What can I haul in Alabama without an oversize permit?

Anything inside the legal width, height, length, overhang and weight limits. The limits table on this page lists each figure from ALDOT's permit rule.

How much does an Alabama single-trip oversize permit cost?

It depends on the dimension and weight band, and the charges are low by national standards. The sourced fee schedule on this page lists each line.

When does an oversize load need an escort in Alabama?

Once it crosses ALDOT's height, width, length or overhang lines. Placement depends on the road: on two-lane roads a single escort runs in front, and on multilane roads it runs behind. The escort table on this page carries each threshold.

What counts as a superload in Alabama?

A load over ALDOT's published width, height, length or gross weight line. Superloads need extra paperwork, a route survey and law enforcement escorts. The threshold fields on this page carry the figures.

Does Alabama restrict oversize moves to daylight hours?

Yes. ALDOT's permit conditions limit permitted vehicles to daylight travel and bar Sunday travel. Superloads are the exception and usually run overnight on weeknights.

How do you get an oversize or overweight permit in Alabama?

Online, through ALPASS, Alabama's online OS/OW permitting system, the permit system named on this page with its login link in the permit office section. Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT), Vehicle Enforcement Office runs it; the office's phone and hours are in the same section for moves the system cannot price.

Alabama Oversize/Overweight Permits: ALPASS Login and Fees

By Haul Handbook editorial team· Updated Oct 6, 2026

ALDOT's Vehicle Enforcement Office issues Alabama oversize and overweight permits, ordered online through ALPASS or by phone. A single-trip permit costs as little as $10, and an annual permit is $100. Permitted loads move in daylight only and never on Sundays or the listed holidays. ALEA troopers come in only for superloads, which need law enforcement escorts.

Alabama legal limits (no permit needed at or under these)

Width: 8.5 ft8 feet 6 inches on roads with lanes at least 12 feet wide; 8 feet on roads with narrower lanes.
Height: 13.5 ft13 feet 6 inches.
Gross weight: 80,000 lb80,000 pounds is the federal gross limit on the Interstate. ALDOT's permit rule says weight on Interstate routes, including state or US routes running concurrently with them, is enforced under federal law, and the weight tolerances in Code of Alabama Section 32-9-20(a)(4)d do not apply there.
Length: Single vehicle: 40 ft
Length: Truck semitrailer combination: 57 ft
Length: Semitrailer including load in truck tractor semitrailer trailer: 57 ft
Length: Each trailer in double combination: 28 ft
Length: Motor home: 45 ft
Length: Motor bus: 45 ft
Length: Car hauler: 65 ft
Length: Stinger steered unit: 75 ft
Length: Overhang front or rear: 5 ft
Length: Note: Legal lengths as defined in ALDOT rule 450-3-1-.02, which supplements Code of Alabama Section 32-9-20.
Off interstate limits: Off the Interstate, gross and axle weights follow Code of Alabama Section 32-9-20(a)(4), which allows tolerances that do not apply on Interstate routes. ALDOT does not restate those figures on its permit page, so they are not recorded here.

Axle weight limits

Gross weight is one ceiling; each axle group carries its own limit, and a load can be legal on gross weight yet overweight on an axle. Exceeding any of these needs an overweight permit.

Alabama legal axle weight limits by axle group
Axle group	Maximum weight
Single axle	20,000 lb (An axle at least 10 feet from the next axle whose wheels carry no more than 20,000 pounds.)
Gross vehicle weight on the Interstate	80,000 lb (Enforced under federal law on Interstate routes, without the state tolerances.)

Scroll sideways to see every column.

Permit fees

Single trip: $20 (A general over-width, over-height or over-length permit is $20 up to 100,000 pounds. Weight adds a tier: $10 for 80,001 to 100,000 pounds, $30 to 125,000, $60 to 150,000 and $100 above that, plus $10 when the overweight load is also over a legal dimension. A single-trip permit allows five days and one round trip (loaded one way, empty the other). Extensions are granted only when weather or another natural event stops traffic generally.)
Annual permit: $100 (ALDOT's fee schedule lists the annual permit, and its renewal, at $100.)
Annual eligibility: A non-divisible load inside the annual envelope, on a vehicle identified by VIN on the permit. Proof of insurance naming ALDOT as certificate holder must be on file before an annual permit issues.

