Utah Administrative Code
Topic - Transportation
Title R909 - Motor Carrier
Rule R909-2 - Utah Size and Weight Rule
Section R909-2-3 - Definitions

(1) "Appurtenance" has the same meaning as defined in 23 CFR Part 658 , and Section 72-7-402.

(2) "Articulated vehicle" means two or more vehicles that are connected by a joint that can pivot.

(3) "Automobile transporter" means any vehicle combination designed and used for the transport of assembled highway vehicles, including truck camper units. An automobile transporter will not be prohibited from transporting cargo or general freight on a backhaul, so long as it complies with weight limitations for a truck tractor and semitrailer combination.

(4) "Bridge formula" is a bridge protection formula used by federal and state governments to regulate the amount of weight that can be put on each of a vehicle's axles, or the number of axles, and the distance between the axles or group of axles must be to legally carry a given weight.

(5) "Cargo or cargo carrying length" means the total length of a combination of trailers or loads measured from the foremost of the first trailer or load to the rearmost of the last trailer or load including coupling devices.

(6) "CSA" means the Compliance, Safety, Accountability program administered by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, where they work together with state partners and industry to further reduce commercial motor vehicle crashes, fatalities, and injuries on our nation's highways.

(7) "Commercial vehicle" has the same meaning as defined in Section 72-9-102.

(8) "Daylight" means one-half hour before sunrise and one-half hour after sunset.

(9) "Department" means the Utah Department of Transportation.

(10) "Divisible load" means a load that can reasonably be dismantled or disassembled and does not meet the definition of non-divisible as defined in this section.

(11) "Division" means the Motor Carrier Division.

(12) "Drawbar" means the connection between two vehicles, measured from box to box or frame to frame or actual drawbar, one of which is towing or drawing the other on a highway.

(13) "Dromedary unit" means a truck tractor capable of carrying a load independent of a trailer. Units manufactured before December 1, 1982, are exempt as a truck trailer.

(14) "Emergency vehicle" means a vehicle designed to be used under emergency conditions: to transport personnel and equipment; and to support the suppression of fires and mitigation of other hazardous situations.

(15) "Fixed axle" means an axle that is not steerable, self-steering, or retractable.

(16) "Flagger" means a person that is trained to direct traffic using signs or flags to aid the over-dimensional load or vehicles in the safe movement along the highway as designated on the over-dimensional load permit.

(17) "Freeway" means a divided highway facility with full control of access and two or more lanes for the exclusive use of through traffic in each direction. A freeway includes a highway that is part of the interstate system and SR-201 from I-80 to 7200 West.

(18) "Full trailer" means a vehicle without motive power designed for carrying property and for being drawn by a motor vehicle and constructed so that no part of its weight rests upon the towing vehicle.

(19) "High-risk motor carrier" means a carrier that is:

(20) "Highway" means any public road, street, alley, lane, court, place, viaduct, tunnel, culvert, bridge, or structure laid out or erected for public use, or dedicated or abandoned to the public, or made public in an action for the partition of real property, including the entire area within the right-of-way.

(21) "Implement of husbandry" means every vehicle designed or adapted or used exclusively for an agricultural operation and only incidentally operated or moved upon the highways.

(22) "Incidental" means transportation that occurs occasionally or by chance but does not exceed a distance of 20 miles.

(23) "Interstate system" means any highway designated as interstate .

(24) "Laden" means carrying a load.

(25) "Longer combination vehicle" or "LCV" means a combination of truck, truck tractor, semitrailer and, trailers, which exceed legal dimensions and operate on highways by permit for transporting divisible loads.

(26) "Longer combination vehicle authority" means authorization given to a specific company to exceed standard permitted length allowances for vehicle configuration on pre-approved routes.

(27) "Manufactured home" means a transportable factory-built housing unit constructed on or after June 15, 1976, in one or more sections, and designed to be used as a dwelling with or without a permanent foundation if connected to the required utilities, and includes the plumbing, heating, air-conditioning, and electrical systems.

(28) "Manufactured mobile home" means a transportable factory-built housing unit built before June 15, 1976, in accordance with a state mobile home code, which existed before the Federal Manufactured Housing and Safety Standards Act.

(29) "Motor carrier" has the same meaning as the phrase is defined in Section 72-9-102.

