Vermont OS Load info.

Vermont OS/OD Overview

Permit Required

Yes – oversize or overweight loads must obtain a permit from the Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles, Commercial Vehicle Operations Unit (802-828-2064). The governing document is CVO-110, “Oversize Permit Rules” (revision 07/2022), issued under 23 V.S.A. chapter 13. Everything cited on this page comes out of that document or out of the size statutes it is keyed to, 23 V.S.A. 1431 and 1432. Municipal (town) highways are permitted by the municipality itself once the load exceeds blanket-permit dimensions.

Legal Limits (Without Permit)

• Width: 8'6" (23 V.S.A. 1431(a))
• Height: 13'6" (23 V.S.A. 1431(a))
• Length: 75' overall for a vehicle with a trailer or semi-trailer; 46' for a single motor vehicle with no trailer (23 V.S.A. 1432). 53' semi-trailer on Interstate and designated highways, 48' on non-designated
• Weight: 80,000 lbs GVW

The 46' single-vehicle figure matters more than it looks. Vermont's daylight-only rule bites on any over-length load, so a 50-foot straight truck is over length and daylight-restricted even though a 60-foot tractor-trailer beside it is not. The length-based escort trigger, by contrast, does not start until 80'.

Blanket Permit Maximums

• Width: 12'6" when overall length does not exceed 75'; 10'6" when length is greater than 75' up to 100'
• Height: 14'
• Length: the width line above brackets blanket length at up to 100' overall for a combination — 12'6" wide out to 75', 10'6" wide from 75' to 100' — and past 100' an Engineering Inspection is required before a permit issues. Separately, 46' is the statutory cap on a single motor vehicle with no trailer (23 V.S.A. 1432(a)). That 46' figure is not the blanket length limit; it is the point at which a straight truck becomes over-length and daylight-restricted
• Weight: nondivisible loads only, on the CVO-110 axle schedule

Above blanket dimensions on a town highway, the permit is issued by the municipality, not by DMV — application goes to the appropriate legislative body or its representative. Above the Engineering Inspection figures below, budget ten working days before the move.

Travel Hours

• Daylight only — any over-width, over-length or over-height load: “Travel with vehicles and/or loads which are over width or overlength or over height shall be restricted to daylight hours and movement shall be made between thirty (30) minutes before sunrise to thirty (30) minutes after sunset.” That bites at over 8'6" wide, over 13'6" high, or over 75' long (46' for a single vehicle) — not at 12'. A 9'-wide load is daylight-restricted in Vermont
• Overweight-only exemption: “Vehicles, which are overweight only and are capable of traveling with the traffic flow, are not restricted to daylight travel time”
• Saturday, Sunday and holidays: on state highways, unless otherwise stated, permits will not be issued for movement of loads in excess of 108,000 lbs, or over 12'0" wide, or over 100' long on any Saturday, Sunday, or on the six legal holidays below
• Holidays — six, not twelve: New Year's Day (January 1), Memorial Day (last Monday in May), Independence Day (July 4), Labor Day (1st Monday in September), Thanksgiving (4th Thursday in November), Christmas (December 25). The Commissioner “may restrict the movement of oversize and overweight vehicles before and after certain holidays if deemed necessary”
• Heavy-traffic hours: “On highways where traffic is heavy during certain hours, it may be necessary to further restrict the movement to certain hours of the day or to certain days of the week” — a per-permit restriction, so read your route sheet
• Single-trip nuance: the Single Trip chapter prefaces the daylight rule with “Unless specifically stated on the permit,” so a single-trip permit may vary it. The Blanket, Special Purpose and Crane chapters state it unconditionally

Two separate width numbers do two separate jobs here, and mixing them up is the commonest Vermont mistake. 8'6" is where daylight-only starts. 12'0" is where Saturday/Sunday/holiday movement stops — and that one reads “over twelve feet (12'0"),” so exactly 12'0" is not caught by the weekend rule even though exactly 12'0" does require an escort. The escort clause and the weekend clause are worded differently on purpose.

Escort Requirements (CVO-110, Escort Vehicle Requirements)

Four things to get right about this table. First, every escort trigger is inclusive: “Escort vehicles are required when the vehicle and/or load meet or exceed the following dimensions … Wide load of twelve feet (12') or greater. Long load of eighty feet (80') or greater. Overhang of fifteen feet (15') or greater.” A load measuring exactly 12'0" needs an escort. Second, placement is divided versus undivided highway, not interstate versus non-interstate and not two-lane versus four-lane: “When one escort is required, it shall precede a load on undivided highways and follow the load on divided highways. Escort vehicle headlights shall be on low beam during all moves.” Third, the baseline count is one — the clause reads “When one escort is required” — and a second car is discretionary, so Vermont publishes no second-escort width. Fourth, the overhang trigger has no direction, so 15' out the front counts. If you have seen a Vermont table showing two escorts over 14' wide, a height-pole escort over 14' high, or an escort triggered at 100' of length, none of those are in CVO-110: 14' high and 100' long are the Engineering Inspection thresholds below, which are a permitting gate, not an escort. Source: CVO-110 rev. 07/2022, ESCORT VEHICLE REQUIREMENTS and POLICE ESCORT, which appear verbatim in the Blanket, Single Trip and Special Purpose/Crane chapters.

