With a change of season nearing, several states are adjusting regulations related to load limits.
According to the Minnesota Department of Transportation website, the state’s winter load increase limits will end on Friday, Feb. 28 for the Metro, South and Southeast zones.
Overweight permits for more than 80,000 pounds gross vehicle weight will continue, and new permits will be issued if axle and group weights meet the requirements.
MnDOT said all changes are made with a minimum three-day calendar notice. A complete list of seasonal start and end dates is available on the MnDOT website.
Real-time traffic updates, as well as state regulations such as chain laws, are available under the resources tab at LandLine.Media.
North Dakota’s wintertime 10% weight exemption permit period is set to end on March 7, according to the North Dakota Highway Patrol website. This permit allows 10% more weight when hauling a divisible load not exceeding 105,500 pounds gross weight.
If spring load restrictions are put in effect before March 7, the winter exemption will be canceled.
Wisconsin’s frozen road period also remains in effect as of Wednesday, Feb. 26. This declaration applies to vehicles hauling abrasives or salt for highway winter maintenance and peeled or unpeeled forest products cut crosswise not to include woodchips, the state DOT said.
Local road maintenance authorities are responsible for determining when local or county roads are frozen or thawing.
Spring regulations
South Dakota officials may restrict loads through April 30 to protect highways from breakup during the spring thaw, the South Dakota DOT said in a news release.
“To prevent roadway damage and preserve our critical infrastructure, it can become necessary to temporarily restrict loads this time of the year,” SDDOT Director of Operations Craig Smith said in a statement.
The South Dakota DOT said it monitors high and low temperatures daily and calculates accumulated freeze and thaw indexes to avoid imposing an earlier or longer-than-necessary spring load restriction period.
Location and road details about spring load restrictions in South Dakota can be found here. LL
Read more Land Line coverage of regulations in your state.
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