Louisiana Oversize & Overweight Permits for Heavy Haul
Louisiana permit rules, legal limits and escort triggers, and how we book heavy haul carriers for moves in and through the state.
Quick answer
Do I need a permit to move an oversize load in Louisiana?
Yes, once the load is wider than 8 ft 6 in, taller than 13 ft 6 in (14 ft on Interstate-only moves) or heavier than 80,000 lbs. DOTD issues permits through LaGeaux: an oversize trip permit is $10, and overweight fees rise with both the excess weight and the miles traveled. Loads over 16 ft wide or 125 ft long need a State Police escort.
Updated November 2026 by the Quickway Transports broker team (FMCSA MC# 1245224).
Heavy haul and oversize freight in Louisiana
Louisiana's heavy freight centers on the petrochemical plants and refineries along the Mississippi River between Baton Rouge and New Orleans, the Gulf ports, and offshore energy work supplied through Port Fourchon. I-10 crosses the south from Lake Charles through Lafayette, Baton Rouge and New Orleans, I-12 bypasses Lake Pontchartrain, and I-20 links Shreveport and Monroe in the north. We book carriers for plant equipment, oilfield machinery and construction loads moving within the state or across it.
River crossings set the schedule here. Permit loads stay away from the New Orleans Mississippi River bridges at weekday rush hours, the Baton Rouge US-190 bridge closes to oversize loads at the same times, and Port Fourchon's only road route is the tolled LA 1 Expressway. Mardi Gras also halts permit travel in several parishes, so we check DOTD's notices and its daily trouble board before quoting.
What are the legal size and weight limits in Louisiana?
Under the oversize load regulations in Louisiana, a load above any of these limits needs a state oversize or overweight permit.
| Width | 8 ft 6 in |
|---|---|
| Height | 13 ft 6 in |
| Semitrailer length | 59 ft 6 in |
| Gross weight | 80,000 lbs |
| Single axle | 20,000 lbs |
| Tandem axle | 34,000 lbs |
Limits are set by R.S. 32:380 to 32:386. Louisiana adds a 42,000 lb tridem and 50,000 lb quad limit, and on non-Interstate state highways an axle is only in violation once it is 2,000 to 3,000 lbs over.
Who issues Louisiana oversize permits?
The DOTD Truck Permit Office in Baton Rouge issues permits through LaGeaux, which needs a certificate of at least $100,000 in auto liability on file before any permit issues. Permits must be in hand before the load enters Louisiana, weigh stations do not sell them, and loads over 232,000 lbs go to DOTD's super load desk.
DOTD permits cover state-maintained highways. Parishes and cities can require their own permits or police escorts, the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway sets its own limits, and Iberville Parish, for one, permits its parish roads separately, so the carrier's permit service checks each jurisdiction on the route.
Permit system: LaGeaux (DOTD online permit system, Safehaul Permit Manager)
What do Louisiana oversize and overweight permits cost?
- request_quote Oversize only: $10 per trip, or $10 per operating day for trips longer than one day.
- request_quote Overweight: set by the excess weight and the distance, starting at $30 for less than 10,000 lbs over on a trip of 50 miles or less, across five mileage bands up to more than 200 miles.
- request_quote Five-axle combinations: $45 to $150 between 80,001 and 100,000 lbs depending on miles, rising to $2,130 at 254,000 lbs over 200 miles.
- request_quote An overweight permit covers the oversize dimensions printed on it at no extra fee.
- request_quote State Police escorts: $100 to $200 by escort miles, plus the trooper's pay.
Worked example: a five-axle, 118,000 lb load over 160 miles
On the five-axle schedule, a load of 108,001 to 120,000 lbs traveling 151 to 200 miles pays $375. If the load is also wide, its oversize dimensions ride on the same permit at no extra fee, and a private escort is added once it passes 12 ft wide.
Louisiana pilot car and escort requirements
- local_police Over 12 ft to 16 ft wide: one private escort, ahead of the load on two-lane highways and behind it on multilane highways.
