By Evan Reid, Founder of Haul Handbook · Updated Jul 25, 2026
Ohio legal limits (no permit needed at or under these)
- Width
- 8.5 ft102 inches including load for all vehicles other than the listed exceptions, per ORC 5577.05(B)(5). Municipal passenger buses are allowed 104 inches; traction engines 132 inches. Side mirrors, turn signal lamps, marker lamps, cab handholds, flexible fender extensions, mud flaps, spray suppressants and load-induced tire bulge are excluded from the measurement, as are tarps, tarp hardware and tiedown assemblies that extend no more than three inches per side.
- Height
- 13.5 ft13 feet 6 inches with or without load, per ORC 5577.05(D). Ohio is a 13 feet 6 inch state, not a 14 foot state.
- Gross weight
- 80,000 lbORC 5577.04(E): notwithstanding the interstate and non-interstate tables, the maximum overall gross weight of vehicle and load imposed upon the road surface shall not exceed eighty thousand pounds.
- Off interstate limits
- Ohio publishes two axle tables. ORC 5577.04(B) applies the federal pattern on the interstate system: 20,000 pounds on any one axle, 34,000 pounds on any tandem axle, and the federal bridge formula on any two or more consecutive axles. ORC 5577.04(D) applies a different table off the interstate system: 20,000 pounds on one axle; 24,000 pounds on two successive axles spaced four feet or less apart; 34,000 pounds plus 1,000 pounds per foot over four feet, capped at 40,000 pounds, for two successive axles spaced more than four feet apart; 48,000 pounds for a three-axle load-equalizing group spaced more than four feet between axles and no more than nine feet first-to-third, subject to a total vehicle-and-load cap of 38,000 pounds plus 900 pounds per foot between the front and rearmost axles; and 38,000 pounds plus 900 pounds per foot of front-to-rear axle spacing for any other axle combination. Under ORC 5577.04(I) a carrier off the interstate system applies whichever of divisions (B) or (D) yields the higher total gross weight limit, then uses only the sub-limits inside that division.
Axle weight limits
Gross weight is one ceiling; each axle group carries its own limit, and a load can be legal on gross weight yet overweight on an axle. Exceeding any of these needs an overweight permit.
Scroll sideways to see every column.
Permit fees
- Single trip
- $75 (Ohio prices every permit as a $20 basic processing charge plus the applicable surcharge units under Ohio Adm.Code 5501:2-1-05. A one-way oversize single trip permit for width up to fourteen feet and/or height up to fourteen feet six inches costs $20 plus a $55 surcharge, so $75 total. A one-way overweight single trip permit up to 120,000 pounds gross vehicle weight costs $20 plus a $125 surcharge, so $145 total. When a movement is both overweight and over width and/or over height, only one basic processing fee and the applicable overweight surcharge are charged. Fees are waived for federal, state and local governments and political subdivisions. A single trip permit is valid up to five calendar days.)
- Annual permit
- $980 (Ohio's annual credential is the continuing annual permit, valid up to 365 calendar days for an unlimited number of movements of the same vehicle between the same two locations over the same route. An oversize continuing annual permit for width up to fourteen feet and/or height up to fourteen feet six inches costs $20 basic plus a $960 outbound surcharge, so $980; the return-trip surcharge is $200. An overweight continuing annual permit up to 120,000 pounds gross vehicle weight costs $20 basic plus a $1,960 outbound surcharge, so $1,980; the return-trip surcharge is $1,000. A steel or aluminum coil continuing annual permit is $20 plus $460. Michigan legal continuing annual permits are $20 plus $450 up to 120,000 pounds and $20 plus $610 over 120,000 pounds.)
- Annual eligibility
- A continuing annual permit covers an unlimited number of movements of the same vehicle, including the approved load, axle weight and axle spacing, between the same two specific locations over the same specified route, for up to 365 calendar days. It is route-specific and vehicle-specific, not a blanket statewide envelope. A ninety-day continuing permit exists for the same pattern at a lower fee. No permit may be issued for a duration extending beyond the expiration date of the insurance policy or endorsement filed as evidence of financial responsibility.
