Legal vehicle weights
Ordinary legal limits on gross, axle, axle-group, wheel, and tire loading, including limits determined by axle configuration or spacing.
376 facts from 3 places, each quoted from the agency that sets it.

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What legal limits apply to single axles, tandem axles, and larger axle groups at each spacing?Nothing on file answers this yet.
How does insufficient axle spacing reduce an applicable weight limit?Nothing on file answers this yet.
Facts
11 topics
Maximum gross vehicle weight (Measures)
Maximum legal gross weight of a vehicle or combination, in kilograms.
Maximum weight on two axles (Measures)
Maximum legal weight carried by any two consecutive axles, in kilograms.
- New York16,329 to 31,298 kg (35,999 lb to 69,000 lb)
Across 47 cases, each with its own conditions.
- Quebec10,000 to 20,000 kg (22,046 lb to 44,092 lb)
Across 10 cases, each with its own conditions.
Not stated in Ontario.
Maximum weight per axle (Measures)
Maximum legal weight carried by any one axle, in kilograms.
- New York6,804 to 20,412 kg (15,000 lb to 45,000 lb)
Across 22 cases, each with its own conditions.
- Quebec5,500 to 18,000 kg (12,125 lb to 39,683 lb)
Across 8 cases, each with its own conditions.
Not stated in Ontario.
Maximum weight on an axle group (Measures)
Maximum legal weight carried by a group of three or more consecutive axles (tridem, quadruple, or larger group), in kilograms.
- New York19,278 to 36,287 kg (42,500 lb to 80,000 lb)
Across 28 cases, each with its own conditions.
- Quebec10,000 to 28,000 kg (22,046 lb to 61,729 lb)
Across 13 cases, each with its own conditions.
Not stated in Ontario.
Maximum weight per unit tire width (Measures)
Maximum legal weight per unit width of tyre, in kilograms per metre of tyre width.
- New York14.3 to 14,330 kg/m
Across 5 cases, each with its own conditions.
- Quebec10,000 kg/m
For pneumatic tire that is not wide-base and that is mounted on a single wheel of an axle or group of axles of category E.4 to E.20.
Not stated in Ontario.
Maximum gross weight by axle configuration (Measures)
Maximum legal gross weight of a vehicle or combination, in kilograms, as a function of the number of axles, the axle configuration, and the minimum spacing between specified axle groups.
- New York15,422 to 36,287 kg (34,000 lb to 80,000 lb)
Across 3 cases, each with its own conditions.
- Quebec24,000 to 79,000 kg (52,911 lb to 174,165 lb)
Across 103 cases, each with its own conditions.
Not stated in Ontario.
Maximum gross weight of tractor and dolly (Measures)
Maximum legal gross weight of the tractor and towed dolly together, in kilograms, for a specified axle configuration and minimum spacing between the tractor's rear axle group and the dolly's axle.
- New York15,422 kg (34,000 lb)
For two consecutive sets of tandem axles, overall distance between the first and last axles of such consecutive sets of tandem axles is thirty-six feet or more, each set.
- Quebec42,000 to 45,000 kg (92,594 lb to 99,208 lb)
Across 3 cases, each with its own conditions.
Not stated in Ontario.
Maximum weight per wheel (Measures)
Maximum legal weight carried by any one wheel, in kilograms.
- New York5,080 to 7,257 kg (11,199 lb to 16,000 lb)
Across 14 cases, each with its own conditions.
Not stated in Ontario and Quebec.
Where the comparisons come from
- Règlement sur les normes de charges et de dimensions applicables aux véhicules routiers et aux ensembles de véhicules routiers, C-24.2, r. 31.1(opens in a new tab)
www.legisquebec.gouv.qc.ca, web page, 140 facts
- Vehicle and Traffic Law, Title 3, Article 10, §385 — Dimensions and weights of vehicles(opens in a new tab)
www.dot.ny.gov, web page, 68 facts
- Vehicle & Traffic Law § 385 — Dimensions and weights of vehicles(opens in a new tab)
www.nysenate.gov, web page, 50 facts
- Subpart 154-1 — Nondivisible Load Permits; Table of Fees (Perm 43)(opens in a new tab)
www.dot.ny.gov, PDF, 35 facts
- Information Concerning Special Hauling Permits, PERM 30(opens in a new tab)
www.dot.ny.gov, PDF, 31 facts
- C-24.2, r. 35 — Règlement sur le permis spécial de circulation(opens in a new tab)
legisquebec.gouv.qc.ca, web page, 24 facts
- Guide to oversize/overweight vehicles and loads(opens in a new tab)
www.ontario.ca, web page, 9 facts
- Information Concerning Oversized/Overweight Vehicles, Form MV-519(opens in a new tab)
dmv.ny.gov, PDF, 7 facts
- Size and Weight Restrictions — NYC DOT(opens in a new tab)
www.nyc.gov, web page, 7 facts
- Guide sur les véhicules et charges de dimensions/poids exceptionnels(opens in a new tab)
www.ontario.ca, web page, 3 facts
- Permits for Over Dimensional Vehicles — New York City DOT(opens in a new tab)
www.nyc.gov, web page, 2 facts