We have commented in the past about reasons for the poor state of streets and highways in this country. Yes, lack of maintenance, poor materials, climate and lack of drainage play their part.

But the tendency of truckers to overload their vehicles until the frame sags under the weight plays a big part in beating to death of innocent stretches of local pavement. The highway people, Conavi, have plans to remedy this.

The agency plans to install cameras to catch trucks that bypass weighing stations. The penalty for doing so will be twice the overload fine — 141,000 colones.

Programmed to start next February, the system of cameras will communicate data on evaders directly to Traffic Police (Transito) down the road. Highway scales are signaled by an overhead sign on a highway, something that probably the average motorist doesn’t notice.

But truckers had better beware of them because it will cost the driver a fine of 47,000 colones to continue on and not pull over to be weighed. Many trucking company owners require the driver to pay traffic fines out of their own pockets.

Moreover, the owner faces a 94,000 colon penalty for the truck weight. And he will not be happy about the delay because the truck will not get back on the road until the offending excess weight is removed.

Conavi has finally tumbled to the fact that a truck overloaded by two tons (metric) causes 228% more damage to a road surface than a legally loaded one.

Expert Gilberth Jimenez explained to La Nacion that a single axle truck overloaded by a ton causes 92% more damage than if it carried only a legal load. This data is important because smaller trucks are more apt to be overloaded.

Installation, five year maintenance and monthly cost of the cameras will set back Conavi $17.4 million–but it will be worth it they say in saving the country costs of patching of abused pavement.

This measure was not a reaction to the recent collapse of a Bailey Bridge under an overload but a plan that has been on the back burner for a year because of a case filed in the Constitutional Chamber (Sala IV).