Single-trip permit fee schedule
A single-trip permit stacks a base fee with a weight-tiered maintenance fee, and the heaviest loads add a supervision fee.
Scroll sideways to see every column.
Overweight permit fee tiers (annual)
Annual overweight permits are priced by the gross weight the load reaches, in fixed steps.
To price a specific load, try the oversize permit cost estimator, or compare every state on the national oversize permit table.
To see how these fees combine on real loads, walk through Ohio oversize permit cost worked examples.
Escort thresholds
What the escort itself has to be
Hitting the threshold is only half of it. The escort vehicle, its equipment, its driver's certification and where it rides are all regulated, and the carrier is the one holding the permit when they are not met.
- Police escort
- Ohio publishes no fixed dimension threshold for a police escort. Ohio Adm.Code 5501:2-1-04(L) leaves private and police escort vehicles to the discretion of the director, with the requirement stated on the permit itself. Where escorts are required the permittee arranges them.
- Equipment the escort vehicle carries
- A private escort vehicle displays a yellow sign with black letters reading OVERSIZE LOAD, 5 feet long by 12 inches high with 8 inch letters, in good repair. The escort maintains radio communication with the operator of the permitted vehicle and carries a roof mounted amber flashing or rotating light. The escort driver acts as a flagger when needed and may not operate other vehicles or equipment while escorting. Escort vehicles must be single unit vehicles with unobstructed front and rear vision and may not tow a trailer or another vehicle or haul equipment extending beyond the escort's own dimensions. Unless the permit says otherwise, public safety and law enforcement vehicles are not counted as private escorts.
- Flags and signs
- Warning flags are 18 inches square, red or orange, free of printing. Over width loads carry two flags at the widest extremities plus one at each corner; the tractor needs none. Over length loads or loads with a rear overhang of 4 feet or more carry a single rear flag if the projection is two feet wide or less, two flags if wider. OVERSIZE LOAD signs are at least 7 feet long and 18 inches high, yellow background with black letters at least 10 inches high with a 1.41 inch brush stroke (2 inch for series E Modified), and are required on the front and rear of any vehicle or load exceeding the maximum legal length in ORC 5577.05, with an overall width of 10 feet or greater, or with an overall height over 14 feet 6 inches.
Escort rules beyond the thresholds
Knowing when you need an escort is half of it. These are the Ohio rules on who may run one, what the vehicle has to carry, and how the move is conducted.
- Police escort
- Ohio publishes no fixed dimension threshold for a police escort. Ohio Adm.Code 5501:2-1-04(L) leaves private and police escort vehicles to the discretion of the director, with the requirement stated on the permit itself. Where escorts are required the permittee arranges them.
- Equipment
- A private escort vehicle displays a yellow sign with black letters reading OVERSIZE LOAD, 5 feet long by 12 inches high with 8 inch letters, in good repair. The escort maintains radio communication with the operator of the permitted vehicle and carries a roof mounted amber flashing or rotating light. The escort driver acts as a flagger when needed and may not operate other vehicles or equipment while escorting. Escort vehicles must be single unit vehicles with unobstructed front and rear vision and may not tow a trailer or another vehicle or haul equipment extending beyond the escort's own dimensions. Unless the permit says otherwise, public safety and law enforcement vehicles are not counted as private escorts.
- Flags and signs
- Warning flags are 18 inches square, red or orange, free of printing. Over width loads carry two flags at the widest extremities plus one at each corner; the tractor needs none. Over length loads or loads with a rear overhang of 4 feet or more carry a single rear flag if the projection is two feet wide or less, two flags if wider. OVERSIZE LOAD signs are at least 7 feet long and 18 inches high, yellow background with black letters at least 10 inches high with a 1.41 inch brush stroke (2 inch for series E Modified), and are required on the front and rear of any vehicle or load exceeding the maximum legal length in ORC 5577.05, with an overall width of 10 feet or greater, or with an overall height over 14 feet 6 inches.