Single-trip permit fee schedule

Check the applies-to column and source for each fee component. A partial schedule does not establish the total charge.

Alabama single-trip oversize permit fee components
Fee component	Applies to	Amount
Over width, height or length, up to 100,000 pounds	General oversize	$20
Over a dimension and 100,001 to 125,000 pounds	General oversize and overweight	$40
Over a dimension and 125,001 to 150,000 pounds	General oversize and overweight	$70
Over a dimension and over 150,000 pounds	General oversize and overweight	$110
Weight only, 80,001 to 100,000 pounds	Overweight within legal dimensions	$10
Weight only, 100,001 to 125,000 pounds	Overweight within legal dimensions	$30
Weight only, 125,001 to 150,000 pounds	Overweight within legal dimensions	$60
Weight only, over 150,000 pounds	Overweight within legal dimensions	$100
Over height only	Height violation alone	$10
Boats, mobile homes, modular homes and portable buildings up to 12 feet wide and 75 feet long	Manufactured housing and boats	$10
Boats, mobile homes, modular homes and portable buildings over 12 feet wide or 75 feet long	Manufactured housing and boats	$20
House move, any size	Houses	$20
Off-the-road equipment	Construction and similar equipment	$10

Scroll sideways to see every column.

To price a specific load, try the oversize permit cost estimator, or compare every state on the national oversize permit table.

Escort thresholds

Dimension	Threshold	Escorts	Where the escorts ride	Police escort
Height	Over 15 feet 6 inches	1	Front escort with a height indicator	No
Width	12 to 14 feet	1	Front escort on two-lane roads, or rear escort on multilane roads	No
Width	Over 14 feet	2	Front and rear on all roads	No
Length	90 to 125 feet	1	Rear escort (mobile homes may use the approved lighting system instead)	No
Length	125 to 150 feet	2	Front and rear	No
Length	Over 150 feet	2	Front and rear law enforcement escorts	Yes
Rear overhang	More than 5 feet	1	Rear escort	No
Front overhang	10 feet or more	1	Front escort	No

What the escort itself has to be

Hitting the threshold is only half of it. The escort vehicle, its equipment, its driver's certification and where it rides are all regulated, and the carrier is the one holding the permit when they are not met.

When the state adds escorts at its discretion: ALDOT may require front or rear escorts beyond the listed thresholds whenever it considers them necessary.
Escort vehicle: A properly licensed single-unit vehicle such as a car, pickup or SUV with a clear view in all directions, never one towing a trailer. It runs low-beam headlights and flashing or strobe amber lights visible 360 degrees at 500 feet, and carries an OVERSIZE LOAD sign above the roofline front and rear.
Escort driver: At least 18, with a valid driver license and a pilot or escort flagging course equal to or better than Alabama's.
Transport vehicle: The permitted vehicle carries a flashing or strobe amber light visible 360 degrees at 500 feet, a 7 foot by 18 inch OVERSIZE LOAD sign front and rear, and 18 inch orange or red flags at the four corners of the load. All vehicles in the move must be able to talk to each other.
Law enforcement: A law enforcement escort is a marked state trooper, sheriff or city police vehicle with blue lights. Constables may not escort oversize or overweight loads.

Liability cover the permit itself requires

Distinct from your operating-authority minimums: this is the cover Alabama attaches to the permit, banded by the dimension you are permitted for. Each one is sourced.

Permit insurance groups: Annual permits: All annual permits need a certificate of insurance listing ALDOT as certificate holder, with the complete VIN of each vehicle: $100,000 bodily injury per person, $300,000 bodily injury per accident and $300,000 property damage, or a $1,000,000 combined single limit.
Permit insurance groups: Single trip permits: A single-trip permit needs a certificate of insurance when the load is over 14 feet wide, over 16 feet high, over 150 feet long or over 150,000 pounds gross. The rule also requires PSC minimum insurance on file before a permit issues for a load over 12 feet wide or over 100,000 pounds.
Permit insurance groups: Superloads: ALDOT may require higher amounts for a superload.

Escort rules beyond the thresholds

Knowing when you need an escort is half of it. These are the Alabama rules on who may run one, what the vehicle has to carry, and how the move is conducted.

