| Author | Message | ||
| FAST FRED (Fast_fred)
Registered Member Username: Fast_fred Post Number: 1490 Registered: 10-2006 Posted From: 69.19.14.43  Rating: N/A |
FMCA does a fine job in their Jan issue of listing the State restrictions on length and width.. Are the US Interstate limits different? If so any place they are listed? With a 35 ft bus , I am interested in towing a boat to use at destinations. The no permit 8ft 6 inches is fine, but, To be useful (inside passage to AK) she has to be large enough to work for weeks , so 30ish would be great , but but many States do not allow a long tow on their roads. FF | ||
| Tim (Timkar)
Registered Member Username: Timkar Post Number: 147 Registered: 10-2004 Posted From: 64.251.64.58  Rating: N/A |
Interested in the responses to this as well... At 45' length without the toad, there seem to be quite a few states and provinces we cannot go to !!!!! | ||
| Bob Glines (Robertglines1)
Registered Member Username: Robertglines1 Post Number: 23 Registered: 11-2010 Posted From: 75.204.54.183 Rating: N/A |
go to your search ;most states are 65ft total for RV and Federal Dot excludes RV the way I read it .Interesting subject search Rv vehicle towing lengths | ||
| Kade (Kozycade)
Registered Member Username: Kozycade Post Number: 71 Registered: 7-2010 Posted From: 71.161.42.154 Rating: N/A |
I post to a thread awhile back that I listed all the combined lengths for each state...I will look for it when I get time or you can do a search for it....Kade | ||
| Sean Welsh (Sean)
Registered Member Username: Sean Post Number: 1248 Registered: 1-2003 Posted From: 67.142.130.40  Rating: N/A |
Fred, the length limits are set by the states. There is nothing magical about Interstate highways that exempts them from those limits. That said, some states have different restrictions for STAA routes than for other non-STAA routes. For example, NJ allows 102" wide vehicles on STAA routes which include all Interstate highways, whereas the limit everywhere else in the state is 96". Likewise, California allows 45' coaches on STAA routes and certain other routes, but there is a strict 40' limit most other places, acing the 45-footers out of, for example, the Pacific Coast Highway, or many routes through the Sierras. STAA federal exemptions (which apply to the entire STAA network, not just Interstates) and grandfathered length limits apply only to commercial vehicles with federal DOT registration numbers. So, for example, most states must allow a 48' semitrailer on STAA routes if it has DOT numbers. No such exemption applies to private vehicles; most states restrict trailers to 40' maximum. -Sean http://OurOdyssey.BlogSpot.com | ||
| Luvrbus (Luvrbus)
Registered Member Username: Luvrbus Post Number: 1079 Registered: 8-2006 Posted From: 74.33.61.190 Rating: N/A |
If classified as a RV most states have different lengths than trucks in Idaho very common to see a truck with 3-45 ft trailers going down the road but the RV's are limited to 75 feet overall so check the RV section to be sure don't follow the truck info good luck good luck | ||
| Luvrbus (Luvrbus)
Registered Member Username: Luvrbus Post Number: 1080 Registered: 8-2006 Posted From: 74.33.61.190 Rating: N/A |
If classified as a RV most states have different lengths than trucks in Idaho very common to see a truck with 3-45 or two 53 ft trailers going down the road but the RV's are limited to 75 feet overall so check the RV section to be sure don't follow the truck info good luck good luck | ||
| Buswarrior (Buswarrior)
Registered Member Username: Buswarrior Post Number: 2067 Registered: 12-2000 Posted From: 174.89.174.121  Rating: N/A |
Over-length permits are not the end of the world. Simply another fee to be paid. Quite worth an investigation, and specifically question whether a difference in fees for personal use, versus a commercial venture, when making the inquiries. I am somewhat hesitant to put much worth into FMCA's efforts in these matters. Simply too many devilish details for their treatment, and that's where we might slip through. The front section of a Rand McNally Motor Carrier Road Atlas has the current contact info for every jurisdiction. A good truck stop sells them for well under the listed price of $19.95, I often have picked mine up in the $10 range. http://store.randmcnally.com/road-atlas/motor-carriers-road-atlases/2011-rand-mcnally-moto r-carriers-road-atlas.html happy coaching! buswarrior | ||
