Bridge Weight Ratings?

[Crippsfl]

Had a somewhat similar experience on a trip from Virginia Beach to the Outer Banks. GPS RV tools all set up for 65,000 lbs, driving down a beautiful 2 lane highway at 55 mph. Come around a bend and less than 50 yards ahead is a drawbridge with a small sign reading "13 ton load limit". Not enough time to stop so we rolled over it at 55.
Even if we would have had time to stop, there was no way I would have been able to turn the rig around. Obviously, we made it but real question was "What happened to Rand McNally?" Keeping us off bridges like this is one of the reasons we have it.

[Tonyd51]

After doing a little research on this fascinating topic, here's what I found. A 10 ton limit means 10 tons period. I have crossed very short bridges where I never had then whole rig on the bridge and felt very secure. It was a 20 ton limit but never had all tires on the bridge so the most was 16 tons. That's why it is important to have your rig weighed and know the limits. Most interstates have an 80,000 pound limit. This is calculated by weight per axle and length of vehicle. However bridge weight are total weight on the bridge at one time.


Tony
2014 Anthem 44B
2011 Honda CRV

[twinboat]

Originally Posted by Tonyd51

After doing a little research on this fascinating topic, here's what I found. A 10 ton limit means 10 tons period. I have crossed very short bridges where I never had then whole rig on the bridge and felt very secure. It was a 20 ton limit but never had all tires on the bridge so the most was 16 tons. That's why it is important to have your rig weighed and know the limits. Most interstates have an 80,000 pound limit. This is calculated by weight per axle and length of vehicle. However bridge weight are total weight on the bridge at one time.


Tony
2014 Anthem 44B
2011 Honda CRV

So if 6, 4000 lb cars are stopped on a 10 ton bridge, it is overloaded ?

[Gary.Jones]

I, too, thought that height, weight, and length limitations were one of the reasons that we all bought the RM RV model GPS (and why they are installed in all of our coaches) as their routing is supposed to consider all of those factors in their provided routing. On the last 4,000 mile trip, mine told me roughly 8 or 9 times that there was no legal way for me to go wherever it was I was going, and when I put the same address back in a second time, led me the same way (same exact route) with no errors. The 10-ton bridge I was confronted with in the first post was OK by the RM re-routing once I got off course. It would have led me right over it.

Chuck you say you take a lot of non-interstate routes and that is your preference. I understand that, but one of the reasons that I try to minimize those routes most of the time is the vigilance that it takes at every overpass or bridge. Last year, I was traveling in New York on a highway just west of the New York thruway on its way from Erie up to Buffalo so I could buy diesel on an Indian reservation with diesel priced 50 cents less than prevailing (GasBuddy is your friend). I saw something I have never seen before. There was a bridge which had a sign that said something like "Bridge height 13'6" left lane only, 12' right lane" or something close. Trucks and me had to pass under the bridge in the left-most lane. OK, saw it. After fueling and heading south on same road, saw that the highway department had blocked off the left lane and directed all traffic to the right-most lane (piece of cake for a car but a couple of feet too short for me!!!!!!) and the DW asked what I was going to do, and I said, "well watch". I intended to run over the cones if I had to get into the left lane and pass cleanly. When I got there, I saw that 4 or 5 semis had already flattened all the cones and gone under in the left lane. I then spent a half hour on the phone talking to state, city, tribal leaders trying to make them aware that someone was going to follow the signs and take off the top couple of feet of their rigs or coaches. Amazing. !! Again, the RM gave me no GPS warning of this situation. When I am off the interstates, I am hyper-aware that I am on my own negotiating highway obstructions, so if possible, I take only "certified" semi-truck routes.

Gary

[twinboat]

The northern stretch of the Garden State Parkway has clearance height signs for each lane on the older arch bridges.

[Tonyd51]

Originally Posted by twinboat

So if 6, 4000 lb cars are stopped on a 10 ton bridge, it is overloaded ?

Length and weight my friend. Very long bridges will very rarely have low limits. That's why they are arched in the middle. Shorter bridges are flatter and thus have lower ratings. With that said if you damage a bridge, guess who is going to pay?


Tony
2014 Anthem 44B
2011 Honda CRV

[Gordon Dewald]

Originally Posted by 336muffin

Rating is per axle.

I do not follow your rationale??? 10 tons is 20,000 lbs. That is the max load per axle for an OTR truck. So no restriction??

[Gary.Jones]

Bob

.....and not only did the young driver not understand how many pounds were in a ton (and consequently a 30 ton truck would likely exceed the working limits of a 6 ton maximum bridge), she apparently also was unaware that her trailer was ~ 13'6" tall as her first indication that she was in trouble, according to the news article, was that her trailer smashed through the top superstructure bracings of the bridge. I'm pretty sure they go over all that stuff in truck driver training, but maybe they need a few more basic questions on the CDL exam.

Gary

[OB-One]

I use a Motor Carrier's Atlas to check my route when traveling unfamiliar roads. I know we're okay if it's a legal truck route. I do more pre-trip investigating if the atlas doesn't list the route as legal for trucks.