Alabama Oversize & Overweight Permits

When Alabama needs a permit

Over 8'6" wide, 13'6" high, 80,000 lb, or 85 ft, you buy an ALDOT permit first. On the road that means daylight only Monday through Saturday, none on Sunday, one escort past 12' and front-and-rear past 14', and a height pole over 15'6". Cross 16'/16'/150' or 300,000 lb and it's a superload: route survey, bridge analysis, and at least two state trooper escorts.

Thresholds, escorts, and curfews

• Legal max before a permit: Permit needed over 8'6" wide (8' on roads with lanes under 12' wide), 13'6" high, 80,000 lb gross, or about 85 ft overall (57 ft trailer). Under all of those, run on normal authority.
• Escort / pilot car: Over 12' to 14' wide: one escort (front on two-lane roads, rear on multilane). Over 14' wide: front and rear. Length over 90' to 125': rear escort; over 125' to 150': front and rear; over 150': front and rear law-enforcement escorts. Height over 15'6": front escort with a height pole. Every superload gets at least two state trooper escorts.
• Superload: Superload once you top 16' wide, 16' high, 150' long, or 300,000 lb gross (per ALDOT's superload requirements). That triggers a route survey, bridge analysis (Special Work Authorization), a bucket truck over about 16'5" high, and two trooper escorts. Build in lead time.
• Travel curfew: Daylight only, a half hour before sunrise to a half hour after sunset, Monday through Saturday. No Sunday oversize travel. Superloads typically move the opposite window, overnight around 9 p.m. to 6 a.m., as the permit office directs. Holiday no-move dates apply.
• Permit fee: Single-trip oversize commonly about $10 to $25 (overweight adds a weight-based charge); the permit for loads 150,001 lb and over is $100. Superload runs cost more once ALEA escort fees are added (a $200 admin fee plus roughly $100/hr per officer). Annual/blanket permits available for repeat runs.

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