Rules of weight restrictions on Ukrainian roads

A tractor and semi-trailer weigh 39.4 tonnes after loading. Can the vehicle leave? The dispatcher still needs the axle configuration, the measured axle loads and the roads the vehicle will use all the way to the consignee. A short access road to the warehouse can have a lower limit than the main highway.

For an ordinary commercial shipment in Ukraine, check actual gross mass under paragraph 22.5(b) of the Ukrainian Road Traffic Rules and axle loads under paragraph 22.5(v), the third subparagraph, marked «в» in Ukrainian. The manufacturer’s technical limits under paragraph 22.1 and any restrictions signed along the route also apply.

How much cargo can the vehicle carry?

Actual gross mass is the weight of the vehicle or combination as it stands on the scales. It includes the tractor, trailer or semi-trailer, driver, fuel, equipment, restraints, packaging and goods. Rated payload is a vehicle specification. The payload available for a particular trip also depends on road limits and how the load is distributed.

Take a curtain-sided semi-trailer shipment. A two-axle tractor with a three-axle semi-trailer weighs 16.4 t before loading, including its driver, fuel and normal restraints. A 40 t gross limit on a state road leaves 23.6 t for everything added, including pallets and packaging. If the final leg uses a local road with a 24 t limit, the same combination has only 7.6 t available by gross mass. A lower technical rating or an overloaded axle can reduce either figure.

Maximum actual gross mass by vehicle configuration

Choose the row for the actual rigid vehicle, tractor and semi-trailer, or truck and drawbar trailer. Both columns give tonnes for the loaded vehicle or complete combination. Check the signs on the particular section when using the local-road column.

* The 26 t state-road figure for a three-axle rigid applies where the drive axle has twin wheels and each axle carries no more than 9.5 t. For other goods vehicles that fall outside every vehicle type listed in paragraph 22.5(b), the note to that table specifies 40 t on state roads and 24 t on local roads.

For road container transport, the 42 t and 44 t entries apply to a purpose-built container carrier of the specified axle configuration. It must be performing container carriage without intermediate reloading of the cargo itself. The containers or swap bodies have a combined maximum length of 13.716 m.

Paragraph 5 of Cabinet Rules No. 30 provides a separate route-specific provision. A container carrier up to and including 46 t and up to and including 4.35 m high may travel without a permit on designated and agreed routes. Verify the particular route, the applicable axle limits and the conditions affecting the cargo before using this provision.

Single, tandem and tridem axle loads

For an axle group, identify the spacing between adjacent axles, the wheel arrangement and the vehicle type. The figures for tandems and tridems apply to the group as a whole. Where a row also limits an individual axle, both conditions must be met.

Consider a five-axle combination on a state road. The front axle carries 6.8 t, the single drive axle 12.1 t and the trailer tridem 20.5 t with 1.35 m between adjacent axles. The total is 39.4 t against a gross limit of 40 t. The drive axle exceeds its 11.5 t limit by 0.6 t.

Before departure, reposition the cargo or reduce the consignment, check the restraints and weigh the axles again. For a heavy piece of machinery, use its support points and the location of its centre of gravity to determine where it can sit on the vehicle.

Divisible consignments and indivisible loads

Grain, palletised goods and most homogeneous bulk liquids can be split between journeys. Ukrainian traffic rules prohibit carrying divisible goods in excess of the applicable weight limits. When reducing a bulk liquid shipment, check the permitted filling levels of the tanker and its compartments for the revised load.

A load is indivisible under the traffic rules if it cannot be split into two or more parts without undue cost or risk of damage. For machinery transport, check the drawings, shipping weight of the unit and manufacturer’s dismantling instructions. If a limit is exceeded, establish the travel conditions under Cabinet Rules No. 30 and the document required. In the circumstances set out in Article 48 of the Road Transport Act, proof of payment of a road charge may apply to an excess of less than 5%. For vehicle selection, see low-loader transport. For cross-border arrangements, see the guide to oversize transport permits.

Check every road through to the unloading point

Sign 3.15 limits the actual gross mass of the entire combination. Sign 3.16 limits the load on any single axle. Mark bridges, diversions and the final access road on the route. On a qualifying local section, the road owner or designated authority may agree state-road limits with the police and post the corresponding signs. Check the beginning and end of that section. On the travel date, check for temporary restrictions due to bridge conditions, roadworks or high temperatures.

How overweight fines are assessed

The table shows the administrative and economic fines for road carriers under Article 60 of the Ukrainian Road Transport Act when transporting divisible goods, or an indivisible load without the required permit.

For an automatically recorded administrative offence, Article 14-3 of the Code of Administrative Offences identifies the responsible person. Article 132-1, part 2 sets the graduated fines. Check which parameter was exceeded, the limit for the section, the measurement after the applicable allowance and the legal basis of the notice. Plan the load against the operating limit, without adding the percentage at which the penalty scale begins.