State profile · Arkansas
Every figure here carries the Arkansas document behind it.
The short version: a Arkansas single-trip permit starts at $17 before bands, overweight and the transaction charge; an escort is first required at over 12' wide; and the load becomes a superload at 180,000 lb or more. Everything below carries the Arkansas document it came from, that document's own revision date, and the date we read it.
The jurisdictions this one borders, each chip carrying the fact that decides whether that crossing is the expensive one — so the row is itself a small comparison. A multi-state lane is the actual job, and from here it is one click per state rather than a return to an alphabetical index.
Anything over one of these needs a permit. Every value links to the document that sets it.
| Measure | Legal limit |
|---|---|
| Width | 8'6"rev. · read secondary host§27-35-206 states 102 inches; the exception for compacted seed cotton (108 in on non-Interstate highways) is a commodity carve-out this engine does not model, and a cotton move quoted at the 102 in limit is over-permitted rather than under. |
| Height | 14'rev. · read secondary host |
| Semitrailer length | 53'6"rev. · read secondary host"The state shall not establish or enforce any rule which imposes a semitrailer or trailer length limitation of less than fifty-three feet six inches (53′ 6″)." |
| Overall length | None published |
| Kingpin to rear axle | None published |
| Front overhang | 3'rev. · read Rule 3.G.3.e. Rule 3.G.3.f caps the permitted front overhang at 20 ft; that ceiling is carried by `ar-front-overhang-over-20`. |
| Rear overhang | None published |
| Gross weight | 80,000 lbrev. · read secondary host§27-35-203(d). The 85,000 lb five-axle farm and forest allowance and the 70,000 lb three-axle non-Interstate figure are commodity and configuration carve-outs this engine does not model. |
| Single axle | 20,000 lbrev. · read secondary host§27-35-203(a). |
| Tandem axle | 34,000 lbrev. · read secondary host§27-35-203(b). |
Not one number per dimension — the whole staircase. Each row is a condition the state actually publishes, what it requires when that condition holds, and the clause it comes from. Where a rule requires escorts and the source states no number, the row says that in the source's own words rather than reporting no requirement.
| When | What is required | Source |
|---|---|---|
| not (the road is “interstate” or “divided”) and width from 12' (exclusive) to 14' | 1 certified escort1 in front |
Rule 2.A.3 Table of Legal Dimensions and Weig…rev. · read |
| the road is “interstate” or “divided” and width over 14' | 1 certified escort1 behind |
Rule 2.A.3 Table of Legal Dimensions and Weig…rev. · read |
| not (the road is “interstate” or “divided”) and width over 14' | 2 certified escorts1 in front1 behind |
Rule 2.A.3 Table of Legal Dimensions and Weig…rev. · read |
| height over 15' | 1 certified escort1 in frontHeight pole required |
Rule 2.A.3 Table of Legal Dimensions and Weig…rev. · read |
| overall length of 100' or more | 1 certified escort |
Rule 2.A.3 Table of Legal Dimensions and Weig…rev. · read |
| the road is “two lane” and overall length over 115' | 2 certified escorts1 in front1 behind |
Rule 2.A.3 Table of Legal Dimensions and Weig…rev. · read |
| Measurement | First escort trigger | First police escort trigger |
|---|---|---|
| Width | over 12'rev. · read · varies by road class | None published |
| Height | over 15'rev. · read | None published |
| Length | 100' or morerev. · read | None published |
| Rear overhang | None published | None published |
| Gross weight | None published | None published |
| Charge | Amount |
|---|---|
| Single-trip base | $17rev. · read secondary host§27-35-210(e)(1): "A charge of seventeen dollars ($17.00) shall be made for each special permit." |
| Transaction / card | Not yet covered |
| Route analysis review | Not yet covered |
| Route with no bridges | Not yet covered |
Graduated weight bands. Ark. Code §27-35-210(e)(2) charges "for each ton or major fraction thereof to be hauled in excess of the lawful weight and load for that vehicle, or combination of vehicles" at a rate stepped by the mileage to be travelled — $8.00 a ton up to 100 miles, rising to $16.00 a ton past 251. The mileage selects the rate; it is not multiplied through.
