Concerns about the continuing COVID-19 pandemic as well as increasing challenges regarding the national supply chain and a threatened scarcity of goods and materials in Indiana, Illinois, and the rest of the country have had a direct impact upon the commercial trucking industry. Read, “How Trucking Became the Weak Link in America’s Supply Chain,” written by Claudia Assis and published in Market Watch on November 18, 2021, explaining cargo is “clogged” at national ports with not enough commercial truckers and warehouse workers to handle demand, alongside “overburdened fleets” unable to keep the supply chain operating as it did prior to the Coronavirus.
Never before has there been as great a temptation to overload semi-trucks, 18 wheelers, tractor-trailers, and big rigs despite the recognized danger that comes with operating an overweight commercial rig on the road. Overweight trucks are known to cause serious and fatal semi-truck accidents.
See, Blower, Daniel, and John Woodrooffe. “Survey of the status of truck safety: Brazil, China, Australia, and the United States.” (2012).
Legal Commercial Truck Weight Restrictions: Indiana and Illinois
Of course, there are state laws that define load limits for commercial motor vehicles driven on the roads of Illinois and Indiana. It is illegal for any large truck to operate on our roadways with a weight exceeding legal limits absent specific exceptions granted by state authorities. Federal law also establishes weight limits for trucks driving on our interstate highways.
Weight limits vary depending upon various factors, such as the number of axles; the route being taken; and truck width. Each rig must calculate its total weight by an analysis of its unique components.
Federal Weight Limits for Commercial Trucks
Pursuant to 23 CFR Part 658.17, the following are the maximum weights for commercial motor vehicles being driven on the National System of Interstate and Defense Highways (and reasonable access thereto):
- 80,000 pounds gross vehicle weight
- 20,000 pound single axle weight
- 34,000 pound tandem axle weight.
Illinois Weight Limits for Large Trucks
Unless an exception is granted, any commercial motor vehicle carrying freight through the State of Illinois must not surpass the state’s legal weight limits, as follows:
- Single Axle, 20,000 pounds
- Tandem Axle, 34,000 pounds
- Gross Vehicle Weight, 80,000 pounds.
Indiana Weight Limits for Large Trucks
As a general rule, semi-trucks, big rigs, tractor-trailers, 18 wheelers, and other commercial rigs hauling cargo through the Hoosier State must abide by Indiana state law establishing maximum legal weights, with load, as defined in Title 9, Article 20 of the Indiana Code:
- Maximum possible gross weight: 80,000 pounds
- Maximum single axle weight: 20,000 pounds
- Maximum tandem axle weight: 34,000 pounds
- Maximum tri axle weight: 50,000 pounds
- Maximum wheel weight: 800 pounds per inch of tire width measured between the flanges of the rim.
Dangers of Driving an Overloaded, Overweight Semi-Truck
Safety agencies and those advocating for truck crash victims and their loved ones understand the hazards of having an overweight big rig on our roads; however, no one is more aware of these dangers than the commercial truck driver who is forced to drive an overloaded vehicle.
Overweight trucks bring significant risks of accidents caused by things like:
- Rollovers, where the semi-truck flips or rolls because of the power of its cargo shifting;
- Blowouts, where the overloaded truck puts too much pressure on one or more tires, causing tire failure;
- Rear-End Crashes, where the truck driver is unable to bring the rig to a stop before impact due to the brakes being unable to function properly due to the excess weight;
- Sideswipes or T-Bone Truck Accidents, caused by the same inability to control and brake the rig as in a rear-end crash; and
- Speeding, because the truck driver cannot maintain the speed of the semi-truck on a road descent or ramp.
For details on how these types of accidents result in fatal truck crashes, read:
- Different Types of Fatal Semi-Truck Accidents and Tractor-Trailer Crashes
- Speeding and Serious or Fatal Semi-Truck Crashes in Illinois or Indiana
- Ice on the Roads and Fatal Truck Accidents: The Dangers of Driving on Ice
- Jackknife Semi-Truck Crash: Deadly Danger on Indiana and Illinois Roads
- Side-Impact Crashes: Fatal T-Bone Accidents and Sideswipes Involving Semi-Trucks and Other Motor Vehicles.
Justice for Victims of Overloaded or Overweight Truck Crashes
Of course, both Indiana and Illinois have weigh stations placed along our roadways for the purpose of weighing large trucks and commercial vehicles to root out overweight rigs that are being driven illegally. However, these weigh stations are only open for truck inspections on a staggered schedule. They do not operate every day, or every week.
All too often, overloaded rigs are being driven in our part of the country without detection. Combined with the current supply chain crisis in our country, the likelihood of a severe or fatal semi-truck crash involving an overweight truck is high.
In the aftermath of a semi-truck crash involving an overloaded rig, the accident victim and their loved ones may have legal redress against not only the trucking company, but also against any third-party loader or supplier who had some responsibility for placing the cargo on the truck. State laws based upon negligence, workers’ compensation, and wrongful death laws may come into play.
See:
- Trucking Companies Liable for Semi-Truck Crashes in Indiana and Illinois
- Danger of Fatal Semi-Truck Crashes in Indiana and Illinois and the 2021 Infrastructure Bill
- Nuclear Verdicts in Fatal Semi-Truck Crashes
- Truck Safety Coalition Releases 50-Page Report Denouncing Trucking Industry’s Position on Nuclear Verdicts.
Everyone riding on the roads of Indiana and Illinois is faced with a greater risk of a truck accident than in other parts of the country, due to the high volume of commercial truck traffic here in the Crossroads of America. With supply chain pressures and the current state of the trucking industry, the risk becomes even greater as the possibility of a crash involving an overloaded truck increases. Please be careful out there!
