Some trucks are built to handle a total gross weight of 165,900 lbs. This one was not. In fact, it took two tire repair services, two tow truck operators, a local sheriff’s office, and the state police to handle it.
According to a report from the sheriff’s office, last week an unnamed driver picked up a load of what appears to be scrap metal from St. Paul and headed for Neenah, WI, about 275 miles away. The load was so overweight the truck didn’t even make it to Durand (70 miles from St. Paul) before two of its tires had blown and the truck was pulled over on the side of the road, partially blocking a lane of traffic.
It’s incredible that the truck even made it that far.
The driver called a tire repair service to come and replace his tires, but when they arrived, the trailer was too heavy to lift. The next morning, a second repair service was called. They too were unable to lift the trailer, so they called a heavy tow truck operator to come and lift the trailer.
The tow truck arrived but seeing that the truck was obviously dangerously overweight, they called the local sheriff’s office. The Pepin County Sheriff’s Office requested help from a State Patrol Unit.
When the State Trooper arrived, the tow truck operator found that even he was unable to lift the rear of the trailer. They called in a larger 50-ton rotator tow truck which was finally able to lift the trailer. But the trailer was so overweight that the frame started to flex. They were finally able to get it lifted by using blocks and jacks to support the trailer as it was raised.
Once the wheels were finally changed, the whole truck was rolled onto a set of portable scales. At a gross weight of 165,900 lbs. it was 85,900 lbs. overweight. That’s more than twice what the fully loaded rig was supposed to weigh.
The truck was escorted approximately four miles away to be unloaded, with many of the tires carrying more than twice their maximum allowable weight.
The carrier was issued an overweight citation with a fine of $20,287.86, a citation for exceeding tire weight limits, nine axle weight warnings, and 12 out-of-service violations for exceeding tire weight rating limitations. The driver was given a final warning for Reckless Driving and issued a citation for failure to place out the proper emergency warning devices.
Source: facebook
He or she should NEVER be allowed to drive a commercial vehicle again. Not only reckless, but clearly an imbecile.
You can find lots of people walking around with a CDL in their pocket but it’s hard to find a truck driver these days.
I agree 99% are only steering wheel holders lol
I don t know,I see a lot of hard working,law abiding drivers any day of the week,we are all overwhelmed with regulations but we do the best we can. If you feel like denigrating drivers,maybe you should focus your eyes on ATA or CEOs…drivers are precious to me,I cannot speak ill of them,or denigrate them in any way… even the bad ones,AND we have plenty of those.
Exactly. Give him a fine and a drug test. This is what gets people killed. Idiots who do not obey the law should be suspended indefinitely.
“To top it off, you didn’t put out your triangles and here is a ticket for that too.”
🤣
Hahaha….you got that right! Take his cdl and cut it up on the spot and whoop his’azz with a piece of flatbed dunnage…lmao!
Embarrassingly enough, I’m sure the driver wasn’t even able to say it was a rookie mistake… I’d say it was a ballsy effort on his part but the stupidity of it overshadows everything!!
His CSA score went in the toilet, and I reiterate the previous comment
I’m surprised the fine was that low.
I was thinking the same thing. I pulled out of a sand pit one morning weighing 84,020lbs and was given an over weight ticket for $1,256.00
Absolutely tragic
This is why our Industries and in this case is as “drivers” have a bad name. And the first image that comes to most peoples mind when they hear truck driver is Idiot,Filthy, uneducated ect Ext. Way to go driver. Talking about carelessness. Let’s just say plain Stupid!
Nothing we do is going to change the perception of most of the general motoring public…we annoy them every day we travel the same roads as they do,most people idiotize,stupify, and throw other gratuitous insults just bc.
And when they find out what we get paid for all the work we do,the time we stay away from our families,the dangers we are exposed to,the risks we take,the food we eat….they have told me to my face (with all due respect,of course) that it takes a special (ahem,ahem) a very special person to do our job for what we get paid…I am thinking they meant we are idiots.
Jay as a retired IDIOT I was DAMN PROUD to be a driver. Sad to say the motoring public doesn’t have a CLUE what we put up with as drivers. I was on the Long Island expressway after a pick up and some DUMB four wheeler got on the radio and said that we shouldn’t be allowed to have a truck on that roadway. Well being a Long Islander myself I had to inform the IDIOT that when driving a truck on the island we only had two lanes we could drive on besides side roads If he didn’t like the trucks he had TWO PARKWAYS and other local roads that we aren’t permitted to run on. he could use. After he told me what I could do with myself I just thanked him on how he just proved his IGNORANCE
Ha
Normal running around Gary, IN
Common to put &0-100k on 5-6 axle rigs
With 2 chains….
