Maine OS/OD Overview
Where these numbers come from. The escort figures on this page are quoted from the rule chapter itself – 29-250 CMR ch. 157 (Secretary of State / Bureau of Motor Vehicles, amended Feb 16, 2025), secs. 11, 12, 15, 16 and 17, including TABLE 1 of sec. 16(1) – plus 29-A M.R.S. sec. 2382(9-A). My Maine dataset entry is still flagged unverified, and I will say why rather than hide it: the travel-hour entries in it are keyed to 12' width, while sec. 11 of the rule applies to every overdimensional permit in the state. So treat the escort triggers below as rule text with a citation attached, and treat anything on this page without a citation as a compiled figure I have not confirmed against a primary source. Confirm with the permit office before you roll.
Permit Required
Yes – all loads exceeding legal dimensions or weight must have a permit before entering the state. Maine's overlimit permits and its escort rules come from the Secretary of State / Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV), Motor Carrier Services – not from MaineDOT. If you have seen Maine escort rules cited elsewhere as “MaineDOT 17-229 CMR ch. 250,” that is the wrong agency; agency 250 is the Secretary of State, and the escort chapter is 29-250 CMR ch. 157.
Legal Limits (Without Permit)
- Width: 8'6"
- Height: 13'6"
- Length: 65' (combo); 53' trailer permitted
- Weight: 80,000 lbs GVW
Two cautions on that list. 29-250 CMR ch. 157 gives me Maine's escort triggers but not its legal unpermitted dimensions, and this page has carried conflicting numbers for two of them: height reads 13'6" here and 14' in the LEGAL DIMENSIONS paragraph further down, and length reads 65' combination here while that same paragraph says 74' overall on the Interstate and designated highways and 69' overall elsewhere. I have not confirmed any of those four figures against a primary source, and I am not going to pick one for you. Ask the BMV before you assume you are legal without a permit.
Permitted Load Maximums (Typical Upper Limits)
- Width: 16' is the routine permit ceiling that circulates for Maine; anything wider is handled case by case. Not established in my source.
- Height: A pole car is required when overall height exceeds 15' – “A pole car is required when overall height exceeds 15 feet” (29-250 CMR ch. 157 sec. 12(5)). This page previously said height over 14'6" requires a route survey and approval; neither the 14'6" figure nor a height-triggered route survey appears in the rule.
- Length: At 125' or more you move from a pilot vehicle to a pilot vehicle plus a police escort (29-A M.R.S. sec. 2382(9-A)). “Over 125' allowed with review” understated that, and it missed that the trigger is inclusive.
- Weight: No weight-based escort or pilot-car trigger is established in my source. The “over 125,000 lbs requires bridge approval” line this page used to print is not in the rule chapter – put that question to the BMV Overlimit Permits unit.
Superload handling above the routine permit limits is not covered in the rule chapter I read, and I am not going to invent a threshold for it. Route that question to the BMV Overlimit Permits unit.
Travel Hours
- Weekdays, Apr 22 – Nov 18: travel “from 30 minutes prior to sunrise until 30 minutes after sunset Monday through Friday” (29-250 CMR ch. 157 sec. 11(A)).
- Saturdays, Apr 22 – Nov 18: “from 30 minutes prior to sunrise until 12 PM” – the day ends at noon, it does not run to sunset.
- Saturdays, Jun 3 – Aug 26: tighter, and it splits by road – “30 minutes prior to sunrise until 9 AM on I-95” and “until 12 PM on other roads.” This page used to say there is no weekend travel at all in July and August. That was wrong on the season and wrong on the day, and it hid the I-95 split.
- Holidays, year round: “From January 1 to December 31 overdimensional travel is not authorized on holidays and holiday weekends, unless permission is obtained pursuant to Section 15: Emergency Off-Hour Moves.”
- Who it applies to: sec. 11 covers every overdimensional permit – anything over 8'6" in Maine – not just loads 12' or wider. A narrow-but-long load is daylight-restricted too.
- Sunday, and the Nov 19 – Apr 21 season: not established in my source. The rule text I read gives Monday–Friday and Saturday windows inside Apr 22 – Nov 18 and gives me nothing I can quote about Sunday or about winter. Ask the BMV rather than trusting the old “no movement on Sunday” line this page carried.
- Night and off-hour travel: handled through sec. 15, Emergency Off-Hour Moves. The “allowed if under 10' wide and specially approved” version this page used to carry is not in the rule.