Discretion: ALDOT may require front or rear escorts beyond the listed thresholds whenever it considers them necessary.
Escort vehicle: A properly licensed single-unit vehicle such as a car, pickup or SUV with a clear view in all directions, never one towing a trailer. It runs low-beam headlights and flashing or strobe amber lights visible 360 degrees at 500 feet, and carries an OVERSIZE LOAD sign above the roofline front and rear.
Escort driver: At least 18, with a valid driver license and a pilot or escort flagging course equal to or better than Alabama's.
Transport vehicle: The permitted vehicle carries a flashing or strobe amber light visible 360 degrees at 500 feet, a 7 foot by 18 inch OVERSIZE LOAD sign front and rear, and 18 inch orange or red flags at the four corners of the load. All vehicles in the move must be able to talk to each other.
Law enforcement: A law enforcement escort is a marked state trooper, sheriff or city police vehicle with blue lights. Constables may not escort oversize or overweight loads.

Travel restrictions

Daylight only: Yes (Permitted vehicles travel in daylight hours only. Superloads are the exception: most must run between 9:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m., Sunday through Thursday, unless the permit office approves otherwise.)
Curfews: No permitted travel at any time on Sundays. A permitted load keeps half a mile between itself and the next permitted load, and pulls off the road when it is holding up traffic.
Weekend / holiday: No permitted travel on New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day or Christmas Day. ALDOT's yearly holiday list widens these into sunset-to-sunrise blackouts around each holiday, so check the current year's list before booking a move.
Wind / weather: No travel when visibility is under 500 feet or other weather makes travel hazardous; the load leaves the road at the first safe place and waits.

Daylight hours rule: Permitted vehicles travel in daylight hours only. Superloads are the exception: most must run between 9:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m., Sunday through Thursday, unless the permit office approves otherwise.
Weather: No travel when visibility is under 500 feet or other weather makes travel hazardous; the load leaves the road at the first safe place and waits.

Superload and beyond-permit review

Loads past the standard single-trip permit thresholds get individual state review rather than an off-the-shelf permit.

Any load over 16 feet wide, 16 feet high, 150 feet long or 300,000 pounds gross.

The carrier sends ALDOT a justification letter from the shipper, load and axle drawings, and a route survey. A heavy superload needs a Special Work Authorization so ALDOT's Bridge Rating Office can analyse every structure on the route. Loads over 16 feet 6 inches high may need utility notification, and a bucket truck is required above 16 feet 5 inches. City or county engineer approval is needed for local roads.

Escorts: At least two state trooper or police escorts. ALEA schedules them once ALDOT has pre-approved the permit.