| Gross weight | Axles | Fee | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 80,001 lb and up | any | $0plus $8 per 2,000 lb above 80,000 lb (a part increment is charged only when it is more than half); applies from 0 to 100 miles in-state | (e)(1) "A charge of seventeen dollars ($17.00…rev. · read secondary host |
| 80,001 lb and up | any | $0plus $8 per 2,000 lb above 80,000 lb (a part increment is charged only when it is more than half); applies from 0 to 100 miles in-state | Rule 2.A.3 Table of Legal Dimensions and Weig…rev. · read |
| 80,001 lb and up | any | $0plus $8 per 2,000 lb above 80,000 lb (a part increment is charged only when it is more than half); applies from 0 to 100 miles in-state | Appendix 3, "OVERWEIGHT FEE CHART": "for each…undated document · read |
| 80,001 lb and up | any | $0plus $10 per 2,000 lb above 80,000 lb (a part increment is charged only when it is more than half); applies from 101 to 150 miles in-state | (e)(1) "A charge of seventeen dollars ($17.00…rev. · read secondary host |
| 80,001 lb and up | any | $0plus $10 per 2,000 lb above 80,000 lb (a part increment is charged only when it is more than half); applies from 101 to 150 miles in-state | Rule 2.A.3 Table of Legal Dimensions and Weig…rev. · read |
| 80,001 lb and up | any | $0plus $10 per 2,000 lb above 80,000 lb (a part increment is charged only when it is more than half); applies from 101 to 150 miles in-state | Appendix 3, "OVERWEIGHT FEE CHART": "for each…undated document · read |
| 80,001 lb and up | any | $0plus $12 per 2,000 lb above 80,000 lb (a part increment is charged only when it is more than half); applies from 151 to 200 miles in-state | (e)(1) "A charge of seventeen dollars ($17.00…rev. · read secondary host |
| 80,001 lb and up | any | $0plus $12 per 2,000 lb above 80,000 lb (a part increment is charged only when it is more than half); applies from 151 to 200 miles in-state | Rule 2.A.3 Table of Legal Dimensions and Weig…rev. · read |
| 80,001 lb and up | any | $0plus $12 per 2,000 lb above 80,000 lb (a part increment is charged only when it is more than half); applies from 151 to 200 miles in-state | Appendix 3, "OVERWEIGHT FEE CHART": "for each…undated document · read |
| 80,001 lb and up | any | $0plus $14 per 2,000 lb above 80,000 lb (a part increment is charged only when it is more than half); applies from 201 to 250 miles in-state | (e)(1) "A charge of seventeen dollars ($17.00…rev. · read secondary host |
| 80,001 lb and up | any | $0plus $14 per 2,000 lb above 80,000 lb (a part increment is charged only when it is more than half); applies from 201 to 250 miles in-state | Rule 2.A.3 Table of Legal Dimensions and Weig…rev. · read |
| 80,001 lb and up | any | $0plus $14 per 2,000 lb above 80,000 lb (a part increment is charged only when it is more than half); applies from 201 to 250 miles in-state | Appendix 3, "OVERWEIGHT FEE CHART": "for each…undated document · read |
| 80,001 lb and up | any | $0plus $16 per 2,000 lb above 80,000 lb (a part increment is charged only when it is more than half); applies from 252 to any miles in-state | (e)(1) "A charge of seventeen dollars ($17.00…rev. · read secondary host |
| 80,001 lb and up | any | $0plus $16 per 2,000 lb above 80,000 lb (a part increment is charged only when it is more than half); applies from 252 to any miles in-state | Rule 2.A.3 Table of Legal Dimensions and Weig…rev. · read |
| 80,001 lb and up | any | $0plus $16 per 2,000 lb above 80,000 lb (a part increment is charged only when it is more than half); applies from 252 to any miles in-state | Appendix 3, "OVERWEIGHT FEE CHART": "for each…undated document · read |
A permit priced against an unposted-road assumption in March is simply wrong, and wrong in the expensive direction. This is the window we watch, the basis for that window in the state's own orders or statute, and the authority that posts it.
