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<section article="gtr" article_name="Transportation" number="24-109" title_number="24" title_name="Vehicle Laws -- Size, Weight, and Load; Highway Preservation" subtitle_number="1" subtitle_name="Size, Weight, and Load">
  <level label="a">
    <level label="1">
      <text>In this section the following words have the meanings indicated.</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>“Single axle weight” means the total weight transmitted by all wheels whose centers may be included between 2 parallel transverse vertical planes 40 inches apart extending across the full width of the vehicle.</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>“Tandem axle weight” means the total weight transmitted to the road by 2 or more consecutive axles whose centers may be included between parallel vertical planes spaced more than 40 inches apart but not more than 96 inches apart extending across the full width of the vehicle.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="b">
    <text>An over–the–road bus or any vehicle that is regularly and exclusively used as an intrastate public agency passenger bus:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>Is exempt from tandem axle weight limits provided in this section; but</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>Shall comply with the vehicle and combination of vehicles weight limits provided in this section that are not tandem axle weight limits.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="c">
    <text>Notwithstanding any other provisions of this title, the overall gross weight on a group of 2 or more consecutive axles may not exceed an amount produced by application of the following formula:</text>
    <text>(            LN                              )</text>
    <text>W = 500    (      ––––––––––––––    +     12N     +       36    )</text>
    <text>(          N – 1                               )</text>
    <text>where “W” = overall gross weight on any group of 2 or more consecutive axles to the nearest 500 pounds, “L” = distance in feet measured horizontally between the vertical centerlines of the extreme of any group of 2 or more consecutive axles, and “N” = number of axles in group under consideration, except that 2 consecutive sets of tandem axles may carry a gross load of 34,000 pounds each providing the overall distance between the first and last axles of such consecutive sets of tandem axles is 36 feet or more; provided, that such overall gross weight may not exceed eighty thousand (80,000) pounds, including any enforcement or statutory tolerances.</text>
  </level>
  <level label="d">
    <text>The following table indicates the permissible overall gross weights based upon the above formula:</text>
    <text>Distance in  </text>
    <text>feet between  </text>
    <text>the extremes of</text>
    <text>any group of 2  </text>
    <text>or more  </text>
    <text>consecutive</text>
    <text>axles                      2 axles     3 axles     4 axles     5 axles     6 axles     7 axles</text>
    <text>4                    34,000</text>
    <text>5                    34,000</text>
    <text>6                    34,000</text>
    <text>7                    34,000</text>
    <text>8</text>
    <text>and less                34,000     34,000</text>
    <text>More than</text>
    <text>8                    38,000     42,000</text>
    <text>75,000           39,000     42,500</text>
    <text>10                    40,000     43,500</text>
    <text>11                             44,000</text>
    <text>12                             45,000      50,000</text>
    <text>13                             45,500      50,500</text>
    <text>14                             46,500      51,500</text>
    <text>15                             47,000      52,000</text>
    <text>16                             48,000      52,500      58,000</text>
    <text>17                             48,500      53,500      58,500</text>
    <text>18                             49,500      54,000      59,000</text>
    <text>19                             50,000      54,500      60,000</text>
    <text>20                             51,000      55,500      60,500     66,000</text>
    <text>21                             51,500      56,000      61,000     66,500</text>
    <text>22                             52,500      56,500      61,500     67,000</text>
    <text>23                             53,000      57,500      62,500     68,000</text>
    <text>24                             54,000      58,000      63,000     68,500      74,000</text>
    <text>25                             54,500      58,500      63,500     69,000      74,500</text>
    <text>26                             55,500      59,500      64,000     69,500</text>
    <text>27                             56,000      60,000      65,000     70,000      75,500</text>
    <text>28                             57,000      60,500      65,500     71,000      76,500</text>
    <text>29                             57,500      61,500      66,000     71,500      77,000</text>
    <text>30                             58,500      62,000      66,500     72,000      77,500</text>
    <text>31                             59,000      62,500      67,500     72,500      78,000</text>
    <text>32                             60,000      63,500      68,000     72,500      78,500</text>
    <text>33                                            64,000      68,500     74,000      79,000</text>
    <text>34                                            64,500      69,000     74,500      80,000</text>
    <text>35                                            65,500      70,000     75,000</text>
    <text>36                    Exception</text>
    <text>See</text>
    <text>subsection</text>
    <level label="c">
      <text>,</text>
      <text>This</text>
      <text>section      (66,000)     70,500     75,500</text>
      <text>37                                      (66,500)     71,000     76,000</text>
      <text>38                                      (67,500)     72,000     77,000</text>
      <text>39                                        68,000      72,500     77,500</text>
      <text>40                                        68,500      73,000     78,000</text>
