Heads Up: Bridge Law Enforcement

They most certainly do and when they see a 48' or less trailer weighing close to 80,000 and slid all the way forward hit their scales...trust me they will tag it.

 

ok, you got me... how on Earth can the bridge calculation cause an empty trailer to be over bridge?

 

It can't! Again, confusion with KPRA and Bridge Law.

 

Kingpin to Center of Rear Trailer Axle:

40'
California

40'6"
Indiana

41'
Alabama
Arkansas
Connecticut
Florida*
Maryland**
North Carolina
Rhode Island
Tennessee

43'
Vermont
Wisconsin

45'6"
Illinois


Kingpin to Between Trailer Tandem Axles

40'6"
Michigan (varies 6" either way depending on frost law)

41"
Florida*
Georgia
Minnesota
New Hampshire
Pennsylvania
South Carolina
Utah
Virginia


Between Rearmost Tractor Axle and Frontmost Trailer Axle:

37'
West Virginia


*Florida will variously measure either to center of rear axle or to between the axles. I have no idea what the criteria are for that distinction. Better to use center of rear axle to be safe.

**Maryland: Rear overhang may not be more than ...30?% of the entire length of the trailer. I added it up once. For a 53' trailer, you couldn't have more than 18' overhang behind the center of the rear axle.

If I can't make legal weight (12-34-34) with the existing stretch law, I make the shipper redistribute the load.

Oh, and don't blast me out of the water if some of my numbers are outdated. I'm going off the newest information I have.

 

Almost every single driver that transfers from OTR into my dedicated portion of the company, no matter how many years OTR they have, is shocked to be told they must slide tandems from the full back position some of the customers require before they get on the road.

Universally, when you tell them they must slide tandems forward from the fully back position they all say "but the trailer is empty/light." In TN, as in the other states I've researched your weight is irrelevant to the "over-length" law.

If drivers would read one regulation per week they'd eventually stop relying on "some guy on the CB/internet/buffet said..." for interpretation of regulations. Try telling a cop he's mistaken because 10 drivers and your first company said it was OK.

 

it can thats why its called a bridge law, it's based on your axle spacings. but i agree with you running empty it shouldn't matter. but i'm not the one that wears a badge and a gun.

 

The reason it does make a difference about axle spacing is if the driver runs too far streched out, they have to take corners wider. California, despite theirs being the shortest spread in the country, calls it a bridge law. I challenge anyone to run at their spread measurement with more than 34K on any tandem. I'd like to see how far that gets you.

I'm not saying what the experienced guys are suggesting is wrong. But it's not a chance I would want to take. Which is why (repeating myself here) if I can't make both a legal spread and legal weights, I will make the shipper move the load around until I can. If it takes all day, then so be it. I'll collect detention pay until it's right.

We deal with interstates and off grid highways. Laws are written differently depending on which road you are travelling on. Since I run all types of roads, I want to be legal for where ever I roll.

Side note on California: I believe theirs is so short because some politician got mad when he had to back up because someone had to take a wide turn. I can't think of any other justification for it. But I'm listening if someone else knows more about it.

 

I actually met a guy couple weeks ago, that was about to return to the shipper for a reload.

He refused to slide his fifth wheel. I ask him if it wouldn't slide. His response was, I ain't sliding it. I like it where it's at.

 

is there a bridge law in every state? especially Mass. I ask since my old man was pulled over by a ashland dot last week and the officer mentioned the bridge law to him. we run dump trailers that don't have sliding 5th wheels or sliding tandems so is there a way to prevent breaking the law if there is one? the cop said he would be breaking it but wouldn't bother him over it and when he proceeded to ask the officer how to correct the problem he stated "I don't know." I know nothing about this law nor was I ever educated on it so excuse my ignorance.

 

Federal -- .... although states can be stricter or lax in enforcement.