Escort Requirements
From 29-250 CMR ch. 157 sec. 16(1) TABLE 1 unless a row says otherwise. Read the thresholds carefully – most of Maine's ladder is written “greater than or equal to,” so a load sitting exactly on the number does trigger.
| Dimension | Escort Requirement |
|---|---|
| Width 12'0" and up, under 16' | 1 pilot vehicle. Depends on your permit type: the MULTI-STATE (NETC/NOOPA) row reads “Greater than or equal to 12 feet,” so exactly 12'0" triggers. The MAINE-ONLY row reads “Greater than 12 feet and less than 16 feet,” so on a Maine-only permit exactly 12'0" does not. |
| Width 16'0" and up, under 20' | 1 pilot vehicle PLUS 1 police escort. Inclusive – “Police escorts are required for permits issued for widths of 16 feet or more” (sec. 12(3)); 29-A M.R.S. sec. 2382(9-A) says the same. Not discretionary. |
| Width 20'0" and up | 2 police escorts PLUS 1 pilot vehicle. Inclusive – “Greater than or equal to 20 feet.” A civilian pilot is still required at this tier. |
| Length 80'0" and up, under 125' | 1 pilot vehicle. Same permit-type split: the MULTI-STATE row reads “Greater than or equal to 80 feet” and fires at exactly 80'0"; the MAINE-ONLY row reads “Greater than 80 feet and less than 125 feet” and does not. |
| Length 125'0" and up, under 150' | 1 pilot vehicle PLUS 1 police escort – or 2 police escorts where the Maine State Police, MaineDOT or the BMV deems it necessary. Inclusive – “a combination of vehicles of 125 feet or more in length” (29-A M.R.S. sec. 2382(9-A)). |
| Length 150'0" and up | 2 police escorts PLUS 1 pilot vehicle. Inclusive – “Greater than or equal to 150 feet (See Section 8).” |
| Height over 15'0" | 1 pole car. “A pole car is required when overall height exceeds 15 feet” (sec. 12(5)); TABLE 1 and TABLE 2 both read “Greater than 15 feet.” Exclusive, so exactly 15'0" does not trigger. This page and a lot of others published 14'6" – that figure is not in the rule. |
| Rear overhang over 5', under 15'1" | 2 pilot vehicles on a Maine-only permit – TABLE 1, “2 Pilot Vehicles | Maine Only | Rear Overhang | Greater than 5 feet and less than 15 feet 1 inch.” |
| Rear overhang over 15' | Police escort – “Police escorts are required when ... the rear overhang is greater than 15 feet” (sec. 17(1)(c)). |
| Weight | No weight-based escort or pilot-car trigger is established in my source. Overweight permitting is a separate question for the BMV. |
| Pilot position | Not the operator's choice: “Pilot vehicles must travel in front of the overdimensional vehicle(s), unless traveling on a divided highway in which case, the pilot vehicle must follow” (sec. 16(2)(a)). Front on two-lane, rear on divided. |
Additional Notes
- All oversize loads must display “Oversize Load” signs, red/orange flags, and amber lights
- Bridge weight limits and narrow roadways are common – always check routing
- Permits are processed through the Maine Overlimit Permit Office online or by phone
Detailed Information
The ESCORTS and OPERATING TIME paragraphs below are quoted from 29-250 CMR ch. 157 and match the table above. The rest – permits, restricted travel, legal dimensions, routine permit limits, signs and lights – are legacy compiled notes carried over from an older version of this page. They are not quoted from the rule chapter and I have not re-verified them against a primary source. Where any of them collides with the escort figures above, the escort figures win.
PERMITS: Must have the permit prior to entering the state. The “valid for seven days” figure is a legacy note, not something I found in the rule chapter – the validity window is printed on your permit, so read it there.
OPERATING TIME: Apr 22 – Nov 18: “from 30 minutes prior to sunrise until 30 minutes after sunset Monday through Friday” (29-250 CMR ch. 157 sec. 11(A)). Saturday in that same window: 30 minutes prior to sunrise until 12 PM. Jun 3 – Aug 26 Saturday is tighter and splits by road – until 9 AM on I-95, until 12 PM on other roads (sec. 11(B)-(C)). Year round: “From January 1 to December 31 overdimensional travel is not authorized on holidays and holiday weekends, unless permission is obtained pursuant to Section 15: Emergency Off-Hour Moves.” This paragraph used to read “seven days a week except no travel on weekends in the months of July and August” – that was wrong on the season, wrong on the day, and it implied a Sunday allowance the rule text I read does not give me. Sunday and the Nov 19 – Apr 21 season are not established in my source; ask the BMV. Note also that sec. 11 applies to every overdimensional permit, not only to loads 12' or wider.
