Understanding the Illinois Size & Weight Laws

1 UnderstandingtheIllinoisSize &WeightLawsINTRODUCTIONThis booklet has been prepared by the Illinois Department ofTransportation and the Illinois State Police to assist you, the driver, in Understanding Illinois size and Weight laws. While itdoes not contain every rule, it can serve as a guideline for future problem avoidance on Illinois OF Illinois Bridge Gross Weights ..5 Legal Dimensions ..6 Typical loadings ..9 Overweight Citations ..11 Fixed Scale Locations ..12 Agency Addresses & Telephone :The distance, measured to the nearest foot, betweenthe centers of the extreme axles (external bridge) or the centersof two or more consecutive axles (internal bridge).Commercial Vehicle:Any vehicle operated for the transporta-tion of persons or property in the furtherance of any commercialor industrial enterprise.

2 For-Hire or Not-For-Hire, but including acommuter van, a vehicle used in a ridesharing arrangement,when being used for that purpose, or a recreational vehicle notbeing used Tractor:Every motorized device designed and used pri-marily as a farm implement for drawing wagons, plows, mowingmachines and other implements of husbandry, and every imple-ment of husbandry which is self propelled, excluding all-terrainvehicles and off-highway Weight :The Weight of a vehicle whether operated singlyor in combination without load plus the Weight of the load of Husbandry:Every vehicle designed and adapt-ed exclusively for agricultural, horticultural, or livestock raisingoperations, including farm wagons, wagon trailers or like vehi-cles used in connection therewith, or for lifting or carrying animplement of husbandry provided than no farm wagon, wagontrailer or like vehicle having a gross Weight of more than 36,000pounds, shall be included :If the gross Weight exceeds 36,000 pounds, the unit is nolonger considered an implement of or Interstate Commerce:Transportation betweentwo or more states or transportation originating in one state andpassing into or through other states for delivery in another state,and which is not or Intrastate Commerce.

3 Transportation originatingat any point or place within this state, irrespective of the route,highway or highways traversed, and including transportationwhich passes into or through another state before delivery ismade within the state, and including any act of transportationwhich includes or completes a pick up in Illinois for deliverywithin Carrier:An operator of For-Hire vehicles pursuant to theIllinois Motor Carrier of Property Trailer:Every vehicle without motive power designed to bedrawn by another vehicle and attached to the towing vehicle bymeans of a reach or pole, or by being boomed or otherwisesecured to the towing vehicle, and ordinarily used for transport-ing long or irregularly shaped loads such as poles, pipes orstructural members capable, generally, of sustaining themselvesas beams between the supporting Utility:Each firm lawfully licensed and engaged in any ofthe following: the transmission of telegraphic or telephonic mes-sages; the production, storage, transmission, distribution, sale,delivery or furnishing of heat, cold, light, power, electricity, gas orwater; the disposal of sewage; the conveyance of oil or gas bypipeline.

4 The drilling of water wells; or the installation or repair offacilities for any of the foregoing Tractor:Every motor vehicle designed and used fordrawing other vehicle and not so constructed as to carry anyload thereon either independently or any part of the Weight of avehicle or load so :Every vehicle without motive power, other than apole trailer, designed for carrying persons or property and forbeing drawn by a motor vehicle and so constructed that somepart of its Weight and that of its load rests upon or is carried byanother Equipment:Every vehicle not designated or used pri-marily for the transportation of persons or property and only inci-dentally operated or moved over a highway, including but notlimited to.

5 Ditch digging apparatus, well boring apparatus androad construction and maintenance machinery such as asphaltspreader, bituminous mixers, bucket loader, tractors other thantruck tractors, ditches, leveling graders, finishing machines,motor graders, road rollers, scarifiers, earth moving carry allsand scrapers, power shovels and drag lines, and self-propelledcranes and earth moving equipment. The term does not includehouse trailers, dump trucks, truck mounted transit mixers, cranesor shovels, or other vehicles designed for the transportation ofpersons or property to which machinery has been Hauling Vehicle:Vehicle or combination of vehicles ofthe second division registered under Section 3-813 transportingasphalt or concrete in the plastic state or a vehicle or combina-tion of vehicles that are subject to the gross Weight limitations insubsection (b) of Section 15-111 for which the owner of the vehi-cle or combination of vehicles has elected to pay, in addition tothe registration fee in subsection (a), $100 to The Secretary ofState for each registration year.