More Alabama permit rules

Single trip fee: $20
Single trip fee note: A general over-width, over-height or over-length permit is $20 up to 100,000 pounds. Weight adds a tier: $10 for 80,001 to 100,000 pounds, $30 to 125,000, $60 to 150,000 and $100 above that, plus $10 when the overweight load is also over a legal dimension. A single-trip permit allows five days and one round trip (loaded one way, empty the other). Extensions are granted only when weather or another natural event stops traffic generally.
Annual permit fee note: ALDOT's fee schedule lists the annual permit, and its renewal, at $100.
Annual permit eligibility: A non-divisible load inside the annual envelope, on a vehicle identified by VIN on the permit. Proof of insurance naming ALDOT as certificate holder must be on file before an annual permit issues.
Annual permit details: covers: max weight lb: 150,000
Annual permit details: covers: max width ft: 12
Annual permit details: covers: max length ft: 75
Annual permit details: covers: max height ft: 14
Annual permit details: covers: max single axle lb: 22,000
Annual permit details: validity: 12 months from the date of issue
Annual permit details: note: Mobile homes get an annual envelope of 14 feet wide, 14 feet high and 85 feet long. Modular homes, sectional houses, portable buildings and boats get 12 feet wide, 14 feet high and 75 feet long. Sealed containers may run at up to 100,000 pounds. Annual permits are applied for online or in writing and paid in advance, and the carrier must request advance routing when a move needs it.
Permit insurance groups: annual permits: All annual permits need a certificate of insurance listing ALDOT as certificate holder, with the complete VIN of each vehicle: $100,000 bodily injury per person, $300,000 bodily injury per accident and $300,000 property damage, or a $1,000,000 combined single limit.
Permit insurance groups: single trip permits: A single-trip permit needs a certificate of insurance when the load is over 14 feet wide, over 16 feet high, over 150 feet long or over 150,000 pounds gross. The rule also requires PSC minimum insurance on file before a permit issues for a load over 12 feet wide or over 100,000 pounds.
Permit insurance groups: superloads: ALDOT may require higher amounts for a superload.
Escort notes: discretion: ALDOT may require front or rear escorts beyond the listed thresholds whenever it considers them necessary.
Escort notes: escort vehicle: A properly licensed single-unit vehicle such as a car, pickup or SUV with a clear view in all directions, never one towing a trailer. It runs low-beam headlights and flashing or strobe amber lights visible 360 degrees at 500 feet, and carries an OVERSIZE LOAD sign above the roofline front and rear.
Escort notes: escort driver: At least 18, with a valid driver license and a pilot or escort flagging course equal to or better than Alabama's.
Escort notes: transport vehicle: The permitted vehicle carries a flashing or strobe amber light visible 360 degrees at 500 feet, a 7 foot by 18 inch OVERSIZE LOAD sign front and rear, and 18 inch orange or red flags at the four corners of the load. All vehicles in the move must be able to talk to each other.
Escort notes: law enforcement: A law enforcement escort is a marked state trooper, sheriff or city police vehicle with blue lights. Constables may not escort oversize or overweight loads.
Seasonal permits note: ALDOT's permit rules set no seasonal permit class. Hay hauling permits are issued under drought emergency declarations when one is in force.

The Alabama permit office

Apply or log in (ALPASS, Alabama's online OS/OW permitting system): alpass.dot.state.al.us/permits/login.asp
Agency: ALDOT Vehicle Enforcement Office (Permit Office)
Address: P.O. Box 303050, Montgomery, AL 36130
Phone: 800-499-2782
Fax: 334-832-9084
Email: alabamapermits@dot.state.al.us
Hours: Monday to Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Central
Payment: Permits are prepaid or charged to a deposit account. A deposit account needs at least $300, is billed monthly, and stops issuing once purchases reach 80 percent of the deposit (90 percent for permit services). Business checks, cash, money orders, credit cards and certified or cashier's checks are accepted; personal checks are not.

Legal limits before you need a permit

ALDOT's permit rule sets the no-permit width, height, length by vehicle type, overhang and single-axle weight. Gross weight on the Interstate follows federal law. The limits table on this page carries each figure.

Single-trip permits

A single-trip permit covers one round trip, loaded one way and empty the other, with five days to finish. The price depends on whether the load is over a dimension, over weight, or both, with weight priced in tiers. The fee schedule table on this page lists each line.

The annual permit

The annual permit covers one truck for twelve months inside a set width, height, length, gross weight and axle weight envelope. ALDOT needs a certificate of insurance naming it as holder before the permit issues. The envelope and fee are sourced fields on this page.

Escort requirements

Escorts phase in by dimension. Moderate width takes one escort, placed in front on two-lane roads and behind on multilane roads; wider loads take escorts front and rear. Long loads add a rear escort, then front and rear, then law enforcement escorts. Long overhangs need their own escort. The escort table on this page carries each threshold and placement.

When oversize loads can move

Permitted loads travel in daylight only and not at all on Sundays or the named holidays. ALDOT's yearly holiday list stretches those blackouts from sunset before the holiday to sunrise after it. Low visibility or hazardous weather means pulling off at the first safe spot.

Superloads

Past ALDOT's superload line, a move needs a shipper justification letter, load and axle drawings, a route survey and, for heavy loads, a bridge analysis on every structure. Superloads need state trooper or police escorts, which ALEA schedules after ALDOT pre-approves the permit, and most move overnight. The threshold and ALEA escort charges are sourced fields on this page.

How to read this page

A value reading "Not confirmed" means we could not verify the figure on an official agency page at review time, so it stays open rather than guessed. Superload moves above the standard permit thresholds get individual review by the state; contact the permit office named on this page. For the rest of the Alabama permit stack, see Alabama trucking permits.