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New system will streamline trucking permit processKansas A new system that will streamline the permit process for trucking companies hauling large loads, such as wind turbine components, through Kansas has been announced by a cross-agency partnership. The Kansas Departments of Transportation and Revenue, along with the Kansas Highway Patrol, have created the Kansas Truck Routing and Intelligent Permitting System (K-TRIPS). The system, which is being developed in conjunction with ProMiles software, will help cut operating costs and provide easier, more efficient ways for routing oversize/overweight loads. The state issues more than 70,000 permits annually for oversize/overweight loads, and the demand is increasing in high growth areas. The state provides specific routes for trucks hauling large loads to assure safety and to be sure that highways and bridges along the route can accommodate the large loads without being damaged. The permit process is now done on paper. ProMiles will work with the state to develop and implement a web-based software routing solution that will automatically generate and evaluate alternate routes for large loads. "Routing oversize and overweight loads is complex, time-sensitive and requires cooperation among multiple partners. Accurate routing plays a key role in safety, reducing congestion, expanding economic opportunity and preserving our highways," said Jim Kowach, KDOT bureau chief of design. "The system being designed by ProMiles will make it faster and more efficient for truckers to get permits. Having to wait costs them money," he said. The new system, which will be in operation in about two years, will be paid for by an increase in permit fees that was passed by the 2009 Kansas Legislature and supported by the trucking industry.
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