Section 5577.04. Maximum axle load, wheel load, gross weights, for pneumatic tired vehicles

(A) The maximum wheel load of any one wheel of any vehicle, trackless trolley, load, object, or structure operated or moved upon improved public highways, streets, bridges, or culverts shall not exceed six hundred fifty pounds per inch width of pneumatic tire, measured as prescribed by section 5577.03 of the Revised Code.

(B) The weight of vehicle and load imposed upon a road surface that is part of the interstate system by vehicles with pneumatic tires shall not exceed any of the following weight limitations:

(1) On any one axle, twenty thousand pounds;

(2) On any tandem axle, thirty-four thousand pounds;

(3) On any two or more consecutive axles, the maximum weight as determined by application of the formula provided in division (C) of this section.

(C) For purposes of division (B)(3) of this section, the maximum gross weight on any two or more consecutive axles shall be determined by application of the following formula:

W = 500((LN/N-1) + 12N + 36).

In this formula, W equals the overall gross weight on any group of two or more consecutive axles to the nearest five hundred pounds, L equals the distance in rounded whole feet between the extreme of any group of two or more consecutive axles, and N equals the number of axles in the group under consideration. However, two consecutive sets of tandem axles may carry a gross load of thirty-four thousand pounds each, provided the overall distance between the first and last axles of such consecutive sets of tandem axles is thirty-six feet or more.

(D) Except as provided in division (I) of this section, the weight of vehicle and load imposed upon a road surface that is not part of the interstate system by vehicles with pneumatic tires shall not exceed any of the following weight limitations:

(1) On any one axle, twenty thousand pounds;

(2) On any two successive axles:

(a) Spaced four feet or less apart, and weighed simultaneously, twenty-four thousand pounds;

(b) Spaced more than four feet apart, and weighed simultaneously, thirty-four thousand pounds, plus one thousand pounds per foot or fraction thereof, over four feet, not to exceed forty thousand pounds.

(3) On any three successive load-bearing axles designed to equalize the load between such axles and spaced so that each such axle of the three-axle group is more than four feet from the next axle in the three-axle group and so that the spacing between the first axle and the third axle of the three-axle group is no more than nine feet, and with such load-bearing three-axle group weighed simultaneously as a unit:

(a) Forty-eight thousand pounds, with the total weight of vehicle and load not exceeding thirty-eight thousand pounds plus an additional nine hundred pounds for each foot of spacing between the front axle and the rearmost axle of the vehicle;

(b) As an alternative to division (D)(3)(a) of this section, forty-two thousand five hundred pounds, if part of a six-axle vehicle combination with at least twenty feet of spacing between the front axle and rearmost axle, with the total weight of vehicle and load not exceeding fifty-four thousand pounds plus an additional six hundred pounds for each foot of spacing between the front axle and the rearmost axle of the vehicle.

(4) The total weight of vehicle and load utilizing any combination of axles, other than as provided for three-axle groups in division (D) of this section, shall not exceed thirty-eight thousand pounds plus an additional nine hundred pounds for each foot of spacing between the front axle and rearmost axle of the vehicle.

(E) Notwithstanding divisions (B) and (D) of this section, the maximum overall gross weight of vehicle and load imposed upon the road surface shall not exceed eighty thousand pounds.

(F) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, when a vehicle is towing another vehicle, such drawbar or other connection shall be of a length such as will limit the spacing between nearest axles of the respective vehicles to a distance not in excess of twelve feet and six inches.

(G) As used in division (B) of this section, "tandem axle" means two or more consecutive axles whose centers may be included between parallel transverse vertical planes spaced more than forty inches but not more than ninety-six inches apart, extending across the full width of the vehicle.

(H) This section does not apply to passenger bus type vehicles operated by a regional transit authority pursuant to sections 306.30 to 306.54 of the Revised Code.

(I) Either division (B) or (D) of this section applies to the weight of a vehicle and its load imposed upon any road surface that is not a part of the interstate system by vehicles with pneumatic tires. As between divisions (B) and (D) of this section, only the division that yields the highest total gross vehicle weight limit shall be applied to any such vehicle. Once that division is determined, only the limits contained in the subdivisions of that division shall apply to that vehicle.

Effective Date: 06-29-2001