New Jersey vs Pennsylvania Oversize Load Rules
What changes for an oversize load between New Jersey and Pennsylvania: legal height, pilot car triggers, height poles and travel hours.
I-80, reviewed October 2026
What changes at the New Jersey and Pennsylvania border
- Legal height
- Both states use the same legal height, 13 ft 6 in.
- First pilot car
- Pennsylvania requires a pilot car from 13 ft 0 in wide; New Jersey waits until 14 ft 0 in. A load between those widths needs an escort in Pennsylvania only.
- Height pole
- Pennsylvania sets a height-pole trigger at 14 ft 6 in; New Jersey does not publish one, so check the permit.
Check one load against both states
New Jersey
- Oversize permit required
- No width escort
Pennsylvania
- Oversize permit required
- No width escort
11 ft 0 in wide, 14 ft 0 in tall. Length is not checked here.
Side by side
| Rule | New Jersey | Pennsylvania |
|---|---|---|
| Legal width | 8 ft 6 in | 8 ft 6 in |
| Legal height | 13 ft 6 in | 13 ft 6 in |
| Legal length | Single vehicle 40 ft (50 ft for indivisible poles/pilings); semi-trailer 53 ft; combinations with two trailers have separate limits under N.J.S.A. 39:3-84. | Single vehicle 40 ft; single trailer towed by a truck or tractor 53 ft; two-trailer combinations 28.5 ft each trailer; no overall length limit for tractor-semitrailer. |
| Gross weight | 80,000 lbs | 80,000 lbs |
| First pilot car at | 14 ft 0 in | 13 ft 0 in |
| Second pilot car at | 16 ft 0 in | Not confirmed |
| Height pole at | Not confirmed | 14 ft 6 in |
| Length escort at | 100 ft 0 in | 90 ft 0 in |
| Travel hours | Oversize permits not valid from sunset to sunrise, when visibility is under 500 ft, or in hazardous conditions (night waiver possible with an extra escort). Overweight-only permits travel 24 hours, 7 days. | Not permitted sunset to sunrise. In urbanized areas only 3-7:30 a.m. (with extra lighting and pilot cars front and rear), 9 a.m.-4 p.m., and 7 p.m. to sunset; tunnels in Allegheny County 9 a.m.-4 p.m. |
| Weekends | No weekend ban found for oversize permits; restrictions are holiday and daylight based. | No movement Saturday after 12 noon or any time Sunday (67 Pa. Code 179.10(7)); PA Turnpike has its own rules. |
| Trip permit | Not confirmed | $73.00 |
| Permit office | NJDOT SUPERLOAD Permit Office (on behalf of NJ MVC) | PennDOT Central Permit Office (Hauling Permits) |
Go deeper
- Pilot car detail: New Jersey, Pennsylvania
- Full guides: New Jersey, Pennsylvania
- Running through both without local plates? Estimate the trip permit cost
- Moving over a holiday? Check holiday restrictions
New Jersey and Pennsylvania FAQs
- Do New Jersey and Pennsylvania require pilot cars at the same width?
- Pennsylvania requires a pilot car from 13 ft 0 in wide; New Jersey waits until 14 ft 0 in. A load between those widths needs an escort in Pennsylvania only.
- Is the legal truck height the same in New Jersey and Pennsylvania?
- Both states use the same legal height, 13 ft 6 in.
- Do I need a separate permit for each state between New Jersey and Pennsylvania?
- Yes. Oversize and overweight permits are issued by each state, so a move through both needs a permit from NJDOT SUPERLOAD Permit Office (on behalf of NJ MVC) and one from PennDOT Central Permit Office (Hauling Permits), each with its own route, hours and escort conditions.
- Which travel hours apply in New Jersey and Pennsylvania?
- New Jersey: Oversize permits not valid from sunset to sunrise, when visibility is under 500 ft, or in hazardous conditions (night waiver possible with an extra escort). Overweight-only permits travel 24 hours, 7 days. Pennsylvania: Not permitted sunset to sunrise. In urbanized areas only 3-7:30 a.m. (with extra lighting and pilot cars front and rear), 9 a.m.-4 p.m., and 7 p.m. to sunset; tunnels in Allegheny County 9 a.m.-4 p.m. The conditions printed on the permit control.
Compiled from each state's published permit rules, reviewed October 2026. Not legal advice; the conditions printed on your permit control.