Weigh station
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A weigh station is a check point along a highway to inspect vehicular weights. Usually, trucks are required to stop for the inspection, but in certain jurisdictions, buses may also be required to stop.
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[edit] Overview
Weigh stations are equipped with scales, some of which permit the trucks to continue moving while being weighed, while older scales require the trucks to stop. There are a variety of scales employed from single axle scales to multi-axle sets. Signal lights indicate if the driver should pull over for additional inspection or if they are allowed to return to the highway.
Some jurisdictions employ the use of portable scales, allowing weigh stations to be set up at any point. Portable scales help prevent unscrupulous drivers from circumventing the law by avoiding scales at fixed locations.
[edit] United States
Weigh stations are located within states near the borders of other states, and also commonly along highways in the state. The purpose is to check freight carrier compliance with fuel tax laws and weight restrictions. Weigh stations are regulated by individual state governments and therefore have vastly different requirements from state to state. They are typically operated by the state's Department of Transportation (DOT) in conjunction with the state highway patrol or state police, thus enabling enforcement of applicable laws. Many states have weigh-in-motion technology that allow a continuous flow of truck weighing.
Many states also check freight paperwork to ensure that fuel taxes have been paid and that truck drivers are maintaining logs of their trips (a federal requirement). In some cases, if truck is found to be overweight the vehicle is ordered to stop until the situation can be fixed by acquiring an overweight permit. In other cases, the trucker may receive an overweight ticket and may or may not be required to offload the extra freight. If a driver is found to have used up his allotted drive time for the day, he is ordered to stop and rest for a certain period of time until he is again in compliance with commercial driver's license laws. Fines are often imposed on drivers who have not maintained or falsified their log books, as well as those who fail to stop for inspection as required.
Carriers are required to maintain single state permits for each state they operate in or obtain a multi-state permit if they operate in all states. These permits dictate the type of freight that can be carried and the weight restrictions of each truck and trailer. They must also maintain carrier insurance on the vehicle combination. These two documents and the vehicles registration are the paperwork that weigh stations check when they order a driver to come into the office.
Truckers often refer to weigh stations as "chicken coops."
[edit] Canada - British Columbia
Weigh Stations (aka "Scales") are usually on the right-hand side of the travelled highway, but median scales are appearing (as of 2005) on divided highways, often combined with "weigh-in-motion" technology.
A median scale is placed between the opposing lanes of traffic, necessitating heavy vehicles exiting from the left lane (rather than the right) and re-entering traffic from the left, potentially at a lower speed than the normal "free-flow" traffic would expect in the left (often thought of as "fast") lane.
"Weigh-in-motion" technology allows heavy vehicles that do not exceed limits of weight (and size) to pass the scale, thus improving both freight and weigh scale operation efficiency.
[edit] Taiwan
In Taiwan administered by the Republic of China, weigh stations are located on major highways, especially at all toll booths on freeways. Advanced signs tell that trucks must enter the weigh stations when the attached lights are flashing, usually when tolls are collected.
Since the National Highway No. 1 was built with older designs, all weigh stations have older scales so trucks must stop. Weigh stations along the National Highway No. 3 have weigh-in-motion scales at 7 central and southern toll stations, but northern stations at Cidu, Shulin, and Longtan have traditional scales that trucks must stop.
The Taiwan Area National Freeway Bureau applies for periodical inspections of truck scales every three months. [1] Truckers entering a weigh-in-motion scale are advised not to accelerate or decelerate suddenly, or they may be required to be weighed again. [2]
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[edit] External links
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