Quebec's trucking industry has warned consumers that shipping costs will increase now that the province's Transportation Department has banned heavy trucks from 135 bridges and overpasses.

On Thursday, Transport Quebec released its list of 135 highway structures that require inspection, just as the Johnson Commission wrapped up testimony into the Concorde overpass collapse.

Until inspections are completed, double trailer trucks are banned from the listed highway structures, and trucks that normally require special permits to haul heavy loads will not be allowed to request clearance.

The measures will have a noticeable effect on transportation costs, said Marc Cadieux, president of Quebec's trucking association.

"The trucking will obviously have to shoulder some of the costs," he told Canadian Press. "But in the end, the consumer will feel the repercussions because transportation rates are tied to management costs."

The inspections, expected to start in September, will focus on bridges and overpasses built in a similar manner to the Concorde overpass on Highway 19 in Laval, which is the subject of a provincial inquiry led by former Parti Québécois premier Pierre Marc Johnson.

The Johnson Commission is investigating the causes of the Sept. 30, 2006, Concorde overpass collapse, in which a piece of concrete broke off and crashed on the road below, crushing several vehicles and killing five people.

The commission finished hearing testimony on Thursday and will reconvene briefly later in the summer before breaking to prepare a final report, due in October.

Quebec's auto insurance board said this week that victims of the disaster will be compensated but won't be able to sue contractors or the government for damages.

The company that built the overpass and the Transport Ministry cannot be pursued in a court of law because they are protected under Quebec's no-fault auto insurance laws, officials said.

The no-fault insurance laws prescribe compensation ranging from $58,000 to $295,000, depending on the victim's age, profession and salary.

With files from the Canadian Press