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California · Oversize & Overweight

California Oversize & Overweight Permits filed with Caltrans for you, 24/7

In California, a load over 8 ft 6 in wide, 14 ft high or 80,000 lbs needs a Caltrans transportation permit. It covers state highways only: city streets and county roads need local permits too. A single-trip permit is one way, valid seven days. Send us the load and route: our permit desk quotes the price and files every permit the move needs.

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What will an oversize permit in California cost?

Enter your pickup and delivery locations, choose your permit type, and compare estimated permit costs across route options.

  1. Oversize and overweight permits across the lower 48 and DC
  2. State-by-state fee breakdown for each route option
  3. Order your permit or talk to a specialist
Calculate permit cost

California rules

California legal limits and permit rules

The size and weight California allows without a permit, when a load needs a pilot car or the CHP, and when it may move.

Legal limits without a permit

Width
8 ft 6 in
Height
14 ft
Combination
65 ft
Doubles, each trailer up to 28 ft 6 in
75 ft
Kingpin to rear axle, 2+ axles
40 ft
Kingpin to rear axle, single axle
38 ft
STAA semitrailer
53 ft
Gross weight
80,000 lbs

Pilot cars and CHP escorts

Over 16 ft wide on yellow routes
CHP escort
Over 15 ft wide on green, blue and brown routes
CHP escort
Two- or three-lane conventional roads
Pilot car ahead of the load
Freeways
Pilot car behind the load
Yellow routes, up to 15 ft wide
No more than one pilot car
Over 14 ft high, westbound through Yerba Buena Island Tunnel
CHP escort

When you can move

Darkness, blue and brown routes with a pilot car
No moves
Weekends, pilot-car loads
Saturday and Sunday, 30 min before sunrise to noon
Holidays, pilot-car loads
New Year's, Washington's Birthday, Memorial Day, July 4, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas
Holiday hours
No moves 4 p.m. to midnight the day before and noon to midnight on the day
Over 10 ft wide in San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Sacramento
Weekday curfews at the hours on the curfew maps
Weather
No moves when snow, fog, rain or wind cut visibility under 1,000 ft, or when chains are mandatory

Source: California Vehicle Code 35100, 35250, 35400 and 35401; Caltrans Legal Truck Access and Transportation Permits pages (single trip, annual, FAQ, pilot car maps, weight charts, SR 2 ban); Special Conditions TR-PER-006, holiday, pilot car and SF–Oakland Bay Bridge special conditions; Permit Conditions rev. 12/2025; Caltrans/CHP permits presentation. Your permit's own conditions always apply.

Which permit you need

California permits for oversize and overweight loads

  1. One move, one direction

    Single-trip permit

    Valid seven consecutive days, issued up to 3 days ahead, one way only. Up to 135 ft long and the Purple weight chart; width generally 14 ft, 15 ft on green, blue and brown routes and 16 ft on yellow routes.

  2. The whole year

    Annual permit

    Valid one year for loads up to 12 ft wide with a 40 ft kingpin to rear axle. No travel on red routes; allow at least 14 business days.

  3. The same load, many times

    Repetitive permit

    Up to 90 days for loads up to 12 ft wide, 14 ft 6 in high and 90 ft long.

  4. Over 15 ft wide, 17 ft high or 135 ft long

    Variance (superload) permit

    Applied for no later than 30 days ahead. Over 17 ft high Caltrans needs a route survey.

Routes and road rules

Where California routes add their own rules

Pilot car maps color every route from yellow, the least restrictive, through green, blue and brown to red, and a few roads have rules of their own.

  1. SF–Oakland Bay Bridge

    No permit loads 6:30–9:00 a.m. and 3:30–6:30 p.m. any day, or in rain or fog. Loads over 12 ft wide cross only 11 a.m.–1 p.m. Monday to Friday.

    Over 14 ft high:A CHP escort westbound through the Yerba Buena Island Tunnel, and scheduling it can take up to 10 business days.

