Comment Re:Government Intrusion (Score 1) 837
A 5,000lb car causes more than twice the wear of two 2,500lb cars.
The oft-quoted 4th power law is a rule of thumb which holds only in the axle weight range of heavy trucks. On roads meant to handle heavy trucks, a 5,000lb car and two 2,500lb cars do just about the same amount of damage, which is none at all. A certain amount of light traffic actually reduces total damage by suppressing growth of vegetation.
On roads not meant to handle heavy trucks, damage by weight has as far as I know not been studied in a systemic manner.