Engineering Inspection — Ten Working Days (State and Interstate Highways)

“An Engineering Inspection may take up to ten (10) working days to process from the date the completed request is received.” It is an in-depth review of the requested route and its structures, it is valid six months for any part of the approved route for loads of the same or lesser dimensions and weight distribution, and a permit issued off it is valid seven business days. A load that is subject to, or was required to have, an engineering review may not travel in inclement weather at all. The mixed wording above is verbatim, not a transcription slip — width and weight read “or more,” length and height read “More than.” A fee is added to the permit under 23 V.S.A. 1402; CVO-110 does not tabulate the amount, so get it from DMV rather than from a figure circulating online. This is the one Vermont requirement you cannot recover from on the day of the move — check it before you quote.

Additional Notes

• “OVERSIZE LOAD” signs are required for over 8'6" width, over 13'6" height, or over 75' length — 7' long by 18" high, yellow background, black letters at least 10" high with a 1¼" brush stroke, front-most and rear-most, covered or removed when not making an oversize move. Not required for overweight-only moves
• All over-dimension moves require a flashing amber light above the highest point of the towing vehicle — that is not gated at 12' or 80'
• Escort vehicles must be at least compact-car size, keep two-way radio contact with the permitted vehicle at all times, run a flashing amber light above the highest point or 360-degree equivalent, and carry an “OVERSIZE LOAD” sign on the front if leading or the rear if following; signs covered or removed when not escorting
• Inclement weather: for loads 12' wide or greater and/or 80' long or greater, no travel during ice, sleet, freezing rain, slush, or snow sticking to the surface, and none when rain or fog cuts visibility of the load below a quarter mile. Pull off at the first safe location when it sets in
• Speed: 45 mph on state highways for loads in excess of 90,000 lbs, or 10' in width, or 13'6" in height, or 75' in length; 60 mph maximum on Interstates unless otherwise specified
• Posted roads: during winter thaws, rainy periods or frost heave the Agency of Transportation may post state highways — “Permits DO NOT supersede road postings”
• Convoys must keep a minimum 1,000' between permitted vehicles; loads travel in the right lane where two or more lanes run in one direction
• Rural and mountainous terrain makes routing the real constraint in Vermont — “All loads shall be routed over the widest roads available”

Detailed Information

PERMITS: Single Trip Permits “may be issued to cover a single trip within seven (7) business days of issuance. When the trip will exceed the seven (7) business day limit, a new permit will be required.” Extensions are discretionary with the Commissioner. Blanket Permits expire with the vehicle's registration, must be issued in the name of the registrant and match the registration certificate, and transfer only with the truck registration. Only one vehicle or combination goes on each permit, and permits are issued only to the person or firm actually doing the transporting. CVO-110 carries no “prior to entering the state” sentence as a general rule — what it does say, for self-issued agent permits, is that the fax verification report “must be kept with the permit application, faxed to the driver before entering or moving within the State of Vermont.” Have the permit in hand before the wheels turn either way.

OPERATING TIME: Thirty minutes before sunrise to thirty minutes after sunset, for any load that is over width, over length or over height — that is over 8'6" wide, over 13'6" high, or over 75' long (46' for a single vehicle with no trailer), not over 12'. Verbatim: “Travel with vehicles and/or loads which are over width or overlength or over height shall be restricted to daylight hours and movement shall be made between thirty (30) minutes before sunrise to thirty (30) minutes after sunset. Vehicles, which are overweight only and are capable of traveling with the traffic flow, are not restricted to daylight travel time.” The Single Trip chapter prefaces that with “Unless specifically stated on the permit,”; the Blanket, Special Purpose and Crane chapters do not. Traffic volume can narrow it further: “On highways where traffic is heavy during certain hours, it may be necessary to further restrict the movement to certain hours of the day or to certain days of the week.”

SATURDAY, SUNDAY AND HOLIDAY TRAVEL: Verbatim: “On state highways unless otherwise stated, permits will not be issued for movement of loads in excess of one hundred eight thousand (108,000) pounds, or over twelve feet (12'0") wide or over one hundred feet (100') long on any Saturday, Sunday, or on the following legal holidays as observed in the State of Vermont” — New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day. The width figure is 12'0", not 10'6", and the clause reads “over,” so a load measuring exactly 12'0" is not caught by it. The Commissioner may restrict movement before and after certain holidays if deemed necessary. The Special Purpose Blanket chapter carries a narrower version of this rule — holidays only, with no Saturday/Sunday clause — so check which chapter your permit type sits under.