6 The Secretary shall designatethis class of vehicle as a Special Hauling :Any two or more single axles whose centers are morethan 40 inches and not more than 96 inches apart, measured tothe nearest inch between extreme axles in a :Every vehicle without motive power in operation, otherthan pole trailer, designed for carrying persons or property andfor being drawn by a motor vehicle and so constructed that nopart of its Weight rests upon the towing :Every motor vehicle designed, used or maintained prima-rily for the transportation of Tractor:Every motor vehicle designed and used primarilyfor drawing other vehicles and not so constructed as to carry aload other than a part of the Weight of the vehicle and load BRIDGE FORMULAThe maximum allowable Weight for vehicles on the IllinoisDesignated Highway System is calculated as follows: Bridge Formula: W = 500LN + 12N +36 N-1W= the maximum Weight in pounds that can be carried on a group of two or more axles to the nearest 500 spacing in feet between the outer axles of any two ormore consecutive number of axles being Specific To The Bridge Formula:External Bridge:The distance, measured to the nearest foot,between the centers of the extreme (first to last) axles of thevehicle.

7 These weights apply only to those highways (Class I, II,and III) designated by the Department of Transportation or localauthorities as truck Bridge:The distance, measured to the nearest foot,between the centers of two or more consecutive axles of thevehicle. These weights apply only to those highways (Class I, II,III) designated by the Department of Transportation or localauthorities as truck ()6 orDistance2 Axles3 Axles4 Axles5 Axlesmore axles434,000534,000634,000734,000834,000 42,000939,00042,5001040,00043,5001144,00 01245,00050,0001345,50050,5001446,50051, 5001547,00052,0001648,00052,50058,000174 8,50053,50058,5001849,50054,00059,000195 0,00054,50060,0002051,00055,50060,50066, 0002151,50056,00061,00066,5002252,50056, 50061,50067,0002353,00057,50062,50068,00 02454,00058,00063,00068,5002554,50058,50 063,50069,0002655,50059,50064,00069,5002 756,00060,00065,00070,0002857,00060,5006 5,50071,0002957,50061,50066,00071,500305 8,50062,00066,50072,0003159,00062,50067, 50072,5003260,00063,50068,00073,0003364, 00068,50074,0003464,50069,00074,5003565, 50070,00075,0003666,00070,50075,5003766, 50071,00076,0003867,50072,00077,0003968.

8 00072,50077,5004068,50073,00078,0004169, 50073,50078,5004270,00074,00079,0004370, 50075,00080,0004471,50075,5004572,00076, 0004672,50076,5004773,50077,5004874,0007 8,0004978,5005079,0005180,0005 LEGAL GROSS WEIGHTSOf Vehicles And Combinations Of Vehicles Authorized By Section 15-111, Illinois Vehicle CodeThe following table denotes maximum gross weights for vehicles on highways whichhave been designated as Class I, II, Or III based on the Illinois Bridge Information Regarding Other MaximumLEGAL DIMENSIONSof Motor Vehicles in Illinois6 NOTES1. Axles are measured to the nearest foot between the extremeson any group of two or more consecutive Gross weights for 5 and 6 axle vehicles apply to combinationsonly. For vehicles not in combination (straight trucks)

9 , only 4axles shall be used in determining maximum gross Two consecutive sets of tandems may carry 34,000 poundseach providing the overall distance between the first and lastaxles of such consecutive sets of tandems is 36 feet or If the distance between the centers of the first and third axlesin a group of consecutive axles does not exceed 96 inches,the group is a The maximum Weight of any single axle is 20,000 pounds andthe maximum Weight of any tandem is 34, Combinations of vehicles, registered as Special Hauling Vehiclesthat include a semitrailer manufactured prior to or in themodel year 2004, and first registered in Illinois prior to January1, 2005, having 5 axles with a distance of 42 feet or lessbetween extreme axles that can not comply with the aboveformula may have a gross Weight of 72,000 pounds providedthe Weight shall not exceed 18,000 pounds on a single axle or32,000 pounds on a tandem.

10 On tractors manufactured afterSeptember 1, 1986, there must be at least 18 feet 6 inchesbetween the first and last axles of the two sets of Large vehicles shall have access for a distance of one highwaymile to or from a Class I highway and 5 miles on a street orhighway in the system of State highways, and upon any streetor highway designated by local authorities, to points of loadingand unloading and facilities for food, fuel, repairs and vehicles are prohibited on all streets and highways underlocal jurisdiction unless specifically designated by local Permits may be issued for an overweight load providing itconsists of one object that can not be reasonably dismantledor to WIDTH requirements above: Above restrictions do not include certain safety devices approvedby the Department.