-
22
Jun
Grace Weights
There’s not a truck cop in Illinois who has found a trucker over the legal weight limit and not heard the driver plead “but I get 2,000 pounds extra!”. The driver is correct…sometimes. A driver may receive and extra 2,000 […]
Read more
-
15
Jun
One Toke (or sip) Over The Line, Sweet Trucker
Booze and weed. One is legal, and the other might be legal depending what state you are in. Not Illinois…at least not yet. The national debate on both of these substances has raged for decades. While the prohibition of alcohol […]
Read more -
08
Jun
Little Green “O”
Last week, this blog discussed the Little Green “X”. The meat of the article was about bridges in Illinois that are referred to as “legal-weight” and are notated by the Illinois Department of Transportation on their online, interactive map with […]
Read more -
01
Jun
Little Green “X”
Last week, an oversize load crossed a bridge in Washington State when it made contact with the structure. The incident was caught on video which shows two vehicles plunge into the water as the structure crumbles. Miraculously, no one was […]
Read more -
25
May
Big Weight + Big Money = SETA
The legislative process is a delicate balance. When the general public looks at legislation that eventually passes and is signed into law, it is easy to judge the content based on the political fervor of the time. There is no […]
Read more -
18
May
The Magical 8,000 Pounds
There’s magic numbers in truck law. Illinois used to have the magical 73,280. There’s also the magical 54,999 which is an integer short of the federal heavy vehicle use tax. The most magical number of all is 26,000, but that’s […]
Read more -
11
May
A Mile of Trouble
“Walk a mile in their shoes.” “Mile after magnificent mile.” “Give ‘em an inch, they take a mile.” “Always go the extra mile.” “My mind is racing a mile a minute.” Is there are common thread developing? Every truck officer […]
Read more -
04
May
Bathroom Scales
Let’s be honest…there is probably no greater divide between law enforcement and the trucking industry than the use of portable scales. Police officers will argue till they are blue in the face about portable scale accuracy and necessity. Truckers will […]
Read more -
27
Apr
Cement Mixers – Week 2
Cement is simple. Mix a few aggregates and water, load and spin in a truck, pour out on a jobsite, and then leave to harden like rock. But mixer law is not always so simple. Last week this blog spent […]
Read more -
20
Apr
Cement Mixers – Week 1
Groundhog’s Day means nothing. Any seasoned truck enforcement officer recognizes that an increase of cement mixers on the street means the weather is starting to turn for the better. It’s not that cement can’t be poured in the cold, but […]
Read more