RESTRICTED TRAVEL: Permits for loads neither originating nor delivering in Vermont are issued only where Vermont is the most direct route: the Department weighs “the most ‘direct route’ reasonably available for the move both through and outside Vermont,” and will consider an indirect routing only if another state on the direct route has denied a permit for inadequate routes — with a signed letter from that state. A higher fee elsewhere is expressly not a reason. Speeds are capped at 45 mph on state highways for loads in excess of 90,000 lbs or 10' in width or 13'6" in height or 75' in length, and at 60 mph on Interstates. Road postings during thaw season override the permit. Any Friday-afternoon summer restriction you may have been told about is not written into CVO-110; what the rule provides for instead is the general power to restrict movement “to certain hours of the day or to certain days of the week” on busy highways — treat it as a permit condition and read your route sheet.

LEGAL DIMENSIONS: Width: 8'6". Height: 13'6". Length: 75' overall for a vehicle with a trailer or semi-trailer, 46' for a single motor vehicle with no trailer; 53' semi-trailer on Interstate and designated highways (41' kingpin to center of rear axle), 48' trailer on non-designated highways (23 V.S.A. 1431 and 1432). Weight: 80,000 gross. Single – 20,000 designated highways, 22,400 other roads. Tandem – 34,000 designated highways, 36,000 other roads. Tridem – Federal Bridge Formula (34,000 at 8' axle spacing, 42,500 at 9'). Note that the statutory size limits live in 23 V.S.A. 1431 and 1432; 23 V.S.A. 1392, which is sometimes cited for them, is entirely axle-weight tables.

ROUTINE PERMIT LIMITS: Blanket permits for statewide operation: width 12'6" when overall length does not exceed 75', or 10'6" when length is greater than 75' up to 100'; height 14'; single vehicle without trailer 46'. Overhang “shall not exceed one-third of the length of the load. No over length load shall be permitted to drag upon the roadway.” Modular and mobile homes get an extra 6" of width for eaves overhang only. At 15' wide or more, above 100' long, above 14' high, or at 150,000 lbs and above — in each case except on town highways — an Engineering Inspection is required first and can take ten working days. Above blanket dimensions on a town highway, the municipality issues the permit, not DMV.

ESCORTS: Verbatim: “Escort vehicles are required when the vehicle and/or load meet or exceed the following dimensions or at the discretion of the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles or his/her authorized representative: Wide load of twelve feet (12') or greater. Long load of eighty feet (80') or greater. Overhang of fifteen feet (15') or greater.” All three are inclusive — the round figure itself triggers. The overhang trigger names no direction and so covers front overhang as well as rear. Placement: “When one escort is required, it shall precede a load on undivided highways and follow the load on divided highways. Escort vehicle headlights shall be on low beam during all moves.” Count: one is the baseline, and “The Commissioner of Motor Vehicles or his/her authorized representative may require two or more escort vehicles.” Height: no escort and no height pole at any height — over-height is a clearance duty on the applicant plus an Engineering Inspection over 14'. Police escorts are purely discretionary: “At the discretion of the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles or his/her authorized representative one or more police escorts may be required,” with no dimensional trigger; where one is used, the police escort orally reviews the permit restrictions with the load driver and the escort drivers and ensures two-way radio contact throughout.

SIGNS, FLAGS & LIGHTS: An “OVERSIZE LOAD” sign is required for over 8'6" width, over 13'6" height, or over 75' length — at least 7' long by 18" high, yellow background, black letters at least 10" high with a 1¼" brush stroke, securely attached to the front-most and rear-most portion of the load or vehicle, and covered or removed when not making an oversize move. A shorter sign is allowed on an over-length object such as a pole or beam provided the lettering is the same size. Flags are required on all oversize loads: bright or fluorescent red or orange, minimum 18" by 18", on all four corners (or as close as practicable) of whichever of the vehicle or the load is oversize, plus extra flags to mark the widest extremities of an irregular load. “Over length loads or loads with rear or front end overhang in excess of four feet (4') shall display one flag at the end of the overhang if less than two feet (2') wide and two (2) flags if the overhang is two feet (2') wide or more.” All over-dimension moves require a flashing amber light above the highest point of the towing vehicle, and over-legal mobile homes and modular units must be towed by a vehicle of at least 24,000 lbs GVWR with dual wheels. Signs are not required for movements that are overweight only.

Source: Vermont DMV CVO-110 — Oversize Permit Rules (rev. 07/2022), with 23 V.S.A. 1431 and 1432 for the statutory size limits. Informational only — always verify against the live permit office before any move; permit conditions control. Vermont DMV Commercial Vehicle Operations: 802-828-2064.