New Jersey oversize permit requirements
New Jersey's defining rule is a list of roads an oversize load may not use, and it reads like a list of the roads anyone would want. The New Jersey Turnpike, the Garden State Parkway, the Atlantic City Expressway, Route 495 and the Holland Tunnel are all closed to permitted movement. The stretch of I-95 and Turnpike between mileposts 118 and 122 needs the Turnpike Authority's own permission on top of the state permit. In the most densely built state in the country, the fast roads are the ones shut, and every route has to be planned around that from the start.
What remains is straightforward. Five travel days, daylight movement seven days a week, and overweight-only loads with no hour restriction at all. Major holidays are closed.
Two figures are worth carrying. The routine permit reaches eighteen feet of width — matched only by Louisiana and Iowa — with sixteen feet of height and a hundred and twenty feet of length. And New Jersey rates permit axles by tire width rather than by axle group: eight hundred pounds per inch. A load on wide rubber is allowed more than the same load on narrow, which is a calculation most states do not ask for. Legal tridem allowance is fifty-six thousand four hundred pounds, among the highest anywhere. Above a hundred and fifty thousand pounds gross the move needs special DOT clearance, and above fourteen feet of height the utilities, the DOT and the municipalities all have to be notified in advance.
Legal dimensions
At or under these figures, no oversize permit is required in New Jersey.
- Width
- 8′6″
- Height
- 13′6″
- Gross weight
- 80,000 lb
- Single axle
- 22,400 lb
- Tandem
- 34,000 lb
- Tridem
- 56,400 lb
Routine permit limits
Above legal dimensions and up to these figures, New Jersey issues a permit as routine business. Beyond them the load becomes a superload, reviewed case by case.
- Length
- 120′
- Width
- 18′
- Height
- 16′
- All axles
- 800 lb per inch of tire width
- Gross
- Above 150,000 lb the move needs special DOT clearance
Escort requirements
A load reaching any of these figures needs an escort in New Jersey — the figure is the first size that requires one, so a load measuring exactly this much already needs it.
- Width
- 14′1″
- Height
- 14′0″
- Length
- 100′1″
When the load may move
Permit validity. Permits are valid for five travel days and must be obtained before entering the state.
Operating time. Daylight, seven days a week. Overweight-only loads face no hour restriction.
Restricted travel. No travel on major holidays. Permitted loads may not use Route 495, the Holland Tunnel, the New Jersey Turnpike, the Garden State Parkway or the Atlantic City Expressway. I-95 and the Turnpike between mileposts 118 and 122 require the Turnpike Authority's permission.
Worth knowing
- The Turnpike, Garden State Parkway, Atlantic City Expressway, Route 495 and the Holland Tunnel are all closed to permitted oversize movement.
- Permit axle weights are rated by tire width — 800 lb per inch — rather than by axle group.
- The legal tridem allowance of 56,400 lb is among the highest in the country.
- Above 14′ of height, the utilities, the DOT and the municipalities must be notified in advance.
- Legal length is 53′ on the Interstate and 48′ on other roads; legal width drops to 8′ off the designated highways.
New Jersey permits, answered
Can an oversize load use the New Jersey Turnpike?
No. The Turnpike, the Garden State Parkway, the Atlantic City Expressway, Route 495 and the Holland Tunnel are all closed to permitted oversize movement — the fastest roads in the state are the ones shut.
How does New Jersey calculate permit axle weights?
By tire width — 800 lb per inch — rather than by axle group. A load on wide rubber is allowed more than the same load on narrow, which is a calculation most states never ask for.
How wide can a load be on a New Jersey permit?
18′, matched only by Louisiana and Iowa, with 16′ of height and 120′ of length.
What has to happen before moving a load over 14 feet high in New Jersey?
The utility companies, the DOT and the municipal departments along the route all have to be notified in advance.
Can an oversize load travel at the weekend in New Jersey?
Yes. Daylight movement runs seven days a week, and overweight-only loads have no hour restriction at all.
Crossing more than New Jersey?
A permit is per state. If the route leaves New Jersey, these are the states it most likely enters.
Get a permit quote for New Jersey
Enter the load once and the estimator prices every state on the route, flags where an escort is required, and turns the quote into an order.
Price a permit for New Jersey →Compiled from published state DOT sources. Regulations change — confirm the current rules before dispatch. Last reviewed 2026-07-30.