Trailer Width

[Al and Missy]

Out of curiosity I checked the maximum trailer width allowed in a few SE states. Several sites say maximum trailer width in Georgia and several other states is 8'. But when I went to the Georgia DOT site the only width limit I can find is 8'-6".

What do you do when planning a trip? Research each state and get permits if required? Pull and hope to not get caught?


Thanks,

Al

[J. Morgan]

Technically, in some states 102" trailers are limited to "designated routes", including reasonable access and egress to and from such designated routes when the origin or destination is not on a designated route. Additionally these vehicles must be designated for used across state lines to be legal.

The law is pretty much not enforced in most states, the most recent exception to this lack of of enforcement had been New Jersey.

I dont know if NJ is still holding the line on the over 96" thing or not.

If there is trouble, it will most likely happen at the time of the initial registration of the trailer.

Frankly I imagine that most if not all states wont give RV folks a hard time over this anymore, and the chances of a cop breaking out a tape measure in a routine traffic stop involving an RV is slim to none.

[J. Morgan]

So,,,, the short answer is that operating a 102" Airstream in many states off of designated routes when not taking the shortest practical route either to access or leave a designated route is illegal... But I doubt that there has ever been such a ticket issued (or not more than you can count on your fingers and toes anyway) to a person pulling an RV....

[J. Morgan]

The shortest answer is don't worry about it, you are not going to have any problems with a 102" wide RV.

[J. Morgan]

The 102" width was pushed on states via federal mandate which overrides state law. States were required to include any highways that received federal funding in the "designated route system". Therefore most every federal and state highway in every state is part of the "system". County roads and city streets do not have to be, but many are.

By mandate, you are allowed to leave the system so long as you have a legitimate reason for doing so. Getting fuel, food, or going to a residence or legitimate destination is ok, but technically a "shortcut" across an undesignated route is illegal when you can get there by designated route.

Trust me, they are not going to try to enforce this law on a guy in an RV. A guy in a commercial truck? Yea maybe,,, depending on the state and local jurisdiction.

You might say "too many laws", or "too complicated",,, and you might say "too much room for selective enforcement"... I would agree.

They used to sell map books in every truckstop that had the designated routes highlighted in yellow, but GPS has pretty much put an end to these books.

The laminated Rand McNally ones were nice. I miss them.

Along these guidelines, you do not need a permit to operate a 102" wide vehicle in any state.

Yes , I have read the FMCSA regulation book..... But I paraphrased a lot in my answers here, otherwise my response would have been longer and more boring.... haha

And yea, I frequently suffer insomnia.

[A W Warn]

All states have reciprocity agreements. Meaning, if your trailer is legal in the state where it is registered, then it is legal wherever you drive it in the USA. Though, some roads, bridges, tunnels, etc... may have size or weight restrictions which will be posted at the entry.

[Al and Missy]

Interesting note. What I did originally was a Google search and multiple sites came up purporting to provide a summary of state laws. Most, if not all of them listed the 96" limit in GA, SC, and NC, but 102" in Florida.

After posting the original question, I thought this couldn't be right with all the 8-6 RVs and boats out there, so I went to GA DOT site - 102", SC DOT - 102", NC DOT - 102".

There is a lot of information on the internet - some of it is even true.

Al

[J. Morgan]

I watched this as it unfolded from a perspective within the transportation industry.

The 102" width was pushed onto states via federal mandate , which for all intensive purposes became the law. Prior to this mandate states had their own statutes regarding size restrictions. These statutes in many cases were never updated. So, in many states the maximum width is still 96", but as a practical matter the restriction is mostly moot.

The sites that list GA as a 96" state are correct..... And the sites that list GA as a 102" state are also correct.

Funny how convoluted government action can be.

Funny thing is,,,, my reading of the federal mandate implies that the nationwide 102" width requirement only technically applies to vehicles in commercial service. Typical use of RV's and boats don't fall under the scope of the mandate.

So, those operating 102" wide RVs in 96" states are law breakers.....

But, I have never heard of an instance where the 96" law was enforced on a 102" wide RV or pleasure craft.