Truck and trailer rules in Pennsylvania: licence classes, breakaway brakes, safety chains and size limits

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. All of the sources are chapters of Title 75, Vehicles, of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, published by the General Assembly: chapter 15 on driver licensing, chapter 45 on other required equipment and chapter 49 on size, weight and load. Federal background and the other places are on the parent page, trucks and trailers for tree work.

At a glance

Item	What the sources say
Class A	Combination rated 26,001 pounds or more when the towed vehicle or vehicles are rated over 10,000 pounds
Class B	Single vehicle rated 26,001 pounds or more, or towing a vehicle rated 10,000 pounds or less
Class C	Single vehicle rated 26,000 pounds or less, or a combination that is neither class A nor class B
Trailer brakes	Performance standard; automatic stop on breakaway when the towed vehicle has brakes or weighs over 3,000 pounds
Safety chains	Two chains of equal length for a ball-and-socket hitch or a pintle hook without a locking device
Width, height	8 feet 6 inches wide; 13 feet 6 inches high
Length	40 feet for a motor vehicle, 55 feet if it has a boom; 53 feet for a single trailer
Gross weight	80,000 pounds, with lower limits by axle count
Carrier number	Not published on the pages read

Licence classes

Section 1504 requires a driver's licence for the type or class of vehicle being driven. A class A licence is for a combination with a gross vehicle weight rating of 26,001 pounds or more where the vehicle or vehicles being towed are rated over 10,000 pounds. A class B licence is for a single vehicle rated 26,001 pounds or more, or one towing a vehicle rated 10,000 pounds or less. A class C licence is for a single vehicle rated 26,000 pounds or less, or any combination that is neither class A nor class B. Class A, B and C licences are issued to people 18 or older, subject to the junior licence section, and the holder of a higher class is deemed qualified for the lower ones. The section says endorsements are obtained where the title requires them. See chapter 15 on licensing of drivers.

Brakes, breakaway and safety chains

Section 4501 tells the department to write regulations on brake equipment. Section 4502 sets the general requirements. Every vehicle and combination other than a motorcycle needs a parking brake system able to hold on any grade where it operates, under all conditions of loading. Every vehicle and combination needs a service brake system able to control, stop and hold it and to meet the department's performance standards. On breakaway, the section says a combination whose towed vehicle has brakes, or has a gross weight in excess of 3,000 pounds, must be equipped so the towed vehicle stops and is held automatically if it separates, while the towing vehicle can be stopped by its own service brakes. Towed instruments of husbandry and listed special mobile equipment are exempt. See chapter 45 on other required equipment.

Section 4905 covers towed vehicles. The connection must be strong enough to pull all the weight towed, and the distance between the vehicles may not exceed 15 feet except for vehicles carrying poles, pipes, machinery or other structural objects that cannot be dismembered. If the gap is more than five feet, a red flag or cloth of at least 12 inches square goes on the connection, and a red light replaces it in the dark. Where two vehicles are joined by a ball-and-socket hitch, or a pintle hook without a locking device, the section also calls for two safety chains of equal length, each with an ultimate strength at least equal to the gross weight of the towed vehicles, crossed and connected so the tow bar cannot drop to the ground. Section 4904 allows a motor vehicle to tow only one other vehicle on a highway, apart from listed exceptions.

Width, height, length and weight

Section 4921 limits the total outside width of a vehicle, with its load, to eight feet six inches, with a list of special vehicles. Section 4922 limits height to 13 feet 6 inches including load. Section 4923 limits a motor vehicle to an overall length of 40 feet. Among the exceptions in that section is a motor vehicle equipped with a boom or boomlike device, if it does not exceed 55 feet. A single trailer towed by a truck or truck tractor may not exceed 53 feet. Section 4941 sets the maximum gross weight of a vehicle or combination at 80,000 pounds, and lists lower limits for motor vehicles by axle count: 38,000 pounds for two axles, 58,400 pounds for three axles and 73,280 pounds for four or five axles.

Section 4961 lets the department and local authorities issue written special permits, on an application showing good cause, for a vehicle that exceeds the size or weight limits when unloaded, and for a nondivisible load over the width or height limits. Section 4901 says that moving a vehicle or load over the limits without the permit exposes the owner, lessee and operator to summary criminal proceedings by citation. See chapter 49 on size, weight and load.