Travel restrictions
- Daylight only
- Yes (Except for the cases listed below, permitted vehicles and loads may move daylight hours Sunday through Saturday, with daylight defined as one-half hour before sunrise until one-half hour after sunset. Ohio Adm.Code 5501:2-1-04(C) states the same rule from the other direction: unless otherwise provided in the permit, no movements except emergency movements shall be made at night. Overweight loads that are not over dimensional are the exception: they are not restricted as to travel hours or days so long as they can move without obstructing the normal flow of traffic.)
- Curfews
- Loads over twelve feet wide may not move between 6:30 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. or between 4:30 p.m. and 6:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, in Butler, Clermont, Cuyahoga, Delaware, Fairfield, Franklin, Geauga, Hamilton, Lake, Licking, Lorain, Lucas, Madison, Mahoning, Medina, Montgomery, Pickaway, Stark, Summit, Union, Warren and Wood counties.
- Weekend / holiday
- Loads over twelve feet wide may not move Saturday from 3 p.m. until one-half hour before sunrise Sunday, Sunday from 3 p.m. until one-half hour before sunrise Monday, or Friday from 3 p.m. until one-half hour before sunrise Saturday from April 1 through November 30. Separately, all permitted movements other than legal-dimension overweight loads are prohibited on New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day; the prohibition begins at noon the day preceding and runs until one-half hour before sunrise the day following the holiday or holiday weekend. Under Ohio Adm.Code 5501:2-1-01(K), a listed holiday falling on a Sunday moves to the following Monday and one falling on a Saturday moves to the preceding Friday, and the director may add holidays.
- Wind / weather
- Movement of mobile homes, manufactured structures, office trailers and park model recreational vehicles is prohibited when wind velocity exceeds 25 mph on the roadway or 15 mph on bridges.
- Lane use
- Every vehicle operating under a permit must remain in the far right-hand lane of freeways, expressways and multi-lane undivided highways except as necessary to maintain continuous through movement, make left turns or exits, or pass. Convoying within 500 feet of another permitted vehicle travelling ahead in the same direction is prohibited.
- Daylight hours rule
- Except for the cases listed below, permitted vehicles and loads may move daylight hours Sunday through Saturday, with daylight defined as one-half hour before sunrise until one-half hour after sunset. Ohio Adm.Code 5501:2-1-04(C) states the same rule from the other direction: unless otherwise provided in the permit, no movements except emergency movements shall be made at night. Overweight loads that are not over dimensional are the exception: they are not restricted as to travel hours or days so long as they can move without obstructing the normal flow of traffic.
- Weather
- No movement under a permit may be made during adverse weather or road conditions such as storms, slippery or snow-covered roads, thick fog or other conditions restricting visibility. A permit is void at any time road, weather or traffic conditions make travel unsafe, as determined by the State Highway Patrol or local law enforcement.
- Lane use
- Every vehicle operating under a permit must remain in the far right-hand lane of freeways, expressways and multi-lane undivided highways except as necessary to maintain continuous through movement, make left turns or exits, or pass. Convoying within 500 feet of another permitted vehicle travelling ahead in the same direction is prohibited.
Superload and beyond-permit review
Loads past the standard single-trip permit thresholds get individual state review rather than an off-the-shelf permit.
Ohio does not define a superload. The word does not appear anywhere in Ohio Adm.Code Chapter 5501:2-1. The practical line is 120,000 pounds gross vehicle weight: at or below it the overweight surcharge is a flat amount, and above it the surcharge adds four cents per ton over sixty tons for every mile travelled, so the cost of a heavy move scales with distance rather than jumping into a named tier.
Where a movement requires special work by the department such as special traffic control or special engineering analysis, the applicant reimburses the department's total direct costs. The director estimates those costs and the applicant deposits the estimate by cash, check or money order before the work is performed; the excess is refunded or the shortfall billed once the actual cost is known. That deposit mechanism is what Ohio uses in place of a named superload review tier. Separately, every application is reviewed to determine the best route that protects the state highway system, and the director may deny a permit or write additional limitations onto it to protect pavements or structures.