(30) "MVR" means motor vehicle record.

(31) "MUTCD" means Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices.

(32) "Multi-trip" means two or more daily trips or a minimum of ten weekly trips in the proximity of a port of entry.

(33) "Natural gas vehicle" means the vehicle's engine is fueled primarily by natural gas.

(34) "Non-divisible" means any load or vehicle exceeding applicable length, width, height, or weight limits which, if separated into smaller loads or vehicles would:

(35) "Out-of-service" means a condition where a motor vehicle, because of mechanical condition or loading, is considered imminently hazardous and likely to cause an accident or breakdown; or where a driver violation renders a commercial vehicle operator unqualified to drive.

(36) "Pole trailer" means every vehicle without motive power designed to be drawn by another vehicle and attached to the towing vehicle by a reach, or pole, or by being boomed or otherwise secured to the towing vehicle and is ordinarily used for transporting long or irregular shaped loads such as poles, pipes, or structural members generally capable of sustaining themselves as beams between the supporting connections.

(37) "Port-of-entry by-pass permit" means a permit that allows a motor carrier to by-pass a designated port of entry.

(38) "Quad axle group" means a group of four consecutive fixed axles.

(39) "Recreational vehicle" means a vehicle or vehicles that are driven solely as a family or personal conveyance for non-commercial purposes.

(40) "Retractable axle" means an axle that can be mechanically raised and lowered by the driver of the vehicle, but which may not have its weight-bearing capacity mechanically regulated.

(41) "Saddle mount" means a truck or tractor towing other vehicles with the front axle of each towed vehicle mounted on top of the frame of the preceding vehicle or vehicles.

(42) "Secondary highway" means routes not designated as interstate or freeway. Two-lane, two-way highways are synonymous with secondary highways.

(43) "Semi trailer" means every vehicle without motive power designed for carrying property and for being drawn by a motor vehicle and constructed so that some part of its weight and its load rests on or is carried by another vehicle.

(44) "Special event" means the movement of an over-dimensional load or vehicle.

(45) "Special mobile equipment" or SME means a vehicle or vehicle exempt from registration that is not designed or used primarily for the transportation of persons or property; is not designed to operate in traffic, and is only incidentally operated or moved over the highways.

(46) "Special truck equipment" or "STE" means a vehicle by nature of design that cannot meet the non-divisible weight allowances such as concrete pump trucks, well boring trucks, or cranes with a lift capacity of five or more tons.

(47) "Spread axle" means two single axles that exceed 96 inches apart.

(48) "Tandem axle" means two axles spaced not less than 40 inches nor more than 96 inches apart and having at least one common point of weight suspension.

(49) "Tillerman or Steerman" means an individual who steers any axle of an articulated trailer.

(50) "Towaway trailer transporter combination" means a combination of vehicles consisting of a trailer transporter towing unit and two trailers or semitrailers.

(51) "Trailer transporter towing unit" means a power unit that is not used to carry property if operating in a towaway trailer transporter combination.

(52) "Tridem axle" means any three consecutive axles whose extreme centers are not more than 144 inches apart, and are individually attached to or articulated from, or both, a common attachment to the vehicle including a connecting mechanism designed to equalize the load between axles.

(53) "Triple trailer" means a tractor and three trailers of approximately equal length.

(54) "Truck" means any self-propelled motor vehicle, except a truck tractor, designed or used for the transportation of property, laden or un-laden.

(55) "Truck tractor" means a motor vehicle designed and used primarily for drawing other vehicles and not constructed to carry a load other than a part of the weight of the vehicle and load that is drawn.

(56) "Trunnion axle" means an axle configuration with two individual axles mounted in a transverse plane, with four tires on each axle.

(57) "Trunnion axle group" means two or more consecutive trunnion axles that are attached to the vehicle by a weight-equalizing suspension system and whose consecutive centers are more than 40 inches, but not more than 96 inches apart.

(58) "UCR" means Unified Carrier Registration.

(59) "Un-laden" means a vehicle is not carrying a load.

(60) "Variable load suspension axle" or "VLS" means an axle that can be adjusted mechanically to various weight -bearing capacities and can also be mechanically raised and lowered.

(61) "Vehicle" means every device in, upon, or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, except devices used exclusively upon rails or tracks.