Arkansas is not in the seasonal-restriction registry, so we hold no posting window for it and are not inventing one.
Above one of these, the state stops issuing over the counter and prices the move after an engineering review.
| Trigger | Threshold |
|---|---|
| Gross weight | 180,000 lb or morerev. · read 27 CAR §111-110(a), quoted unchanged in the 2025 redline: "gross weight of one hundred eighty thousand pounds (180,000 lbs.) or more". No part of this provision is struck or added, so the draft is evidence of the codified text rather than a proposed change to it. |
| Width | over 16'6"rev. · read 27 CAR §111-110(a), unchanged in the 2025 redline. |
| Height | 15'6" or morerev. · read 27 CAR §111-110(a), unchanged in the 2025 redline. |
| Length | 100' or morerev. · read 27 CAR §111-110(a), unchanged in the 2025 redline. |
| Short axle spacing | Not yet covered |
The dimensions at which Arkansas triggers a physical route inspection or an engineering review, and what the agency charges to review it.
| Measurement | Inspection / review trigger |
|---|---|
| Width | Not yet covered |
| Height | Not yet covered |
| Length | Not yet covered |
Charges exist and no schedule is published. The Permit Section may require one or more law-enforcement vehicles under ARDOT Rules 3.E.7, 4.H.2 and 6.E.6. No dimension triggers it automatically and Arkansas publishes no officer rate.
This is a positive finding: we searched and there is nothing to quote. It is not the same as "no police escort is ever required here".
Holiday, curfew and night-travel windows are not yet encoded for Arkansas. The seasonal picture — which is a different question — is in section 6 above.
They are not guessed at here. What we do publish is the seasonal weight-restriction picture, with the date we last read each state's own bulletin — a curfew invented from a plausible pattern is worth less than an honest gap, because a reader cannot tell the two apart on the page.
The agency behind each figure above is linked from that figure. We publish no per-state permit-office phone number.
We are not publishing per-state permit-office phone numbers yet, and the reason is worth stating: the two seed lists available for them are both demonstrably stale — the federal one gives two different states the same phone number — and a wrong number on a page like this costs somebody a morning. The agency behind each figure above is linked from that figure, which is the part we can stand behind today.
Two official documents, both in effect, giving different answers. Neither has been adopted.
Ark. Code §27-35-210(e)(2) bands the per-ton charge "201 miles to 250 miles, inclusive" and then "Over 251 miles", which prices no move of exactly 251 miles. ARDOT Permit Rules Appendix 3 and 27 CAR Part 111 Appendix both read "251 miles or more" and do price it. Only the range all three documents name — 252 miles and up — is priced here; a 251-mile move matches no band and the permit fee must be confirmed with the Permit Section.
Named rather than gestured at, because each of these can exceed the permit itself. Every item is listed; open one for why it is excluded.
This is a permit fee, not a freight rate.
We hold no rate data, and the two commercial sites that publish market rates disagree by nearly a factor of two on the same service.
The agency's review fee is shown where the state publishes one; the engineer's own fee is a private cost with no schedule.
Set per move by the agency, and in at least one state the escort is billed at actual cost against it.
Arranged with each utility, priced by each utility.
A toll, bridge or city authority inside the same state issues its own permit, and a state total that omits it is missing a whole permit.
Need a pilot car for this lane? Browse the pilot car & escort directory.
The single-trip base is $17, before the dimension bands, the overweight component and the transaction charge. The base alone is rarely what is paid.
The first width trigger is over 12', and it varies by road class — the figure shown is the lowest across classes.
Arkansas's published gross-weight superload line is 180,000 lb or more. It is not 80,000 lb; that is the federal legal gross limit, not a superload threshold.
Yes, in 1 place(s) we hold both documents for. They are set out in full above, each with its pinpoint citation, and none of them has been adopted.