- local_police Over 90 ft to 125 ft long: one private escort behind the load.
- local_police Past 16 ft wide or 125 ft long: Louisiana State Police take over the escort on state highways, booked through the closest troop, since private escorts may not handle these moves.
- local_police Over 18 ft wide: State Police escorts front and rear.
- local_police Height: a pole vehicle ahead of the load over 15 ft 10 in, a pre-approved route at least 48 hours ahead over 16 ft 5 in, and bucket trucks for utility lines over 18 ft.
- local_police Private escorts need an annual Louisiana Escort Vehicle Permit, which costs $10.
What hours can oversize loads move in Louisiana?
- calendar_today Permit loads move from sunrise to sunset and stop in severe weather such as heavy rain, fog or ice.
- calendar_today Loads of legal width and length, 14 ft 4 in high or less and 120,000 lbs or less, are usually allowed to move at night and on holidays.
- calendar_today Weekday Interstate curfews for loads over 12 ft wide, 7 to 9 AM and 3:30 to 5:30 PM, in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lake Charles, Monroe and Shreveport.
- calendar_today New Orleans: no permit vehicle on or within 2 miles of a Mississippi River bridge from 6:30 to 9 AM and 3:30 to 6 PM on weekdays.
- calendar_today Holidays: DOTD posts each no-move window with State Police, historically around Thanksgiving, and Mardi Gras stops permit travel in Orleans, Jefferson and St. Bernard parishes.
Seasonal weight limits in Louisiana
Louisiana has no frost law. DOTD can close a highway or lower weights for weather, emergencies or repairs once notices are posted, and posted bridge limits bind permit loads too, with a minimum $100 fine. The factors that last all year are water crossings and work zones: the Harvey and Houma tunnels are closed to permit loads, and DOTD's daily trouble board lists temporary width and hour holds statewide.
Louisiana Oversize Load Questions
Permits, escorts and travel rules for oversize moves in Louisiana.
How much is a Louisiana oversize permit?
When does a Louisiana load need a State Police escort?
Can oversize loads travel at night in Louisiana?
How do oversize loads get to Port Fourchon?
What is a super load in Louisiana?
Sources
We last checked the figures above against these official sources in October 2026. Before each move, the carrier's permit service confirms the rules in force that day.
- DOTD Oversize and Overweight Truck Permits (contacts, hours, notices)
- DOTD Single Trip Permits
- DOTD Annual Permits
- DOTD Louisiana Regulations for Trucks, Vehicles, and Loads (2026 edition)
- DOTD W/S Highway Trouble Board (10/16/2026)
- LaGeaux permit system login
- R.S. 32:380 Width
- R.S. 32:381 Height
- R.S. 32:382 Length
- R.S. 32:386 Weight
- R.S. 32:387 Special permits and fees
- R.S. 32:387.1 Escort vehicles
- LAC Title 55 Part I (State Police escort fees 1101; escorts 2309)
Get a Quote
Heavy Haul Solutions for Oversized and Specialized Loads
Near Louisiana: states and services
- Heavy Haul in Texas →Oversize moves in and through Texas: Houston, Dallas, San Antonio and the TX permit rules.
- Heavy Haul in Arkansas →Oversize moves in and through Arkansas: Little Rock, Fort Smith, Fayetteville and the AR permit rules.
- Heavy Haul in Mississippi →Oversize moves in and through Mississippi: Jackson, Gulfport, Southaven and the MS permit rules.
- Heavy Haul in Alabama →Oversize moves in and through Alabama: Birmingham, Montgomery, Mobile and the AL permit rules.
- Heavy Equipment Transport →Which trailer, permits and preparation each kind of construction, farm, mining and industrial machine needs.
- Heavy Haul Trucking →Oversize and overweight loads on RGN, step-deck and flatbed trailers, with permits, pilot cars and route surveys arranged.