Are there general road restrictions due to Airstream width?

[eubank]

Kind of like Hwy 434 entering Angel Fire from the south. No problem with a modern Airstream. Well, sort of not. The road is wide enough for the Airstream, just not quite wide enough if a vehicle happens to be coming from the opposing direction. A seven mile stretch of paved road through a ranch with no center stripe, and warning signs at either end.

That said, and against our advice, one of our rally wagonmasters brought a caravan up that direction, complete with a couple of the big-rig Airstream motorhomes. Most chose to go a different route on departure.


Lynn

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by InsideOut

Sorry Jammer...I didn't create it, just linked to it.

I would say as a "first pass" for most states it's probably still good - but if you have particular questions, it's always going to be better to check with the laws in the individual locales. Seems it's still a pretty good guideline to be used as a "better than nothing" quick reference - but not gospel.

Shari

Shari,

I respectfully disagree.

There has been ongoing change in towing laws throughout the history of, well, motorized travel. A resource that is out of date and has errors is unhelpful.

In general there have been three trends over the last 10-15 years:
- Limitations on length, width, and towing triples (tandem trailers) have been gradually relaxed.
- Braking requirements have gradually become more stringent with the minimum weight where trailer brakes are required, and the minimum weight at which breakaway brakes are required, both trending downward.
- Equipment requirements have become somewhat more stringent with a few states requiring V-5 approved equipment that did not do so previously and regulations on safety chains having fewer exceptions.

There have also been a few outliers, like a clarification that surge brakes are permitted in one or two states where it was unclear, and a requirement for a CDL for unusually large RVs in one or two places.

But to the thread at hand, I don't believe that there is, at this time, a width limitation narrower than 102", in any of the 48 contiguous states.

[barrettjl]

Inspired by InsideOut, I did a search for "trailer laws by state", and found that link and this one which claims to have the 2008 trailer laws by state. I just did a quick check, but there are a few that say 8'. Perhaps that is out of date, but if I were traveling to/through one of those states, I might consider checking the state laws specifically.

In the end, though, it is good to know that folks have not had any issues in their travels!

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by Protagonist

Can't speak for any other state, but in Louisiana, maximum width is 8 feet even, EXCEPT on Interstate highways and US highways where it's 8½ feet.

Time for me to eat crow. I just checked with the definitive source for Louisiana, the Louisiana Transportation Authority. Since 2011, the maximum legal width for all vehicles in Louisiana, for all roads, is 102 inches, exclusive of safety devices such as mirrors. Appurtenances to recreational vehicles (such as awnings) cannot extend more than 6 inches beyond the body of the vehicle.

[urnmor]

Don't feel alone I have eaten a lot of it over the years.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by barrettjl

Inspired by InsideOut, I did a search for "trailer laws by state", and found that link and this one which claims to have the 2008 trailer laws by state. I just did a quick check, but there are a few that say 8'. Perhaps that is out of date, but if I were traveling to/through one of those states, I might consider checking the state laws specifically.

In the end, though, it is good to know that folks have not had any issues in their travels!

It lists Arizona, D.C., and New Jersey.

[barrettjl]

Doing a bit more searching, I found Woodall's 2011 Driving Laws for the US and Canada. It lists all states as having a maximum RV width of 102 inches except:
DC 96"
IL 102", 96" on some roads
LA 102" on federal road systems, 96" elsewhere
NH 96"
NJ 96"
NY 96"

The page says: The following Rules of the Road are compiled each year via mailings to state/provincial highway departments and/or police departments for RV travel. Some changes may have been made since this data was compiled. For additional state driving laws or regulations not addressed in this section, we suggest that you contact the state or provincial agency listed. and it lists contact information for each state.

And given Protagonist's post above, the LA information may have changed.

[moosetags]

Like the old saying goes, "it's better to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission". I plan to proceed, as I have in the past, pulling my 102" wide trailer wherever the road takes us.

Brian