OVERSIZE / HEAVY HAUL
PERMITS CHECKED FIRSTOversize load dispatch, permit by permit
Heavy haul pays for planning. We find the oversize and overweight loads that fit your trailer, confirm the permits, escorts and travel windows for every state on the route, and send the rate con to you to sign.
Dispatch my heavy haulQUICK ANSWERS
Heavy haul dispatch, answered
The questions heavy haulers ask before they hand their trailer to a dispatcher. Taller freight that is still legal size? See step deck dispatch.
01How much does heavy haul dispatch cost?
The same rate card as every truck: 5% of gross for one truck with an MC at least 6 months old, 7% while your MC is newer, 4% for two or more. Permit and escort costs are separate pass-throughs on the load, not part of our fee.
02Do you handle oversize permits?
We make sure every permit is lined up before you sign. On many loads the broker or shipper orders the permits; on others you order them through a permit service. Either way we check that each state's permit matches the load, the dates and the route before you roll.
03How long do oversize permits take?
It depends on the state and the load. Routine oversize permits in many states come back the same day or the next business day. Big or heavy loads that need engineering or bridge review can take days or weeks. We build that time into the plan and the pickup date.
04Who pays for escorts?
Usually the shipper or broker, as a pass-through on the load, but it has to be written on the rate con. Escort requirements change by state, width, length and route. We confirm how many escorts each state needs and who pays for them before you sign.
05What is a superload?
A load so big or heavy that a state treats it as a special case, beyond its routine permit limits. Superloads usually need route surveys, engineering review, police escorts or utility crews, and much longer lead times. Each state sets its own superload thresholds.
06Do you dispatch lowboys and RGNs?
Yes, along with stretch trailers, multi-axle lowboys and step decks for taller legal loads. Tell us your deck height, length and axle setup and we search for loads that use them.
07Can a new MC haul oversize loads?
Some brokers and shippers want heavy haul experience and higher insurance limits before they hand over a permit load, so a new authority often starts with legal-size freight on the same trailer. We send your packet to the heavy haul brokers that will work with you and build from there. Your fee is 7% until month 6.
08Do you plan routes for oversize loads?
We work from the route each state assigns in its permit and check it against what we know about clearances, construction and the last mile to the receiver. Where a route survey is needed, we flag it before the load is booked, not after you are on the road.
09Do I sign the rate con on oversize loads too?
Yes. Every load, oversize or not, is negotiated by us and confirmed on a rate con that comes straight to you. Permits, escorts, travel restrictions and pay are on it before you sign or decline.
PERMIT PATH
One load, three permits
The federal government does not issue oversize permits. Every state on the route issues its own, with its own size triggers, escort rules, travel hours and holiday restrictions. A load that runs with one escort in one state can need two in the next.
Here is how we walk a load through it. Tap each border station. The states are examples; real requirements depend on the load and the state's current rules.
- PICKUP
- STATE A
- STATE Bescort
- STATE Cescort
- DELIVERY
STATE A / PERMIT LEG / EXAMPLE
Permit
Single-trip oversize permit ordered for the exact dimensions and dates.
Route
State-assigned route checked against bridges and clearances.
Travel window
Daylight only; no travel on the holiday weekend in the permit dates.
Escort
Not required at this width on this route.
STATE B / PERMIT LEG / EXAMPLE
Permit
Separate permit, separate fee, different size trigger for escorts.
Escort
One front escort required at this width; arranged before pickup.
Curfew
No travel through the metro area during rush hours.
Signs and flags
Oversize banners and flags per the permit.
STATE C / PERMIT LEG / EXAMPLE
Permit
Overweight portion needs axle weights on the application.
Escort
Front and rear escorts required on two-lane roads.
Route survey
Low wires on the last mile; utility check booked.
Delivery
Receiver confirms crane or ramps ready for the appointment.
SOURCE: FHWA Freight Management and Operations; WIDTH: eCFR, 23 CFR 658.15; WEIGHT: eCFR, 23 CFR 658.17. CHECKED OCTOBER 2026.