More Ohio permit rules
- Authority: summary
- A special hauling permit is required for any vehicle or load that exceeds the statutory size and weight maximums in ORC 5577.01 to 5577.09 while travelling Ohio's state, federal or interstate highways. ORC 4513.34 gives the director of transportation the power to issue the permit for state highway system routes, and local authorities the same power for roads under their jurisdiction. Permission to travel county or township roads, local streets that are not part of the state highway system, or the Ohio Turnpike must be obtained from those authorities separately.
- Single trip fee note
- Ohio prices every permit as a $20 basic processing charge plus the applicable surcharge units under Ohio Adm.Code 5501:2-1-05. A one-way oversize single trip permit for width up to fourteen feet and/or height up to fourteen feet six inches costs $20 plus a $55 surcharge, so $75 total. A one-way overweight single trip permit up to 120,000 pounds gross vehicle weight costs $20 plus a $125 surcharge, so $145 total. When a movement is both overweight and over width and/or over height, only one basic processing fee and the applicable overweight surcharge are charged. Fees are waived for federal, state and local governments and political subdivisions. A single trip permit is valid up to five calendar days.
- Annual permit eligibility
- A continuing annual permit covers an unlimited number of movements of the same vehicle, including the approved load, axle weight and axle spacing, between the same two specific locations over the same specified route, for up to 365 calendar days. It is route-specific and vehicle-specific, not a blanket statewide envelope. A ninety-day continuing permit exists for the same pattern at a lower fee. No permit may be issued for a duration extending beyond the expiration date of the insurance policy or endorsement filed as evidence of financial responsibility.
- Financial responsibility: detail
- Every permit applicant must have on file with the special hauling permits section an insurance policy endorsement or surety bond of $500,000 as evidence of financial responsibility, on the form prescribed by the department. A current unexpired endorsement or bond already on file does not have to be resubmitted with each application. The requirement is waived for federal, state and local governments and political subdivisions. Cancellation requires a minimum thirty-day notice. The director may raise the required amount where the risk to the transportation system exceeds the minimum.
- Escort notes: police escort
- Ohio publishes no fixed dimension threshold for a police escort. Ohio Adm.Code 5501:2-1-04(L) leaves private and police escort vehicles to the discretion of the director, with the requirement stated on the permit itself. Where escorts are required the permittee arranges them.
- Escort notes: equipment
- A private escort vehicle displays a yellow sign with black letters reading OVERSIZE LOAD, 5 feet long by 12 inches high with 8 inch letters, in good repair. The escort maintains radio communication with the operator of the permitted vehicle and carries a roof mounted amber flashing or rotating light. The escort driver acts as a flagger when needed and may not operate other vehicles or equipment while escorting. Escort vehicles must be single unit vehicles with unobstructed front and rear vision and may not tow a trailer or another vehicle or haul equipment extending beyond the escort's own dimensions. Unless the permit says otherwise, public safety and law enforcement vehicles are not counted as private escorts.
- Escort notes: flags and signs
- Warning flags are 18 inches square, red or orange, free of printing. Over width loads carry two flags at the widest extremities plus one at each corner; the tractor needs none. Over length loads or loads with a rear overhang of 4 feet or more carry a single rear flag if the projection is two feet wide or less, two flags if wider. OVERSIZE LOAD signs are at least 7 feet long and 18 inches high, yellow background with black letters at least 10 inches high with a 1.41 inch brush stroke (2 inch for series E Modified), and are required on the front and rear of any vehicle or load exceeding the maximum legal length in ORC 5577.05, with an overall width of 10 feet or greater, or with an overall height over 14 feet 6 inches.
- Carry requirements: detail
- During a permitted move the driver must possess and produce on demand the valid permit or a facsimile or electronic copy, a complete copy of the two-page Form OS-1A limitations and provisions, a copy of the bill of lading or a like document (except for farm equipment, government owned vehicles, construction equipment and boats), and a statement of gross vehicle weight. If the shipper name on the bill of lading does not match the origin on the verified permit, the permit is invalid.
