North Carolina permits
North Carolina Oversize Permit Rules
Legal limits, escorts, pole cars, Highway Patrol escorts, travel hours and city curfews for oversize and overweight loads in North Carolina, each checked against the North Carolina Department of Transportation.
Last checked: Oct 1, 2026
This page is general information only, not legal advice and not a permit. Rules change often and each state's permit and official rules are the final word. Always confirm limits, escorts, routes and travel times with the state permit office before moving a load. Reliable Transport LLC is not responsible for decisions made using this information.
- Legal size
- 8'6"W, 14'H, 80,000 lbs
- Escorts start
- Over 12'W or 110'L
- Travel
- Sunrise to sunset, no Sundays
Hauling through other states? Use our permit map and route planner
Open the route plannerNCDOT permits
How North Carolina sizes up a heavy load
The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) Oversize/Overweight Permit Unit issues single trip and annual permits through its online Permit Information Management System (PIMS); faxed applications are no longer accepted. These are the numbers we plan every North Carolina load with. Run your exact load and route through our permit tool to see every state on the trip.
Check your load
Enter your width, height, length and weight in our permit tool to see the North Carolina rules and every other state on your route, each with its official source.
North Carolina limits
North Carolina legal limits and permit thresholds
Over any legal limit, the load needs an NCDOT oversize/overweight permit.
North Carolina legal size, weight and permits
Official sources linked| Rule | Limit |
|---|---|
| Legal width | 8'6"W (NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Trucking Permits, N.C. Gen. Stat. 20 116, size limits) |
| Legal height | 14'H. NCDOT's older handbook still says 13'6"H; the statute was raised to 14'H in 2023 (NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Trucking Permits, N.C. Gen. Stat. 20 116, size limits) Check with the state. |
| Legal length | 40' single vehicle; 60' combination; a truck tractor with a 53' semitrailer has no overall limit on all roads (NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Trucking Permits) Check with the state. |
| Legal weight | 80,000 lbs gross (N.C. Gen. Stat. 20 118, weight limits, NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Permit Handbook) |
| Single trip permit | Good for 10 calendar days for one trip (NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Permit Handbook) |
| Ordering | Online in PIMS; faxed applications stopped August 1, 2025 (NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Trucking Permits) |
Escorts
North Carolina escort requirements
Escorts start over 12'W, a pole car joins over 14'5"H, and the State Highway Patrol escorts loads over 16'W.
North Carolina escorts by load size
Official sources linked| Load | Escorts |
|---|---|
| Over 12'W, two lane | 1 front escort on two lane, two way highways (NCDOT Publication E 9, Escort Vehicles (Rev 8/24), NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Permit Handbook) |
| Over 12'W, multilane | 1 rear escort on multilane highways, or as the permit states (NCDOT Publication E 9, Escort Vehicles (Rev 8/24), NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Permit Handbook) |
| Over 16'W | 3 escorts in total, 1 of them the NC State Highway Patrol (NCDOT Publication E 9, Escort Vehicles (Rev 8/24)) |
| Over 14'5"H | Front pole car with a height pole for the whole route (NCDOT Publication E 9, Escort Vehicles (Rev 8/24)) |
| Over 110'L | 1 rear escort (NCDOT Publication E 9, Escort Vehicles (Rev 8/24)) |
| Over 150'L | 1 front and 1 rear escort (NCDOT Publication E 9, Escort Vehicles (Rev 8/24)) |
| Rear overhang of 15' or more | 1 rear escort (NCDOT Publication E 9, Escort Vehicles (Rev 8/24)) |
| Over 149,999 lbs | 1 front escort (NCDOT Publication E 9, Escort Vehicles (Rev 8/24)) |
Escort drivers must hold an approved North Carolina escort certification. NCDOT may add escorts for a mix of over dimensions, weather, location or route.
Height and routes
Pole cars, signs and lights
What North Carolina asks of tall, wide and long loads.
Pole car
Over 14'5"H, the front escort carries a height pole indicator for the whole route. (NCDOT Publication E 9, Escort Vehicles (Rev 8/24))
Route survey
NCDOT's documents set no general route survey size for most loads; the permit sets the route. (NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Permit Handbook, NCDOT Publication SL 6, Superload Permits) Check with the state.