| RJ Long (Rjlong)
Registered Member Username: Rjlong Post Number: 1800 Registered: 12-2000 Posted From: 71.195.124.20  Rating: N/A |
Sean - Groggy grey matter tonight. . . What's STAA? | ||
| Sean Welsh (Sean)
Registered Member Username: Sean Post Number: 1249 Registered: 1-2003 Posted From: 67.142.130.26 Rating: N/A |
I can't speak for Canada, but I can say without equivocating that this is not accurate for most of the U.S. I have exactly this atlas (we use it for low clearance information) and the jurisdictional contact information therein is for commercial trucks. While some states use the same office for both, in most U.S. states, RVs and other private vehicles are regulated differently. The commercial licensing/permit/enforcement offices won't have a clue about non-commercial vehicles and are usually not the right places to call for RV overdimensional information. FWIW.
"Surface Transportation Assistance Act" (of 1982), which is the federal legislation under which the current set of dimension and weight regulations (and exceptions thereto) was frozen in 1982. It was a stopgap response to endlessly creeping state dimensional changes that were creating problems for interstate commerce. Under the STAA the network of roads that must allow certain dimensions and weights was made explicit and all exceptions to federal weight and dimensional limits were halted other than those already in effect as of the date of passage. The STAA provisions and definitions are spelled out, among other places, in the aforementioned "Motor Carriers' Road Atlas." Again, absolutely none of the STAA rules and exceptions apply to any vehicle that is not used in interstate commerce, as defined by having commercial registration with the U.S. DOT, a simple matter of constitutional law. -Sean http://OurOdyssey.BlogSpot.com | ||
| Debbie and Joe Cannarozzi (Joe_camper)
Registered Member Username: Joe_camper Post Number: 365 Registered: 10-2006 Posted From: 75.221.39.129  Rating: N/A |
I would like to here from 1 person who was busted for over length on an interstate highway with a motorhome and trlr in any state other than Cal. | ||
| Len Silva (Lsilva)
Registered Member Username: Lsilva Post Number: 463 Registered: 12-2000 Posted From: 72.187.35.208  Rating: N/A |
The length of the Interstate is 46,876 miles. | ||
| Kade (Kozycade)
Registered Member Username: Kozycade Post Number: 72 Registered: 7-2010 Posted From: 71.161.42.154 Rating: N/A |
Here is the link to the thread that I posted the combined lenghts for all the states. About half way through. http://www.busnut.com/bbs/messages/11/45701.html Joe...I have been given a citation for not having a over size permit. I was legal in my home state and 10' feet longer than allowed in the bordering state. This topic has come up a couple of times and I think its good to note that more imporantaly the max speed limit on interstates for towed combinations is not always the posted speed, especially here on the eastern seaboard. Virginia, SOuth Carolina, Ohio come to mind for a specific reason but I know there are others. Kade | ||
| Debbie and Joe Cannarozzi (Joe_camper)
Registered Member Username: Joe_camper Post Number: 367 Registered: 10-2006 Posted From: 108.68.163.35 Rating: N/A |
O/K so here is 1 example. Do we have more? I will not be holding my breath. | ||
| Tom Christman (Tchristman)
Registered Member Username: Tchristman Post Number: 284 Registered: 1-2006 Posted From: 66.218.33.156 Rating: N/A |
Interesting-I called the CHP north bound I-15 scales at the Cajon Pass and asked about RV length laws. They said 65ft was the magical number. I asked if an outboard motor on a boat would be considered part of the length, and they said no. They measure to the end of the boat hull. Good Luck, TomC |