2 chains…when I hauled steel coils I secured them so well if the trailer rolled they would still be attached…scrapped but still on the trailer. I know how I would feel if one of my friends or family were fatalities caused by a coil coming off a trailer. I never had an accident but securement took more time…a small trade off considering the risk.
Amen brother!
We run 99+ in the north east, Michigan actually runs that weight legally on 13 axles, while that is a lot of weight, I don’t consider 100k heavy
Why would he be stupid enough to even try to pull that? There’s no way he didn’t know that load was too heavy.
Because they do it everyday.
I’m also surprised the fine was that low.
Funny!!! Hilarious!! No one blames the shipper!!!! Its always the driver. Does or
Has anyone ever had a shipper misrepresent the actual telling of a bol???? I kno I have on many occasions!!!!
The state blamed the shipper,the fine was given to the shipper,the no warning devices was given to the driver….the shipper could very well go to coirt and try to make driver to pay the fine,not that they would successed but they can try.
The driver is responsible for his load weight.
Hammer down!
What about the shipper?
Who calls for loads supposedly at a 24, 000 pounds and actually there’s 37,000.
This is not a carrier problem ,actually I know shippers,who does this thing to us.
Over weight our trucks, is a common problem for us ,from shippers.
No carrier want to risk,and investment so big,has a truck.
Thanks
The driver may not have known he was over weight.
There are no scales in that area
Let’s think about this. He was almost 166,000 pounds. You know what it’s like to pull 80,000. I’m betting that he was in first gear for quite a while just to get it moving. That alone would be a giant red flag that something is wrong
He knew he was overweight. Durand is not on the route from St Paul to Neenah. Only other explanation would be if he was based there and passed through on the way. Bet he/they did this more than once.
I doubt he did this more than once,Not that much weight anyway,chances are the other loads he did before were within the legal weight,why do I say this? Tires don t take that much weight,leaf springs don t take that much weight,one good bump at the right speed and one leaf spring will snap in half,frames bend with that much weight…for my money,this was the first time bith for the shipper and him.
Unless they are downright dumb and stupid.
But still c’mon should’ve known something wasn’t right. I’ll gurantee driver didn’t start off in 3rd gear. Truck pulling very hard should’ve been a clue. Plus the tires squatting should be been his first clue. And there is a scale at the stockyards Truck stop I believe
Oh believe me, he could tell. Might not know it was that much but he knew it was over, considerably..
yea right. i can almost tell you what my load is within a few thousand pounds after starting to drive.
You can feel your over weight by the drag on the pull off when your that over weight!!!!
maybe not on his route but there were cat scales available in the area.
That’s the driving school graduate steering wheel holders we’ve got out here today. No common sense whatsoever!
Almost $21k in fines . Wow what a joke that is. I wonder if you get heavy fines like that even if your 5-10000 lbs overweight?? Needless to say the guy was a complete fool for even attempting that job. But I’m sure he now has moved on to a more safer , simpler job flipping burgers at McDonald’s or Burger King lol
Even at double the allowable axle weight of 17000 lbs. So 34000 lbs is 17 ton. Why couldn’t a 20 ton jack lift 1 wheel end. Something is off with this story
A 50 ton wrecker picked up whole rear of the trailer but a 20 to jack wouldn’t pick up one wheel. Yeap, something just don’t sound right there.
The suspension was completely compressed with that much weight. Because of that, you have to lift the weight of the load, not just the axle weight.
You just can’t fix stupid.
Where is Darwin when you need him ???
Only means more $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$. If u make it
I am not a truck driver. But I have a question:
How do you know the weight of a trailer ?
Does the trailer tire mesure the weight ?
Scales.
There is a maximum weight rating on each tire, when you overload the tires they heat up and blow out. That’s exactly what happened here. You would know that the truck is overloaded just by the way it’s feels. I’ve been overloaded by 10,000 lbs and the truck drives and feels very different. Being 85,000 lbs overloaded you could tell the first time you let out the clutch.
There is a system you can put on a truck to get an idea of the weight ( within a few hundred pounds) but scrap haulers use crappy trailers and barely legal trucks. At many truck stops they have scales to weigh the truck and trailer. Haven driven a truck for 30+ years, I can tell when I am really close to 80,000 pounds. But the ATA wants to get rid of me and those of us that have this much experience.