Signs
OVERSIZE LOAD signs front and rear over 10'W; escorts carry a yellow WIDE LOAD or OVERSIZE LOAD banner with 10" letters. (NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Permit Handbook, NCDOT Publication E 9, Escort Vehicles (Rev 8/24))
Night lights
Between sunset and sunrise, loads over 102" and up to 120" wide carry at least two amber lamps at the widest points. (NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Trucking Permits)
Travel times
Travel hours, nights, weekends and holidays
When a permitted load may move in North Carolina.
Daylight
Sunrise to sunset, Monday through Saturday, unless the permit says otherwise. (NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Permit Handbook, 19A NCAC 02D .0607, permit conditions)
Sundays
No Sunday travel unless the permit says otherwise. (NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Permit Handbook)
Continuous travel
24 hours, 7 days for permitted loads up to 112,000 lbs and up to 10'W with no other over legal size. (NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Trucking Permits) Check with the state.
City curfews
Over 12'W, no travel within 10 miles of Charlotte, Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill 7 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 6 p.m. (NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Permit Handbook)
Holidays
No movement from noon on the weekday before until noon on the weekday after Independence Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day (Friday noon to Monday noon when the holiday falls on a weekend). (19A NCAC 02D .0607, permit conditions, NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Permit Handbook)
Weather
No moves when visibility is under 500' or travel is unsafe; mobile or modular units over 10'W stop when gusts pass 25 mph. (19A NCAC 02D .0607, permit conditions)
Convoys
No convoys: permitted loads travel at least 2 miles apart. (19A NCAC 02D .0607, permit conditions)
Superloads
North Carolina superload
A North Carolina superload is over 132,000 lbs, over permit axle weights, or over 15'W, and needs a letter from the shipper. Apply at least 10 working days ahead for the bridge review. Superload permits do not allow 24 hour travel. (NCDOT Publication SL 6, Superload Permits, NCDOT Oversize/Overweight Permit Handbook)
See how we plan the biggest loads on our Superload Transport page.
Our moves
Heavy loads we have moved
150,000 lb transformer
A 150,000 lb transformer from Pocatello, ID to Akron, OH.
Read the move →207,000 lb dryer drum
A 207,000 lb dryer drum from Louisville, KY to Richmond, VA.
Read the move →Moving a load in North Carolina?
Send the dimensions and weight. We file the North Carolina permit and plan the escorts.
Request a quote →See every move on our Moves page.
Sources
Official North Carolina sources
Every rule on this page is taken from the NCDOT pages and rule text below and confirmed by a second source. Where we could not confirm a rule twice, the page says to check with the state. Rules change, and the permit itself always decides. Last checked: Oct 1, 2026.
Questions
North Carolina permit questions
What are the legal size and weight limits in North Carolina?
8'6"W, 14'H and 80,000 lbs gross. A truck tractor with a 53' semitrailer has no overall length limit; other combinations stop at 60'. Anything bigger or heavier needs an NCDOT permit.
When does North Carolina require escorts?
Over 12'W, 1 escort (front on two lane roads, rear on multilane roads). Over 110'L, a rear escort, and over 150'L, front and rear. Over 149,999 lbs, a front escort.
When does North Carolina require a pole car?
Over 14'5"H, a front pole car with a height pole runs the whole route.
When is a Highway Patrol escort required?
Over 16'W, the load needs 3 escorts, and 1 of them must be the NC State Highway Patrol.
Can oversize loads move at night or on Sundays in North Carolina?
Generally no: sunrise to sunset, Monday through Saturday. Loads up to 112,000 lbs and 10'W with no other over legal size can run 24 hours, 7 days.
What is a superload in North Carolina?
Over 132,000 lbs, over permit axle weights or over 15'W. Apply at least 10 working days ahead for the bridge review.
Keep planning
More for your North Carolina move
Permit rules in other states
Hauling through other states? Use our permit map and route planner
Open the route plannerReliable Transport LLC | Reliable Heavy Haul
Ready to move it?
We haul oversize and overweight loads across the USA and Canada from our home base at 7660 W Third St, Dayton, OH 45417. Send your load details and we will plan the North Carolina permit, route and escorts.
This page is general information only, not legal advice and not a permit. Rules change often and each state's permit and official rules are the final word. Always confirm limits, escorts, routes and travel times with the state permit office before moving a load. Reliable Transport LLC is not responsible for decisions made using this information.