DOT cracking down hard around the Ringgold, TX area

Just a heads up to any crude haulers who run that part of the country. The DOT obviously has been put on notice and they have been ratcheting up the busts. Just yesterday I was told they had 8 trucks pulled over at once in that area. Supposedly one driver was hauling around 230B and they are trying to nail him for every mile he drove through Texas for about $8K. They followed one driver right into the LACT and weighed him before he could get unloaded. I have been told the DOT is going into the Sunoco LACT also to look at the tickets and recording the truck company names and truck numbers to nail those drivers. One driver working for a certain company was pulled over then another company passed this driver and the DOT officer stated, "You can go I'm more interested in checking out that company". One driver was told by the DOT the minimum fine is about to go to $1000 for the first violation. This driver also stated if you get nailed 3 times overweight you lose your license which I can't confirm.

I know this is going to cost drivers at several companies as just about everyone running down there is on %. I hear the drivers at one company will be making about $30 less per load since they will have to scale back from 190B to 174B. Anyway, I'm sure this subject may be controversial for some and there will be those who feel you should not be running heavy but just thought I would put it out there. This crack down has been going on for a couple of months but has recently grown in such intensity I could not help but mention it.

 

Same thing in PA. The fines in PA are much higher. One of our tanker drivers got hit with a $15K fine and the company won't pay it either. He crossed a low weight limit bridge with a DOT cop waiting on the other side.

 

How exactly does one pay that kind of thing? Take out a loan? Do they take payments for five years? Not being a smart ### honest question.

unloader

 

I don't know how he paid it. He was on I-80 and got off the interstate trying to get around a traffic backup. It was a hazmat load also. He gambled and lost. PA is really cracking down, especially the fracking trucks running overweight on the backroads.

 

Usually the company pays the fine and takes it out of the drivers pay. So much each check.

I don't know the fines these days but 10 years ago it was about 400$ for first overweight fine. It doubles every time you got a overweight ticket in a 12 month period. But they are probably higher now. Just load 130 plus your gravity and you will be safe. Most say 133 plus gravity. And Sunoco has overweight permits for their trucks. They are no good on a interstate hwy though. Hauling heavy isn't worth the $$$ it will cost you. Especially if your a O/O. Bust your springs and just hard on equipment.

 

I'am not a driver yet, and although this might sound crazy, but how does one get overweight like that? Are you filling the tanker up yourself? Just curious as a learning lesson. Thank you.

 

You can be legal weight on the major highways and interstates, but overweight on secondary roads and bridges. I've been for example, around 75K gross weight, then follow the directions to a receiver and come to a bridge that may say weight restricted to no more than 55K. Call the receiver and they say, that's the only way into their place & the road is a narrow 2 lane with no shoulders. Yes, I crossed the bridge. Was legal after unloading so no problem going back across empty.

 

That's true on many farm to market roads in Texas. Gross weight may only be 58,000 on some of those too. But a lot of the bridges are load zoned. Most Texas license and weight troopers won't stop you though. Especially oilfield cause its the only way to get out of the patch to the unload station.

And on the filling up and getting overweight. On average a trailer holds 200 barrels but most times you can only load 170 barrels legally. Say like 133 plus 40 gravity makes 173 the legal limit. You load 195 barrels and you will be overweight and about 85,000 gross. Depending on gravity a barrel of crude weighs around 400 pounds. And a barrel of crude = 42 gallons. Btw. Just for reference if the trailer has a capacity of 8,400 gallons its a 200 barrel tank. If 8,820 gallons its a 210 barrel tank. Most have digital gauges these days.

 

I was wondering about that because as a Vac truck driver I travel some farm to market roads with 58k. weight limits and routinely cross small bridges with lower capacities. I have been wondering if this is legal or not. Thoughts anyone.

 

It's not legal but how else can you get from the tank battery to the disposal ?

About 6 yrs ago I hauled a lot of crude around west of Snyder. The shortest way to the lact was a load zoned FM road "58,000" to be exact. Just a little out of the way was a FM road zoned for 80,000. The DOT man lived right off the 58,000 load zoned road. So he busted plenty of guys hauling a load on that road. We had stuff off that road but had to take dirt road over to the other road. Depends on the trooper. He was a real SOB.