- Penalties: detail
- Failure to comply with the permit or the general provisions on Form OS-1A, exceeding the gross vehicle weight, exceeding an axle or axle group weight by more than 2,000 pounds, exceeding the granted dimensions, or operating on unauthorized dates, times or highways renders the permit null and void and exposes the operator to enforcement under ORC 5577.02 to 5577.05. A vehicle exceeding a granted axle weight by 2,000 pounds or less, while still within the granted gross vehicle weight, is not automatically voided: the officer instructs the driver to bring the vehicle into compliance before substantial movement. Moving violations relevant to safe commercial motor vehicle operation also void the permit.
| Permit type | Max days | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Single trip permit | 5 | |
| Single trip and return permit | 5 | |
| Emergency single trip permit | 1 | |
| Emergency single trip and return permit | 3 | |
| Continuing permit | 90 | |
| Continuing and return permit | 90 | |
| Continuing annual permit | 365 | |
| Steel or aluminum coil single trip permit | 5 | |
| Steel or aluminum coil continuing permit | 90 | |
| Michigan legal weight permit | 90 | |
| International sealed container permit | 90 | Issued as either a 45-day or a 90-day permit. |
| Regional heavy hauling permit | 90 | Issued as either a single permit up to 5 days or a 90-day continuing permit. |
| Construction equipment permit | 365 | |
| Farm equipment permit | 365 | |
| Manufactured building permit | 365 | |
| Marina permit | 365 | |
| Boat permit | 365 |
| Name | Detail | Fee USD | Fee note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Construction equipment permit | Unlimited movements of the same vehicle, trailer, equipment or machinery to or from a construction work site for up to 365 days. Width may not exceed twelve feet and weight, length and height must stay within ORC 5577.02 to 5577.05. | 100 | $20 basic processing charge plus an $80 surcharge. |
| Farm equipment permit | Unlimited movements of farm machinery and equipment to and from a farm or between two farm implement dealers for up to 365 days, at a width of fourteen feet or less with weight, length and height within ORC 5577.02 to 5577.05. | 100 | $20 basic processing charge plus an $80 surcharge. |
| Manufactured building permit | Unlimited movements of a manufactured building or component for up to 365 days at a width of twelve feet or less. | 100 | $20 basic processing charge plus an $80 surcharge. |
| Marina permit | Unlimited movements of boats to and from a point of storage, repair or launch for up to 365 days, within a ten mile radius of the point of origin over state and U.S. highways, not on fully controlled or limited access highways. Maximum width fourteen feet, load length sixty-five feet, overall length seventy-five feet, operating height no more than fourteen feet six inches and always at least four inches below the least vertical clearance on the route. At least one rear escort accompanies the load at all times. | 100 | $20 basic processing charge plus an $80 surcharge. |
| Boat permit | Unlimited movements of a vehicle hauling a boat trailer for up to 365 days at a maximum width of twelve feet, with weight, length and height within ORC 5577.02 to 5577.05. | 100 | $20 basic processing charge plus an $80 surcharge. |
| Steel or aluminum coil permit | Movement of three or fewer steel or aluminum coils over the 80,000 pound legal limit but not over 120,000 pounds, between two specific points over prescribed routes. Three or fewer coils are deemed a nondivisible load. Issued as a single trip permit (up to 5 days), a continuing permit (up to 90 days) or a continuing annual permit. | 75 | Single trip: $20 basic processing charge plus a $55 surcharge. Continuing: $20 plus $115. Continuing annual: $20 plus $460. |
| Michigan legal permit | Movement of an overweight vehicle over prescribed routes between Williams, Fulton or Lucas counties and the Michigan border, at Michigan weight law with a gross vehicle weight not to exceed 154,000 pounds and enough axles to meet the Michigan weight law. Valid up to 90 days. | 125 | Continuing permit: $20 basic processing charge plus $105 up to 120,000 pounds, or $20 plus $145 over 120,000 pounds. Continuing annual: $20 plus $450 up to 120,000 pounds, or $20 plus $610 over 120,000 pounds. |
| International sealed container permit | Movement of a freight container sealed by a U.S. customs seal or packer's seal from the Ohio origin where the seal is affixed to an approved Ohio intermodal facility, bound for a destination outside the United States. Issued as a 45-day or 90-day continuing permit. Does not apply to hazardous materials. | 260 | 45-day permit: $20 basic processing charge plus $240. 90-day permit: $20 plus $490. |
