B-TEK Scales, LLC
Cutting Edge Technology for the Weight of the World Today

Ever think about what goes into your scale delivery?  If you schedule your own delivery or use our services, the driver has many rules and regulations to follow to get your scale delivered to you from our Canton, Ohio location.  Commercial vehicles over 5 tons (10,000 lbs) are required to stop at weigh stations, if it is open in Ohio.  This includes combination vehicles- which means if your truck and trailer combo weighs more than 5 tons, you are required to weigh in at one of the locations.

PrePass trucks that receive a green light in Ohio must still enter an open weigh station if they are pulling an oversize/overweight (even permitted) load. What is PrePass?

PrePass is an intelligent transportation system (ITS) service that electronically verifies the safety, credentials, and weight of commercial vehicles at participating state highway weigh stations. Because they comply electronically, commercial carriers enrolled in PrePass are authorized to bypass these facilities rather than pull in for manual inspection. PrePass is available to motor carriers at nearly 300 facilities in 30 states. It isn’t a FREEPASS, do do not be confused if your haul is oversized or overweight!

Ohio once had different speed limits for most of the state’s freeways- 65 MPH for cars and 55 MPH for semi- trucks.  Now most of Ohio’s roadways have just one speed limit for both cars and trucks.

The different speed limits first appeared on the Ohio turnpike, when the turnpike authorities changed it to 65 MPH for cars and 55 MPH for semi-trucks. Toll rates significantly increased between 1982 and 1999, most likely because of this change.  Many truckers refused to pay the high rates.  Governor Taft and the Ohio Turnpike commission decided to lower the toll rates and increase the speed limits for the semi’s to entice the truck’s back onto the turnpike and away from the side roads.  Another part of the plan was to get truckers to use the Ohio turnpike more, this also allowed for the enforcement of weight laws on the side roads.

Just what are the tolls on the turnpike? The overall length limit on tractor-trailer combinations of 75 feet for the Ohio turnpike. Longer Combination Vehicles (LCVs) are allowed to be up to 90 feet long.  The weight limit for one axle is 21,000 lbs and  for a tandem (less than 8 ft spacing) is 34,000 lbs.  The overall gross weight limit of 90,000 lbs (given your axle weights are within turpike regulations).  Note that the Ohio Turnpike Commission increased toll rates for all vehicle classes effective January 1st, 2007.  Now, truckers pay an additional $2.50 to cross the length of the Ohio toll road on top of the $25.75 or $31.00 (depending on which weight class they fall within) they were already paying to travel the turnpike. Also, in addition to the tolls, the Ohio fuel tax rate is $0.28 per gallon of diesel fuel.  The fuel tax rates per state and federal are below**:

Beginning July 1, 2005	$0.28    (28 cents)
Federal Motor Fuel Tax Rates (per gallon)
Gasoline (as of January 1, 2007)	$0.184  (18.4 cents)
Diesel (as of January 1, 2007)	$0.244   (24.4 cents)

Interested in where the weigh stations are located throughout the state*?

ROUTE	COUNTY MILEPOST (dir)	TOWN	LOCATION	TELEPHONE
I-70	Guernsey  3.11 WB	Cambridge	West of I-77	740-432-6125
I-70	Guernsey  3.64 EB	Cambridge	West of I-77	740-432-5725
I-70	Preble  0.81 EB	Preble	Near IN Line	937-437-6407
I-71	Ashland  11.36 SB	Ashland	North of US-250	419-869-7733
I-71	Clinton  6.84 NB	Wilmington	North of SR-73	937-382-6552
I-71	Clinton  11.29 SB	Wilmington	South of SR-72	937-486-3332
I-74	Hamilton  2.98 EB	Harrison	Near IN Line	513-367-6616
I-75	Hancock  20.35 SB	Findlay	North of US-224	419-425-3703
I-75	Wood  8.86 NB	Bowling Green	South of US-6	419-686-0324
I-76	Medina  5.40 WB	Wadsworth	East of SR-57	330-336-4237
I-77	Tuscarawas  31.88 SB	Bolivar	North of Strasburg	330-874-3737
I-80	Trumbull  6.88 WB	Girard	Hubbard	330-759-3901
I-90	Ashtabula  26.83 WB	Conneaut	East of SR-7	440-593-6545
US-23	Ross  14.39 NB	Chillicothe	North of US-35	740-775-2333
US-23	Ross  14.02 SB	Chillicothe	North of US-35	740-775-2335
US-30	Van Wert  6.59 EB	Van Wert	Near IN Line	419-749-4143

*Courtesy of ODOT

**Courtesy of Ohio Tax

More national weigh station information can be found at Coops Are Open

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