RESTRICTED TRAVEL (legacy note, not from the rule chapter – confirm before relying on it): Lewiston and Augusta, travel prohibited during inclement weather and during rush hour periods of 7:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. A local permit is required to travel through Augusta. No travel on major holidays or some holiday weekends. Maine Turnpike loads limited to 13'6 high, 14'6 wide. Daylight travel only, Monday through Friday noon. Oversize loads may not travel on the Turnpike on Friday afternoons, Saturday or Sunday. Toll/permit is $10 for over width or over 70' long, paid at the gate. The Turnpike part of route is included on Maine O/D permit, but the $10 fee is paid by the driver at the gate. Turnpike telephone: (207) 871-7771.
LEGAL DIMENSIONS (legacy note, not from the rule chapter): Width: 8'6" Height: not established in my source – this paragraph has long read 14' while the list at the top of the page reads 13'6", and I am not going to pick one for you; confirm with the BMV. (The old text here also carried a typo, “a legal loaded height of 14",” which was never a real figure.) The length figures below also disagree with the 65' combination figure in the Legal Limits list at the top of this page – same caution applies. Length: 53' semi-trailer and 74' overall length on Interstate and designated highways; 48' trailer and 69' overall length on other highways. "The maximum legal length of vehicles and loads traveling more than 1 mile beyond the National Network is 74'." Overhang: 74' overall length maximum Weight: 80,000 Gross Single – 20,000 Tandem – 34,000 Tridem – 42,000
ROUTINE PERMIT LIMITS (legacy note, not from the rule chapter): Width: 16' Height: 16' – that 16' is a permit ceiling, NOT the escort trigger; the pole car comes in over 15' (sec. 12(5)). Length: 125' Weight: Single – 20,000 Tandem – 52,000 Tridem – 75,000 Quad – 100,000 Tractor must be registered for 90,000 pounds to permit for overweight up to 90,000, or register for 100,000 maximum to permit over 90,000. Loads exceeding these dimensions are treated as superloads.
ESCORTS: All of this is 29-250 CMR ch. 157 sec. 16(1) TABLE 1 unless noted, and it matches the table above. Width: 12'0" up to 16' – 1 pilot vehicle; 16'0" up to 20' – 1 pilot vehicle plus 1 police escort (sec. 12(3), “widths of 16 feet or more”); 20'0" and up – 2 police escorts plus 1 pilot vehicle. Length: 80'0" up to 125' – 1 pilot vehicle; 125'0" up to 150' – 1 pilot vehicle plus 1 police escort, or 2 police escorts where the Maine State Police, MaineDOT or the BMV deems it necessary; 150'0" and up – 2 police escorts plus 1 pilot vehicle. Height: over 15' – 1 pole car (sec. 12(5)), exclusive, so exactly 15'0" does not trigger. Rear overhang: over 5' and under 15'1" – 2 pilot vehicles on a Maine-only permit; over 15' – police escort (sec. 17(1)(c)). Weight: no weight-based escort trigger is established in my source. Position: “Pilot vehicles must travel in front of the overdimensional vehicle(s), unless traveling on a divided highway in which case, the pilot vehicle must follow” (sec. 16(2)(a)) – front on two-lane, rear on divided, not your call.
ESCORTS — WHAT THE OLD VERSION GOT WRONG: this paragraph used to say a police escort “may be required” over 16'. It is required at 16'0" and above, and that is a statute, not a discretionary call. It also said height needs an escort only at “extreme” heights, with the table above it printing 14'6"; the rule gives a plain number, over 15'. And it flattened the 12' and 80' triggers into “over.” Those two are the ones that will bite you: on a MULTI-STATE (NETC/NOOPA) permit TABLE 1 reads “Greater than or equal to 12 feet” and “Greater than or equal to 80 feet,” so a load measuring exactly 12'0" or exactly 80'0" needs a pilot vehicle. On a MAINE-ONLY permit those same rows read “Greater than,” and it does not. Check which permit you are running before you decide you are clear by an inch.
MISCELLANEOUS (legacy note, not from the rule chapter): Construction equipment can have blade or bucket attached. If removed, it must be on a separate trailer.
SIGNS, FLAGS & LIGHTS (legacy note, not from the rule chapter – and note that the 4' rear-overhang figure below is a FLAGGING rule, not an escort rule; the escort triggers for rear overhang are over 5' and over 15', above): "Oversize Load" signs and flags required for all over width and over length permit loads. Signs should be mounted at front bumper and at rear of load. Flags (18" x 18") should be mounted at corners of load and widest extremities. Over 4' rear overhang must be flagged (two flags if overhang is more than 2' wide). Run with headlights on low beam (not required if overweight only), and flashing, rotating amber light or light bar on top of cab. Movement when not oversized requires that load signs be removed or covered and that amber beacon lights be extinguished. All over-dimension moves require headlights on low beam, and flashing, rotary or amber lights on top of cab.