| Regional heavy haul permit | Movements between one origin and up to five separate destinations within a proximal geographical vicinity over prescribed routes. May be issued for divisible or nondivisible loads, as a single permit or a ninety day continuing permit. ORC 4513.34(A)(1) makes issuance of the regional heavy hauling permit mandatory on written application, unlike the discretionary special permit in division (A)(2). | Ohio Adm.Code 5501:2-1-05 does not list a separate surcharge line for the regional heavy hauling permit, so no fee is recorded rather than guessed. ORC 4513.34(A)(1) states only that issuance is subject to a fee established by the director or local authority. | |
| Emergency permit | Applied for and granted over the phone during an occurrence that causes or threatens imminent loss of life or endangers public health, safety or welfare, with the application completed and fees submitted the next business day. Valid one day outbound, three days for a single trip and return. | 260 | Outbound: $20 basic processing charge plus a $240 surcharge. Return: $20 plus $115. |
The Ohio permit office
- [email protected]
- Paper application
- Form OS-1, Application for Special Hauling Permit. Mailed applications go to Special Hauling Permits Section, Ohio Department of Transportation, 1980 West Broad Street, Mail Stop 5140, Columbus, Ohio 43223. The number of permits submitted by mail may be limited at the director's discretion.
Legal limits before you need a permit
Ohio publishes width, height, length by configuration and weight limits in ORC 5577.04 and 5577.05. Height is the one that surprises carriers, because Ohio sits at the lower of the two common national ceilings, with or without load. Width is measured including the load, with mirrors, marker lamps, cab handholds, mud flaps, spray suppressants, load-induced tire bulge and short tarp hardware excluded. Length depends on configuration, from a semitrailer in a tractor-semitrailer combination up to a stinger-steered auto transporter.
Weight is where Ohio gets unusual. It runs the federal axle pattern on the interstate system and a separate, older table off it, and ORC 5577.04(I) lets a carrier off the interstate apply whichever division yields the higher total gross weight limit, then hold to only the sub-limits inside that division. The overall gross cap is the same either way. The sourced tables below carry every dimension and axle group.
Single trip permits and how Ohio prices them
Ohio prices every permit the same way: a processing charge on every application plus the surcharge that matches the movement. Oversize surcharges step up once width or height passes the published lines, and a return leg costs less than the outbound one. Overweight surcharges step up at the published gross weight line, and above that line the surcharge adds a per-ton, per-mile component so cost scales with distance.
When a movement is both overweight and oversize, only one processing charge and the overweight surcharge apply. Federal, state and local governments and political subdivisions pay nothing. A single trip permit runs up to five calendar days. The sourced schedule below carries each component and the movement it matches.
Continuing and continuing annual permits
For repeat work Ohio sells a continuing permit of up to ninety days and a continuing annual permit of up to a year. Both cover unlimited movements of the same vehicle, including the approved load, axle weight and axle spacing, between the same two locations over the same route. Change the truck or the route and you are back to a new permit.
One timing trap sits underneath all of it. No permit may be issued for a duration running past the expiration date of the insurance endorsement or bond on file. Every applicant keeps an insurance policy endorsement or surety bond on file with the section as evidence of financial responsibility, on the department's own form, and cancellation takes at least thirty days notice. Governments are waived out of that filing as well.
Escort requirements
Escorts phase in by dimension. Crossing the first length line takes a rear escort. Crossing the first width line takes a lead escort, plus a rear escort on multiple lane highways. Crossing the first height line takes a lead escort carrying a height sensing device. Cross the higher width or height lines and it becomes a lead and a rear escort, and meeting more than one trigger at once does the same.
