§ 46-55. Maximum weights and dimensions; fees.
(a)
Except as otherwise provided herein, it shall be unlawful and in violation of this article for any person to drive, operate or move, and/or to cause or permit to be driven, operated, or moved on any public street within the corporate limits of the city, any commercial motor vehicle with or without load, contrary to any of the regulations contained in this section.
(b)
Prohibited.
(1)
No commercial motor vehicle shall exceed a total outside width, including any load thereon, of 96 inches except that the width of a farm tractor shall not exceed nine feet and that the limitations as to size of a vehicle stated in this section shall not apply to implements of husbandry, machinery used solely for the purpose of drilling water wells, or to highway or street-building or maintenance machinery owned or operated by or on behalf of the state or any of its political subdivisions or the city.
(2)
No commercial motor vehicle unladen or with load shall exceed a height of 13.5 feet, including load.
(3)
No commercial motor vehicle, truck-tractor, trailer or semi-trailer shall exceed a length of 40 feet, except it shall be lawful for refrigeration equipment installed in a trailer or semi-trailer for the purpose of refrigerating the cargo thereof to overhang the front of such vehicle, even though such overhang would make the total length of such vehicle more than 40 feet when any such truck-tractor and semi-trailer are operated in combination no such combination of a truck-tractor and semi-trailer coupled together shall exceed a total length of 55 feet; and when operated in any other combination of such vehicles coupled together, including, but not limited to, a truck and semi-trailer, truck and trailer, truck-tractor, and semi-trailer and trailer, or truck-tractor and two trailers, then no such other combination of such vehicles coupled together shall exceed a length of 65 feet; provided, however, that the provisions of this subsection shall not apply to any disabled vehicle being towed by another vehicle to an intake place for repairs; and provided further that the above limitations shall not apply to any mobile home or to any combination of a mobile home and a motor vehicle, but no mobile home and motor vehicle combination shall exceed a total length of 65 feet.
(4)
No vehicle or combination of vehicles, except pole trailers, shall carry any load extending more than three feet beyond the front thereof, nor more than four feet beyond the rear thereof.
(c)
No commercial motor vehicle, truck-tractor, trailer, semi-trailer, nor combination of such vehicles shall be operated or caused or permitted to be operated upon any public street within the corporate limits of the city having a gross weight in excess of any one or more of the following limitations:
(1)
In no event shall the total gross weight, with load, of any vehicle or combination of vehicles, exceed 24,000 pounds.
(2)
No axle shall carry a load in excess of 12,000 pounds. An axle load shall be defined as the total load transmitted to the road by all wheels whose centers may be included between two parallel transverse vertical plane 40 inches apart, extending across the full width of the vehicle.
(3)
The total gross weight concentrated on the highway surface from any tandem-axle group shall not exceed 20,000 pounds for each such tandem-axle group. Tandem-axle group is defined to be two or more axles spaced 40 inches or more apart from center to center having at least one common point of weight suspension.
(d)
The provisions of this section shall not apply to:
(1)
Any person operating or causing to be operated a motor vehicle under a valid and subsisting permit for the operation of overweight or oversize equipment for the transportation of such commodities as cannot be reasonably dismantled issued by the state highway department under the provisions of article 6701a of the Revised Civil Statutes amended on the designated truck routes;
(2)
Emergency vehicles operating in response to any emergency call;
(3)
Vehicles operated for the purpose of constructing or maintaining any public utility in the city.
(e)
Permit.
(1)
Upon written application timely made by any person or corporation which desires to operate or cause to be operated on the public streets within the corporate limits of the city, overweight or oversize equipment for the transportation of such commodities as cannot be reasonably dismantled where the total gross weight or size of the vehicle and its load exceed the limits allowed by this section, the city secretary, after consulting with the city engineer, shall issue a permit for the operation of such equipment or fleets of equipment for a specified period of time, over a route or routes to be designated by the city engineer, if such routes can be determined at the time application for the permit is made.
(2)
The application for the permit provided for in this section shall be in writing, shall be dated and signed by the applicant, and shall contain the following:
a.
The kind of equipment to be operated, with a complete description of same and a statement as to its weight;
b.
The kind of commodity to be transported and a certificate as to its weight;
c.
The street or streets over which the equipment is to be operated, the date or dates and the approximate time of the operation, and the number of trips to be made, except when the nature, route, time, or frequency of operation cannot be determined at the time the permit is issued.
(3)
Before a permit is issued under this section, the applicant for the same shall file with the city secretary a bond in an amount to be set and approved by the city council. The amount of such bond shall not exceed the product of the number of vehicles for which a permit is sought multiplied by $2,000.00. The bond shall be payable to the city and conditioned that the applicant will pay to the city the sum of money necessary to repair any damage which might be occasioned to any public street or publicly-owned fixture appurtenant to such street by virtue of operation of any commercial vehicle under the permit. Venue of any suit for recovery upon the bond shall be in the county; any bond issued hereunder shall contain an unambiguous contractual provision to that effect.
(4)
A fee shall be charged for each permit as provided for in the city fee schedule. The proper fee shall accompany each application for permit and shall be made in cash or by cashier or certified check or postal money order. The fee shall be returned if the application is denied.
(5)
Any permit issued hereunder shall include at least the following:
a.
The name of the applicant, the date, a description of the equipment to be operated, and a description of the commodity to be transported;
b.
The signature of the city secretary and of the city engineer.
c.
The time for which the permit is issued;
d.
The specified street or streets over which the equipment is to be operated, in so far as it can be determined at the time the permit is issued.
(Code 1994, § 10.205; Ord. No. 37, § 5, 9-11-1972; Ord. No. 52, § 6, 8-12-1974)