Certain restrictions on motor carriers will continue to be waived as efforts to recover from devastating tornadoes in Kentucky continue. 

The December 2021 tornadoes killed 80 people across 16 western Kentucky counties. The order was originally issued in April 1st, 2022 and was set to expire June 1st, but will now remain in effect through 12:01 a.m. on August 1st, 2022. The order will temporarily relieve truckers from maximum driving times, and weigh station stops if they are providing relief efforts to areas affected by the tornadoes, reported Kentucky Today.

The order also authorizes the Transportation Cabinet’s Department of Vehicle Regulation to waive permit fees and issue an annual overweight/over-dimensional permit for the length of the emergency order. Those permits must be paired with “route evaluations” for each individual haul confirming the load is being hauled along an acceptable route. 

“Recovery efforts continue from the devastating tornadoes of last December,” Gray stated, “and our Cabinet wants to ensure there’s no delay in getting temporary housing to people who need it.”