If all the tires appear to be low on air, if the air bag suspension on the truck or trailer is flat, if the truck struggles to get moving. Any experienced driver (with brains) would spot that problem before they moved one inch. I would say he should have put it on a scale, but it could have destroyed the scale. No excuse for it I can even imagine.
Trailer should be “scaled Out” right after picking up the Load. Specially if it is a heavy load. 30,000 plus. It is the safe thing to do.
That’s ridiculous and I’m sure the driver knew but was after the money. Scrap haulers are paid by weight.
Yeah maybe so but i am a local scrap hauler and so as he attempted to go on or off the receiver scale the reg flags would have went off.. this guy is an idiot..160k of scrap is so dangwrous i cant even imagine taken it 20 miles yet 275
Do you mean the “Shipper”???
That should be a “career altering event” as they called it in driving school.
All the scrap metal haulers are being targeted for sure now. Because i have seen in my 30 years, just don’t get caught attitude from many local hauling drivers, wood chips, logs, junk cars,
Let me explain to you the severity…
If there had been a fatality involved, the driver would be in prison for manslaughter.
21k in fines. I bet the wrecker bill was just as much.
Too funny.
I wouldn’t have taken that load, even if I needed the money still wouldn’t take it
My guess is the driver was hired not to care about regs–a patsy. Maybe didn’t speak English, from eastern Europe or another country, or someone who couldn’t get a job elsewhere. Bottom line is the driver is responsible for the load and operation of the vehicle. A scary story!
Just follow the law it’s that simple!
I read a lot of stupid stories on this site but that might be possibly the dumbest SOB I’ve seen yet. It literally pisses me off to no end knowing that any stupid bastard can be given a license to drive a truck. Back when I was growing up my childhood heroes were truck drivers they were real men, not some flunky not smart enough to do anything else in life. They were professionals they took pride in their work and trucks…those men are far and few nowadays.
^ Yep..exactly…and why i got off the road after 2 million miles of safe driving. The longer i stayed around the more likely some idiot derelict w/ a CDL but zero common sense would eventually plow into me.
So many clueless drivers out there nowdays that have no business driving a rig. Zero.
Professionalism or pride in what you’re doing….Zero.
Notice the clowns broke down on rhe shoulder with no 4-ways on or safety triangles placed out? Why is that? Ignorant? Uneducated? Lazy? Its all of the above and it’s prominent in the new age trucking industry.
Its a sad fact in the sad state of trucking 2017 & beyond. Get out while you can! Your better off selling.hair brushes at a bald man convention.
Its so funny to me. Only been in the industry about 5 years and I, as well as, others are mystified at the absolute lack of respect drivers show one and other. The lack of respect that shippers have for the freight they try and get drivers to pull… all of the logistic games…and worst of all as exemplified by some of the comments the know it all’s who have never ever made a mistake in life. I believe that those folks and the people they infect with their attitudes are the reasons why truckers are never gonna get what they deserve for their sacrifices. And once they figure a way to automate the roads it will be their faults 100% for not having the fortitude to see the bigger picture and link together to stop the atrocities in this industry. Way too many “know it all’s” and “do it all’s” in this industry; and people that confuse 20 years of experience with 1 year of experience 20 times. Shippers should be held accountable, brokers need more oversight, and CDL mills should have severe penalties for their omissions. Lastly, people who have paid their dues and finished one of these highly slanted lease deals should have some type of benefit for paying on a truck for 3 years to help their credit situation so that they can qualify to buy their own truck.
And for you new drivers considering a career in trucking as a way to solve a problem I cautiously urge you to consider the worst case senario that you will lose everything you have including your health and family as a serious reality. Please, please, please do not ask anyone in this industry whats a good company to work for because for the most part older drivers suffer from Stockholm syndrome and believe that you should too! With statements like, “a paying load is a good load.” Some peoples perception of themselves are so low and abandoned that they actually believe struggling is the only way to live and $400.00 a week for 60 to 70 hours a week is great!…
Forget that ish!!!! #1. If the person dishing out the advice isn’t someone you would trade places with then do not listen to them. #2. If the company has a sign on their trailer “looking for drivers” or some such advertisement about “great miles!” that is an indication of a high attrition rate, unfortunately as a newbie insurance companies and legislation will almost force you into one of them to get started in this industry. Good Luck! You’ve been warned.
Do you mean, “Driver Turn over” rate??
