the relaxation of motor carrier rules to those hauling propane to dry crops. The second order was an extension of the first.
Hard knowing if this is just a little extra benefit for the propane gas industry or a response to a legitimate need or a little of both. I’m not sure I care too much either way.
When I read your post, my thoughts immediately went to the propane tanker truck crash and explosion in Indianapolis last month. I don’t know what the hours of operation regulations and this did not occur during rush hour, but it does get one thinking about rush hour, heavy traffic, dangerous loads and the potential for a real disaster.