On high windy days can I drive with my trailer tandems stretched to the back with MT trl? Or is it illegal ?

Question

Question for the truckers, DOT officers,Police Officers out there, someone knowledgable about this, not someone just guessing to get 2 points please.

Answer 1

According to my husband not if its 53' foot, only if its 48' or less u can have them back all the way.

Answer 2

You can put your wheels anywhere you want, but it won't help with cross-winds and an empty trailer.  The only safe way to deal with an empty trailer is to SLOW DOWN!

Answer 3

In the state of Arizona you can have your tandems anywhere you want if you are empty. We are checking weight per axle not where your tires are.

Answer 4

I have to agree with WVPARANORMAL....  

Tandem placement is not determined by weight...   State laws determine the maximum distance between the kingpin and the rear axle of the set of axles.

A lot of midwestern states are 41' maximum... loaded or empty...  Some western states... Like Washington have no laws concerning axle placement... you can run them stretched out or stuffed up... as long as the weight on those axles is legal.  California is 40 feet... regardless of load.  

To answer your question... It all depends on where you are.  As for running in the wind with an empty trailer... it really won't make much difference where the axles are... what will compound things is speed.  If you aren't comfortable, slow down or find a safe place to park the truck until the wind dies down a little.

I hope this helps.

Answer 5

On an empty trailer you can have your axles where ever you want them. The law only tells you how long the trailer can be and how much weight you can have on it.

Answer 6

First of all, these people telling you that you can stretch out with an empty trailer are wrong. It doesn't matter if the trailer is empty or loaded, the law is the same. It totally depends on where you are driving and what size trailer you are pulling. As a general rule in the United States, you can only be stretched out to 41 feet from the king pin to the center of the tandems. There are exceptions in some states. Look in the front section of a Rand McNally Motor Carrier's Road Atlas. It will tell you the Bridge Laws for every state and the Canadian Provinces. That is what it's called, the bridge law. That's how far you can legally be stretched out.