I hauled trash back in the day and was dispatched to haul a demolished house, 1st load was only 52,500lbs but the second load was 112,840lbs, I had no way of turning around to have the demolishin company remove some of the weight, I didn’t know until I got to the landfill how heavy I was. Yes, it is possible he didn’t know how heavy he was but at the same time I knew I was heavy but there was nothing I could but squeez my butt cheeks together and pray I made it. Luckily I did, but I knew I was overweight but had no way of knowing the exact weight.
Professionals yeah right !!!! All those truck drivers back in the day use to run on meth run for a whole week straight without sleeping.
In the so called “Good Old Days” -Benny- was my co-driver many times. I lost count of my 24 to 30 hour stints behind the wheel. With that being said however, truck drivers were considered the true professionals of the highways. They were usually curtious to other motorists, to each other and had far fewer highway mishaps than four wheelers.
With all that being said, the highway traffic was not as congested as it is now, the speed limits were never 70 mph, the old trucks would rarely see 60 mph, and the load weight limits were a lot less. Where there are 500,000 trucks on the road any any given time in 2017, in 1965 there were maybe 75,000 on the road. What are the stat percentages.
Hey guys, we still have the opportunity to be professional drivers.
String up the whole lot of em.
Including the driver. DOT should shut em down. These scumbag outfits should be I’ve had many an arguement with dispatchers regarding faulty loads. I refused to take them. I almost killed a guy in dispatch over this kind of crap. They don’t listen. CSA2010 hasn’t done jack shit to improve things in the industry. Pathetic.
Scrap yards always have scales, no excuse for that.
Well I’m one that would run all week no sleep and wont ever touch that crap. So I guess you’re wrong again genius. Either you are just ignorantly prejudiced against drivers, or are an E-log lovin’ JB driver that’s rolls at 0900 and is parked again by 1500 always tying up parking spaces littering up the whole truck stop crapping on the bathroom walls at .29cpm coming on here talking like an expert with 9 months experience. Tell the truth now smart guy
Ground pressure like that requires “super-B” combination trailer configurations.
You can’t cure stupid. Here’s your sign.
That overweight would be obvious me thinks. Probably destroyed a trailer, huge fine, an equally huge tow bill. Extremely lucky as well.
All but 2 tickets went to the shipper not the driver.
Scrap yards always have scales on site, the driver and shipper both knew exactly what they were doing and how much the load weighed.
Sometimes a driver is sent to pick-up loads and he has no idea what the weight is. Shippers state a weight that is wrong. As a company driver has no opportunity to refuse the load, he is stuck with it. And if something goes wrong he is stuck again.
I remember, years ago I went to Baltimore to get a load at the docks. Eleven pallette not even knee high. Although it pulled a little hard I didn’t think much about it. When I got to kobe copper in North Carolina and on the scales, they had a fit. I weighed almost 128,000.
He should of felt the weight when he started to roll. Also you can always refuse a load. Company driver or not.
Let’s be honest – the driver could fog a mirror, and that gets him a CDL and a job. He may even have gotten a bonus for the 70 miles he drove.
By looking at the tires before leaving at the pretrip even a worthless driver could know the vehicle was overweight and illegal
It is a Cascadia,a faily new,chances are it has the suspension gauge,so the gauge was probably in the 160, to me that would ve been a NO WAY I AM DOING THIS LOAD red flag,you cannot pay me enough to do it, the way the truck pulled (or didn t)…yes he knew.
OMG. Talk about pushing your luck.
Holy cow, that is just insane! I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a 5-axle rig grossing 160k + lbs. That’s just plain stupid and I don’t care what anybody says, unless that is your very first load ever… you can absolutely tell that it is overweight. Extremely overweight. Poor Cascadia, he’s lucky the axles didn’t snap in two or all the air bags blow out. That’s right at double the rated capacity if he had the standard 12k/40k setup. The idiot didn’t even look at the tires before pulling out on the road. I guarantee every set of duals were smashed almost flat and rubbing together on the inside, which will blow out for sure. Incredible! LOL Should’ve had CDL revoked on the spot. No excuses for that. Period.
I see everyone mad at this driver me I see he wanted to make a big paycheck if he made the run at 30% of gross he wuld made out like a bandit good try….though you got caught 😉
First, when a driver cannot feel the weight of his load, he should not be doing a highway haul.
Second: Why did he not check the trailer for the type of freight he was to carry?
Third: did the driver not have a concept of what damage he could have done to the drive train of his truck?
Fourth: Before he approached the highway, did the driver even contemplate the breaking distance of his load at highway speeds?
I don’t mean to sound like an ***hole, but this driver needs to be re-schooled in highway hauling and taught how to mentally feel his truck’s engine & tranny work load that would give him an indication that he was in load weight trouble.