Too Long?

[Rjcarbo]

Has anyone had a problem being stoped by police for being over length? I am 73 feet long tip to tip. I tow a 32 foot inclosed trailer (that includes the tongue)that houses my Goldwing trike & car.

[Rjcarbo]

Has anyone had a problem being stoped by police for being over length? I am 73 feet long tip to tip. I tow a 32 foot inclosed trailer (that includes the tongue)that houses my Goldwing trike & car.

[Lug_Nut]

I've never heard of anybody being stopped however I would think the liability for being over length in the case of an accident may be worth looking into.

[RobAndTeresa]

Although this is a boating related site, it may be of some help to you as it outlines the overall legal length for a trailer and combined tow vehicle and trailer. Looks like you would be illegal in most states.

http://www.americanboating.org/towing.asp


Take care.

[Gary RVRoamer]

Some states - and some highways - enforce more strictly than others. Ohio, for example, looks at things pretty closely on their turnpike system - even have scales at the on rams.

But I think it's mostly a matter of getting into a situation that brings attention to your rig - an accident or maybe just a traffic tie up casue you need a real wide swing to make a sharp corner. That might cause a cop to take a closer look.

[Larry Calfee]

In California the maximum length for MH and towed vehicle/trailer is 65 feet.

[RV Wizard]

Larry, welcome to iRV2.com. We are glad to have you join us here and we look forward to reading of your adventures and experiences. Thank you for posting of the legal lengths in CA. You will find we are a group of fun loving RVers that like to help each other where we can. Take care and be safe.

[Two Bit]

Texas has a maximum lenght of 65' for combination of vehicles, and 45' for single vehicle (other than truck-tractor).
As more and more "private" vehicles violate this, the enforcement will be increased. Years ago no "private" vehicles ever got close to weight, lenght, or width restrictions, so enforcement was directed solely to the commercial trucks. Today with more and more personal trucks and RVs abusing the limits....well we bring it upon ourselves.

[Gary RVRoamer]

65 feet is also the federal limit which applies to Interstates and the National Highway system (USxx route numbers).

But I think his question was "how likely am I to get caught" rather than "what is the law".

[chasfm11]

I had the chance to speak with a 32 year law enforcement veteran this past weekend and asked him the specific question "how likely are RVers going to be to be stopped and cited for overweight, over length, etc." While his answer is based on his experience here it Texas, I suspect that it could apply elsewhere. Here is roughly what he said:
- RVers as a whole do not cause accidents and are not the target of law enforcement activities. This is in contrast to campaigns against DWI, stolen vehicles, road rage, etc.
- he had cited his share of RVers but all were for moving violations (speeding, traffic signals)
- even in an accident, overweight or overlength would not be a consideration. He said that since neither of these would be the direct cause of the accident, their exsitence would likely not even be included on a police report. (Don't yell at me - I'm just the messenger)

He did agree with me that some towns, cities and states have moved police activity to the revenue column from the saftey column and, like here in the Texas speed trap towns, if it were a slow revenue day, all bets were off regarding what might be observed and cited. The likelyhood is high, however, that a revenue based LEO is going to be focused on speeding and red lights and may not even remember the regulations for RVs, let alone how to enforce them.

[Two Bit]

I agree with chasfm11.
City, county, and regular DPS will not mess with lenght and weight much. That said...Texas DPS has special "weights and measures" troopers that will stop and cite anything in the catagory of "you gotta be kidding". This catagory is not limited to RVs but is anything that stands out as grossly overloaded or obviously too long, towing doubles incorrectly, ect... Eight feet too long in Texas will most likely get a cite if a weights & measure trooper sees you. Local Law wont even give it a second look. Speaking from 18 years experience as Texas Police Officer (and no I'm not weights & measures but I know several).

Weights & measures troopers recieve special training and they are dispersed throughout the state to specifically work weights & measures. Mainly they police the trucking industry but with more and more personal vehicles on the road ignoring the regulations, they look at everybody. The day will come in the future that RVs and anyone pulling trailers will be required to stop at scales if we keep ignoring the weight limits and we have no one to blame but ourselves.

[Gary RVRoamer]

Overlength could well be a factor if a civil lawsuit (liability insurance claim) arises from operation of the vehicle. It is never wise to give the opposing lawyers an opening they can pry at.

[Blue Skies]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Lug_Nut:
I've never heard of anybody being stopped however I would think the liability for being over length in the case of an accident may be worth looking into. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Has anyone had difficulty in registering an RV longer than that state's limit?

Has anyone had difficulty in insuring an RV longer than that state's limit?

Has anyone ever been in an accident with an oversize rig? Was length an additional legal issue?

[Wallaby Dan]

In Arizona it's 55 feet total combined length.
Here's something else to think about that probobly no one has even thought about: All vehicles over 96" are illigal in width plus mirrors. The 102" wide bodys are coming out of the factories illigal to begin with.Add awnings and mirrors and if the locals ae slow,you could be stopped for good!
Something to ponder, Huh!