LEGAL VS PERMITTED
Where a load becomes oversize
On the federal network a truck can be 102 inches wide and, on the Interstate, 80,000 lb gross with axle limits and the bridge formula on top. Height and overall length are set by the states. Past those numbers, the load needs a permit from each state it crosses.
Check axle weights on a heavy load with the axle weight calculator.
| Dimension | Federal baseline | Beyond it |
|---|---|---|
| Width | 102 in on the National Network | State permit; escorts as width grows |
| Weight | 80,000 lb gross on the Interstate, with axle limits | State overweight permit; nondivisible loads only |
| Height | Set by each state | Permit plus a route clearance check |
| Length | Trailer limits set by federal and state rules | Permit; rear escort on longer loads in many states |
BEFORE YOU SIGN
What a heavy haul dispatcher confirms
- Exact load dimensions and weight, from the shipper in writing
- Permits for every state, matching dimensions, dates and route
- Escort count per state and who pays for them
- Travel windows, holiday and weekend restrictions, metro curfews
- Loading and unloading method: crane, ramps, forklift, and who provides it
- Securement plan for the piece, chains and binders rated for it
- Pay: linehaul, permit and escort pass-throughs, and detention terms
LOWBOY DISPATCH AND MORE
The trailers we book for
Lowboy and RGN
Excavators, dozers and tall machinery. Low deck height buys clearance under bridges.
Multi-axle lowboy
Heavy pieces that need extra axles to spread the weight legally under permit.
Stretch flatbed or step deck
Long beams, trusses and wind components.
Step deck for legal-height loads
Taller freight that doesn't need a permit at all, a good filler between permit loads.
YOU DECIDE
Permits on the rate con, then your signature
Heavy haul goes wrong when a detail lives in a phone call instead of on paper. Every oversize load we book reaches you as a rate confirmation with the permits, escorts, travel windows and pass-through costs written on it. You read it, then sign or say no.
- To
- YOUR MC
- Equipment
- RGN, 3 AXLE
- Pickup
- PEORIA, IL 07:00
- Delivery
- LOUISVILLE, KY DAYLIGHT
- Loaded miles
- 340
- Linehaul, all-in
- $3,400
- Terms
- 11 FT 6 IN WIDE, 1 ESCORT KY
RATE PER MILE
$10.00
YOUR CALL
This lands in your inbox, not ours. Nothing is booked until you sign.
LEAD TIME
Heavy haul runs on the calendar
A dry van load can be booked at noon and loaded by two. A permit load can't. Each state has to issue its permit, escorts have to be booked, and the travel windows decide which days the load can even move. A load picked up on a Friday may not be allowed to roll until Monday.
So we plan heavy haul further out. When a shipper calls, we ask for dimensions, weight and dates first, then work backward from delivery: permit time for each state, escort availability, daylight hours and the weather. If the dates don't work, we say so before you commit.
COMMON MISTAKES
Where heavy haul goes sideways
Dimensions guessed
A piece that measures two inches wider than the permit says is an out-of-service stop. We get dimensions in writing.
One state forgotten
A route that clips a state for twenty miles still needs that state's permit.
Escort not booked
Showing up at a border without the required escort means waiting, sometimes for a day.
Unloading not planned
A 40,000 lb machine with no crane at the job site is a very expensive afternoon.
THE FEE
Heavy haul dispatch at 5%
Same rate card for every truck: 5% of gross with an MC at least 6 months old, 7% before that, 4% for two or more trucks. How permit and escort pass-throughs are treated is written in your dispatch agreement, and we go through it before you sign. Full details on dispatch cost.
- Gross
- $9,600
- Our fee at 5%
- $480
- A 10% desk
- $960
STARTING HEAVY HAUL WITH US
From application to your first permit load
STEP 01
Apply
Trailer type, deck height and axles.
STEP 02
Intro call
Lanes, states you run, what you won't haul.
STEP 03
Broker setups
Heavy haul brokers that fit your rig.
YOU ARE HERE
Send my heavy haul details