Chicago, IL- The governor recently signed into law a proposal to penalize truck drivers who spend too much time idling their vehicles with higher fines. The new law also provides funding to educate truckers about the dangers of excessive idling. ]"There’s no reason for truck drivers to sit with their motors running, especially in densely populated areas"House Bill 2664, sponsored by State Sen. Mattie Hunter (D-Chicago), raises the fine for a driver’s first excessive idling violation from $50 to $90. Excessive idling is when the driver of a semi-truck or other large vehicle runs the motor without moving for more than 10 minutes. Excessive idling laws only apply in certain counties and townships—usually those with large urban populations. It also raises the fine for a second violation from $150 to $500. Excessive idling produces a great deal of pollution and is bad for both public health and the environment. It wastes limited fossil fuels and pumps the air with dangerous emissions. These emissions contribute to environmental degradation like global warming and pose a health risk—particularly for small children and people with asthma and other respiratory conditions.

"There’s no reason for truck drivers to sit with their motors running, especially in densely populated areas," said Hunter. "They’re wasting valuable resources, damaging the environment, and putting local communities at risk."

Existing idling laws exempt truck drivers under certain circumstances

A portion of the higher fines will be spent educating truckers and other large vehicle drivers about the dangers of excessive idling.

"It’s our hope to eliminate excessive idling all together," said Hunter. "I believe better education must be a part of this effort. Higher fines are a good deterrent, but greater knowledge is even better."