Truck weight limits
South Carolina
✓ Sources verifiedEditorial review pending credentialed reviewer2 primary sources
South Carolina is the most intricate scheme in the country. Gross weight is a configuration schedule — 35,000 lb for a two-axle single unit up to 73,280 lb for a five-or-more-axle combination — with an Interstate ceiling of 75,185 lb including tolerances, reaching 80,000 lb only through the bridge-formula table. Tandem weight is 36,000 lb off-Interstate but 35,200 lb on it, and uniquely the statute writes enforcement tolerance into the cap itself.
At a glance
Max gross weight80,000 lb
Max single axle20,000 lb
Max tandem axle36,000 lb
Permit (width)102 in
Permit (height)13.5 ft
vs. federal gross0 lb
1 Limits and thresholds
| Property | Value | Authority |
|---|---|---|
| Max gross weight | 80,000 lb[1]Interstate maximum via the bridge-formula table. The configuration schedule tops at 73,280 lb (5+ axle combination) with a 75,185 lb Interstate ceiling; farm trucks reach 90,000 lb off-Interstate. A flat 80,000 lb misstates South Carolina. | § 56-5-4140(A)(4) |
| Max single axle | 20,000 lb[1]Low-pressure pneumatic tires; 16,000 lb on high-pressure, solid rubber or cushion tires. On the Interstate, 20,000 lb including all enforcement tolerances. | § 56-5-4130(A)(1) |
| Max tandem axle | 36,000 lb[1]Axles 40–96 in apart, off-Interstate. On the Interstate: 35,200 lb including all enforcement tolerances. | § 56-5-4140(A)(1) |
| Oversize permit above (width) | 102 in[1] | § 56-5-4030(B) |
| Oversize permit above (height) | 13.5 ft[1]Automobile transporters and saddle-mount combinations: 14 ft. | § 56-5-4060(A)(1) |
| CDL disqualification — first major | 1 year for a first conviction while operating a CMV or a non-CMV; 3 years if operating a CMV transporting placarded hazardous materials. Applies to alcohol/controlled-substance influence, 0.04+ BAC in a CMV, test refusal, leaving the scene, using the vehicle in a felony, driving while disqualified, and causing a fatality by negligent operation.[2]Federal floor. A state may impose longer periods but may not go below this; verify state law before relying on it. | § 383.51(b), Table 1 |
| CDL disqualification — lifetime | Life for a second conviction of any combination of the Table 1 major offences in a separate incident. A state MAY reinstate after 10 years following an approved rehabilitation programme — § 383.51(a)(6) — but not after a subsequent disqualifying conviction. Felony manufacture/distribution of a controlled substance, and severe forms of human trafficking, draw life with NO 10-year reinstatement.[2]Federal floor. The 10-year reinstatement is permissive — states are not required to offer it. | § 383.51(a)(6), (b) Table 1 items (9)–(10) |
2 Sources
- S.C. Code Ann. ch. 56-5 — Size and weight — South Carolina Legislature Online
- 49 CFR § 383.51 — Disqualification of drivers — U.S. Government Publishing Office
Review record
Every figure above was transcribed from the primary source cited beside it and carries a pinpoint locator. Editorial review by a credentialed reviewer is pending.