  2. SR 2, Angeles Crest

    A permanent ban on vehicles with 3+ axles or 9,000 lbs and up between I-210 at La Cañada Flintridge and County Route N4.

    Plan:No permit opens it; the route goes around.

  3. Route 710 at the Port of Long Beach

    Open to permit loads, and near the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach a sea container permit allows 65 ft overall with a 40 ft kingpin to rear axle.

    Covers:Container moves near the two ports.

  4. STAA routes with T-signs

    STAA trucks have no overall length limit, a 53 ft semitrailer and 40 ft kingpin to rear axle, but only on routes posted with T-signs.

    S-signs:Allow one mile off the route for food, fuel, lodging or repair. KPRA advisory routes are posted 30 ft on most routes.

California loads

More California permits beside Caltrans

A California move can need permits from the ports, the local road owner, CDTFA and the DMV.

  1. Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach

    Sea container permit

    Containers near the two ports run up to 65 ft overall with a 40 ft kingpin to rear axle.

  2. Off the state highway

    City and county permits

    Caltrans permits cover state highways only. The last miles on local roads need the city's or county's own permit.

  3. Fuel tax

    California Fuel Trip Permit

    A CDTFA permit for specific dates, up to four consecutive days. We buy it with your oversize permit.

  4. Registration

    Nonresident trip permit

    The DMV issues a trip permit for nonresident commercial vehicles. We add it to the same request.

How it works

Your California permit in three steps

  1. Send the load and route

    Truck, trailer, dimensions, weight, origin and destination. Your fleet details are saved for next time.

  2. We check and file

    Our permit desk checks the California rules for your load and files with Caltrans.

  3. Get your permit

    You get the permit PDF, a written route and an interactive route map to share with the driver.

From our permit desk

What we check before filing in California

  1. What color is the route?

    Allowed width, pilot cars, CHP escorts and night moves all change between yellow, green, blue, brown and red routes. We read the pilot car maps for every leg before filing.

  2. Book the CHP early

    CHP escort scheduling for the Bay Bridge can take up to 10 business days, and a variance permit needs 30 days. We give you a realistic start date from day one.

  3. The way back is a new permit

    A California single-trip permit is one way. We file the return leg with the first one, so the truck is not stuck at the delivery site.

FAQ

California oversize permit questions

What size triggers a Caltrans transportation permit?

Over 8 ft 6 in wide, 14 ft high or 80,000 lbs, or past the legal length: 65 ft for most combinations and 40 ft kingpin to rear axle for a semitrailer with two or more axles.

How much does a California oversize permit cost?

It depends on the size, weight and route, and superloads cost more. Put your route into our permit cost calculator for an estimate, or send us the load and our permit desk quotes the exact price before filing.

What do the colors on California pilot car route maps mean?

They rank routes from least to most restrictive: yellow, green, blue, brown and red. The color sets the widest load allowed, the pilot cars and CHP escorts it needs and, on blue and brown routes, a ban on moves in darkness.

At what width does the CHP escort a load in California?

Over 16 ft wide on yellow routes and over 15 ft wide on green, blue and brown routes. A load over 14 ft high also needs the CHP westbound through the Yerba Buena Island Tunnel on the Bay Bridge.

Is a Caltrans permit valid on city streets and county roads?

No. Caltrans permits cover state highways only, and the city or county issues the permit for its own roads. We include those local permits when the delivery sits off the state system.

Does the return leg need a second California permit?

Yes. A single-trip permit is one way and valid seven consecutive days, so the trip back is a separate permit. It can be issued up to 3 days ahead.

How does Route One GO get my California permit?

Send us the truck, trailer, load dimensions, axle weights and route. Our permit desk checks the route colors and special conditions, files with Caltrans and any city or county on the way, and sends you the permits with a route map. Requests are taken 24/7.

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More on truck permits

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Need a permit in California for this load?

Send the details once. We file with Caltrans, plus every other state on your route.

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