Ohio publishes no fixed dimension threshold for a police escort. Ohio Adm.Code 5501:2-1-04(L) leaves private and police escorts to the director's discretion, with the requirement stated on the permit itself, and the permittee arranges whatever the permit calls for. Escort vehicles carry their own rules: an oversize load sign of published size, a roof mounted amber flashing or rotating light, radio contact with the operator of the permitted vehicle, single unit construction with clear front and rear vision, and no towing or hauling of anything past the escort's own dimensions. The sourced table below carries each threshold and placement.
When permitted loads can move
Most permitted movement is daylight only, from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset, and Ohio Adm.Code 5501:2-1-04(C) states the same rule the other way round: no movement at night except emergencies. Overweight loads that stay within legal dimensions are the exception and face no travel hour or day restriction, so long as they do not obstruct the normal flow of traffic.
Wide loads carry more restrictions. Weekday rush hour windows close in twenty-two named counties, weekend afternoons close, and Friday afternoons close between April and November. Six holidays stop permitted movement from noon the day before until the morning after, with a holiday landing on a weekend shifting to the adjacent weekday. Permitted vehicles stay in the far right lane except to pass, turn or exit, and may not convoy inside the published following distance behind another permitted vehicle. Anything unusually tall has to be coordinated in advance with the owners of overhead signs, signals and utilities on the route.
Ohio has no superload tier
The word superload does not appear anywhere in Ohio Adm.Code Chapter 5501:2-1. There is no named review tier and no published dimension or weight figure that triggers a mandatory bridge or structural analysis, so we record none rather than infer one.
What Ohio has instead is a cost mechanism. Past the published gross weight line the overweight surcharge stops being flat and starts adding a per-ton, per-mile component, so a heavy move gets more expensive with distance rather than jumping into a named category. And where a movement needs special work from the department, such as special traffic control or special engineering analysis, the applicant deposits the department's estimated direct costs up front and settles the difference once the actual cost is known. Every application is also reviewed for the route that best protects the highway system, and the director may deny a permit or write extra limitations onto it.
How to read this page
A value reading "Not confirmed" means we could not verify the figure on an official agency page at review time, so it stays open rather than guessed. Superload moves above the standard permit thresholds get individual review by the state; contact the permit office named on this page. For the rest of the Ohio permit stack, see Ohio trucking permits.
Frequently asked questions
What can I haul in Ohio without an oversize permit?
- Anything inside the published width, height, length-by-configuration and weight limits in ORC 5577.04 and 5577.05. Ohio's height ceiling is the lower of the two common national figures, so check it before routing a tall load in from a taller state. The sourced limits table below carries each figure.
How much does an Ohio oversize permit cost?
- Every permit is a processing charge plus a surcharge matched to the movement, its direction and its size or weight band. A move that is both overweight and oversize pays one processing charge and the overweight surcharge. Governments pay nothing. The sourced schedule below lists each component.
When does an oversize load need an escort in Ohio?
- Once permitted length, width or height passes the published lines. The first line in a dimension takes one escort, the higher line takes a lead and a rear, and meeting more than one trigger at once takes two as well. A height sensing device rides with the lead escort on tall loads.
What counts as a superload in Ohio?
- Nothing does. Ohio publishes no superload definition and no named review tier. Cost scales instead: past the published gross weight line the overweight surcharge adds a per-ton, per-mile component, and any move needing special engineering or traffic control work runs on a cost deposit paid before the work is done.
Can permitted loads move at night in Ohio?
- Generally no. Movement runs daylight only, and Ohio Adm.Code 5501:2-1-04(C) bars night movement except in emergencies unless the permit says otherwise. Overweight loads within legal dimensions are the exception and face no hour or day restriction, so long as traffic keeps flowing.
Haul Handbook publishes educational information about trucking registration and compliance requirements. This is not legal, financial, or tax advice. Rules, fees, and deadlines change; confirm with the agency before you file or pay.