ANNAPOLIS -- Longer trucks may be coming to Maryland's highways as a result of the Senate's approval, 37-10, yesterday of a bill extending the allowable length of trucks from 48 feet to 53 feet.

Debate on the bill was heated as Sens. Ida G. Ruben, D-Montgomery, and Julian L. Lapides, D-Baltimore, railed against the proposal, calling it a threat to the safety of Maryland drivers.

"I urge you, for the sake of your constituents, for the sake of safety on the highways, don't put more weight on the road," Senator Ruben told the Senate.

But Sen. Norman R. Stone, D-Baltimore County, who co-sponsored the bill, said the bill's provisions make it one of the safest such laws in the country. The American Automobile Association supports the bill, he noted.