Yahoo Message Number: 10359 (http://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/Country-Coach-Owners/conversations/messages/10359)
We have had some discussion on this subject, with a lot of opinion expressed?many claiming to know the facts. Some owners are even concerned about the usability of their coach over this issue. I thought I'd do some research to find out what the facts are. While I did get some facts, some of those facts raised further questions.
Here is what I found so far: U.S. Code Title 23, Highways, does mention maximum weight limits, although just for the Dwight D.
Eisenhower System of Interstate and Defense Highways. The following is from Chapter 1, subchapter I, section 127:
Sec. 127. Vehicle weight limitations - Interstate System (a) In General. -
No funds shall be apportioned in any fiscal year under section 104 (b)
(1) of this title to any State which does not permit the use of The Dwight D. Eisenhower System of Interstate and Defense Highways within its boundaries by vehicles with a weight of twenty thousand pounds carried on any one axle, including enforcement tolerances, or with a tandem axle weight of thirty-four thousand pounds, including enforcement tolerances, or a gross weight of at least eighty thousand pounds for vehicle combinations of five axles or more. However, the maximum gross weight to be allowed by any State for vehicles using The Dwight D. Eisenhower System of Interstate and Defense Highways shall be twenty thousand pounds carried on one axle, including enforcement tolerances, and a tandem axle weight of thirty-four thousand pounds, including enforcement tolerances and with an overall maximum gross weight, including enforcement tolerances, on a group of two or more consecutive axles produced by application of the following formula??
_ Note that this pertains to apportionment of federal funds. I guess I need a laywer's input to see if this applies outside of the federal/state fiscal issues. The one thing that makes me wonder about this, is that several states have axle limits that exceed these standards for interstates, and correct me if I'm wrong; aren't all interstates part of the Dwight D. Eisenhower interstate system? I found the following web site that details allowable axle load by state. I checked a couple against state DMV regulation, and for the ones I checked, they had the right info.
http://www.zeitnerandsons.com/statehighwayregulations.htm (http://www.zeitnerandsons.com/statehighwayregulations.htm) According to this web site, ten states have maximum axle weights that exceed single axle federal standards in Title 23. They are: Connecticut 22,400
Florida 22,000
Georgia 20,340
Hawaii 22,500
Massachusetts 22,400
New Jersey 22,400
New Mexico 21,600
New York 22,400
Rhode Island 22,400
Vermont 22,400
From what I've been able to learn, the New England states have the higher axle loads for their snow equipment, but that still leave three states in apparent violation of federal law? Somehow I find this hard to believe. If someone can provide some hard facts on this, instead of what they heard from some "expert" years ago, it would be appreciated!
Per
95 Affinity (below the 20k axle limit most of the time!)
Yahoo Message Number: 10364 (http://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/Country-Coach-Owners/conversations/messages/10364)
Thanks, Per. for your efforts on this subject.
Larry '99 Affinity