      <text>41                                        69,500      73,500     78,500</text>
      <text>42                                        70,000      74,000     79,000</text>
      <text>43                                        70,500      75,000     80,000</text>
      <text>44                                        71,500      75,500</text>
      <text>45                                        72,000      76,000</text>
      <text>46                                        72,500      76,500</text>
      <text>47                                        73,500      77,500</text>
      <text>48                                        74,000      78,000</text>
      <text>49                                        74,500      78,500</text>
      <text>50                                        75,500      79,000</text>
      <text>51                                        76,000      80,000</text>
      <text>52                                        76,500</text>
      <text>53                                        77,500</text>
      <text>54                                        78,000</text>
      <text>55                                        78,500</text>
      <text>56                                        79,500</text>
      <text>57                                        80,000</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="e">
    <text>The gross weight of any vehicle or combination of vehicles may not exceed the following limits:</text>
    <text>Gross</text>
    <text>Number of                              weight</text>
    <text>axles                                  (in pounds)</text>
    <text>Three or less                                                  55,000</text>
    <text>Four                                                        66,000</text>
    <text>Five as provided for in § 13–916 or § 13–923 of this</text>
    <text>article                                                       80,000</text>
  </level>
  <level label="f">
    <text>A trailer with metal tires and a gross weight of more than 6,000 pounds may not be moved on a highway.</text>
  </level>
  <level label="g">
    <level label="1">
      <text>Except on interstate highways, a single unit vehicle with 3 axles, or a combination of vehicles with a trailer less than 32 feet long or a semitrailer less than 45 feet long, either registered as a farm vehicle or carrying farm products as defined under § 10–601 of the Agriculture Article that were loaded in fields or other off–highway locations, is permitted an axle load limit tolerance of 5% from subsections (c) and (d) of this section, except during harvest time when an axle load limit tolerance of 15% or, subject to paragraph (2) of this subsection, a gross vehicle weight tolerance of 5% from subsections (c) and (d) of this section is permitted for a vehicle carrying the following agricultural products:</text>
      <level label="i">
        <text>Wheat, for the period from June 1 to August 15;</text>
      </level>
      <level label="ii">
        <text>Corn, for the period from July 1 to December 1;</text>
      </level>
      <level label="iii">
        <text>Soybeans, for the period from September 1 to December 31; and</text>
      </level>
      <level label="iv">
        <text>Vegetable crops, for the period from June 1 to October 31.</text>
      </level>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>The harvest time gross vehicle weight limit tolerance of 5% under paragraph (1) of this subsection applies only to a vehicle traveling within 100 miles of the field or other off–highway location where the vehicle was loaded.</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <level label="i">
        <text>Except on interstate highways, a single unit vehicle with at least 3 axles or a combination of vehicles with a trailer length of less than 32 feet carrying forest products that have been loaded in forests or other similar off–highway locations is permitted an axle load limit tolerance of 10% from subsections (c) and (d) of this section, except for the period from June 1 through September 30 when an axle load limit tolerance of 15% from subsections (c) and (d) of this section is permitted.</text>
      </level>
      <level label="ii">
        <text>Except on interstate highways, a combination of vehicles with a semitrailer length of 45 feet or less carrying forest products that have been loaded in forests or other similar off–highway locations is permitted an axle load limit tolerance of 5% from subsections (c) and (d) of this section, except for the period from June 1 through September 30 when an axle load limit tolerance of 15% from subsections (c) and (d) of this section is permitted.</text>
      </level>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="h">
    <level label="1">
      <text>Any vehicle that uses an auxiliary power unit or an idle–reduction technology unit in order to promote reduction of fuel use and emissions from engine idling shall be allowed up to an additional 550 pounds total in gross, axle, tandem, or bridge formula weight limits.</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>To be eligible for the additional weight limit allowed under paragraph (1) of this subsection, the vehicle operator must:</text>
      <level label="i">
        <text>Obtain and make available to law enforcement officers written certification of the weight of the auxiliary power unit or idle–reduction technology unit; and</text>
      </level>
      <level label="ii">
        <text>By demonstration or certification, prove that the idle–reduction technology unit is fully functional at all times.</text>
      </level>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>The additional weight limit allowed under paragraph (1) of this subsection may not exceed the certified weight of the auxiliary power unit or idle–reduction technology unit.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="i">
    <text>Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the gross vehicle weight of a vehicle for which a permit is issued under § 24–113.3 of this subtitle for traveling along a designated heavy weight port corridor may not exceed 100,000 pounds.</text>
  </level>
</section>
