Public Act 90-0147 of the 90th General Assembly

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Public Act 90-0147

HB320 Enrolled                                 LRB9000448NTsb

    AN ACT to amend the Illinois  Vehicle  Code  by  changing
Section 15-107.

    Be  it  enacted  by  the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:

    Section 5.  The  Illinois  Vehicle  Code  is  amended  by
changing Section 15-107 as follows:

    (625 ILCS 5/15-107) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 15-107)
    Sec. 15-107.  Length of vehicles.
    (a)  Unless  otherwise  provided  for  in  this  Code, no
single  vehicle,  with  or  without  load,   other   than   a
semitrailer  that  is  not  a  housetrailer,  shall exceed an
overall length of 42 feet.
    (b)  Subject to  the  provisions  of  paragraph  (f)  and
unless  otherwise provided in this Code, no truck tractor and
semitrailer, unladen or with load, except a semitrailer other
than a house trailer,  shall  exceed  a  length  of  55  feet
extreme  overall  dimension, except that the combination when
specially designed to transport motor  vehicles  may  have  a
length of 60 feet extreme overall dimension, subject to those
exceptions  and  special rules otherwise stated in this Code.
No other combination of vehicles, unladen or with load, shall
exceed a length of 60 feet extreme overall dimension.
    (c)  A truck tractor semitrailer may draw one trailer, or
a converter dolly,  or  a  vehicle  that  is  special  mobile
equipment  if  the extreme length of the combination does not
exceed 60 feet, and a truck in transit may draw 3  trucks  in
transit  coupled  together  by the triple saddlemount method.
Except  as  otherwise  provided,  no  other  combinations  of
vehicles coupled  together  shall  consist  of  more  than  2
vehicles.  For  the  purposes  of this paragraph, a tow-dolly
that merely serves as substitute wheels for  another  legally
licensed  vehicle  will be considered part of the vehicle and
not as a separate vehicle.
    Vehicles   in   combination,   whether   being   operated
intrastate or interstate, shall  be  operated  and  towed  in
compliance   with   all   requirements   of  Federal  Highway
Administration, Title 49, C.  F.  R.,  Motor  Carrier  Safety
Regulations,   pertaining  to  coupling  devices  and  towing
methods and all other equipment safety requirements set forth
in the regulations.
    (d)  Notwithstanding any other provisions of  this  Code,
there  is  no  overall  length  limitation  on motor vehicles
operating   in    truck    tractor-semitrailer    or    truck
tractor-semitrailer-trailer    combinations,    except   that
maxi-cube combinations as defined  in  this  Section,  and  a
combination  of  vehicles  specifically designed to transport
motor vehicles or boats, shall not  exceed  65  feet  overall
length,  and  provided  that a stinger steered combination of
vehicles specifically designed to transport motor vehicles or
boats and a truck in transit transporting  3  trucks  coupled
together by the triple saddlemount method shall not exceed 75
feet overall length, with the length limitations inclusive of
front  and  rear bumpers but exclusive of the overhang of the
transported vehicles as provided for in paragraph (i) of this
Section, upon the National System of Interstate  and  Defense
Highways  or  any  other  highways  in  the  system  of State
highways that have been designated Class I  highways  by  the
Department  or  any  street  or  highway  designated by local
authorities or road district commissioners; provided that the
length  of  the  semitrailer  unit,  unladen  or  with  load,
operated in a truck tractor-semitrailer combination shall not
exceed 53 feet and the distance between the kingpin  and  the
center  of the rear axle of a semitrailer longer than 48 feet
shall not exceed 45 feet, 6 inches;  and  provided  that  the
length  of  any semitrailer or trailer, unladen or with load,
operated in a truck  tractor-semitrailer-trailer  combination
shall not exceed 28 feet 6 inches.
    The  length  limitations  described in this paragraph (d)
shall be exclusive of safety and energy conservation devices,
such as rear view mirrors, turn signals, marker lamps,  steps
and   handholds   for   entry  and  egress,  flexible  fender
extensions,  bumpers,   mudflaps   and   splash   and   spray
suppressant  devices,  load-induced tire bulge, refrigeration
units  or  air  compressors  and  other  devices,  that   the
Department  may interpret as necessary for safe and efficient
operation;  except  that  no  device  excluded   under   this
paragraph  shall  have by its design or use the capability to
carry cargo.
    Vehicles operating under this paragraph  (d)  shall  have
access  for a distance of one highway mile to or from a Class
I highway on any street or highway, unless there  is  a  sign
prohibiting  the  access,  or  5 highway miles on a street or
highway in the system of State highways, and upon any  street
or  highway  designated,  without  additional  fees, by local
authorities or road  district  commissioners,  to  points  of
loading  and unloading and facilities for food, fuel, repairs
and rest. Household  goods  carriers  shall  have  access  to
points of loading and unloading.
    For  purposes  of this Section, a maxi-cube vehicle shall
be defined as a  combination  of  vehicles  consisting  of  a
truck-tractor,  upon  which  is  mounted  a  separable  cargo
carrying  semi-trailer,  and a trailing unit that is attached
by a pintle hook or similar connection,  with  the  separable
cargo  carrying  semi-trailer designed so as to be loaded and
unloaded through the trailing unit, except  that  the  entire
combination  shall  not  exceed  65  feet  in length and that
neither  the  semi-trailer  nor  the  trailing  unit  in  the
combination shall by itself exceed 34 feet in length.
    Section 5-35 of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act
relating to procedures for rulemaking shall not apply to  the
designation of highways under this paragraph (d).
    (e)  In  addition  to  the  designation of highways under
paragraph (d) the Department may designate other  streets  or
highways  in  the  system  of  State  highways  as  Class  II
highways.  Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Code,
effective  June 1, 1996 there is no overall length limitation
on motor  vehicles  operating  in  truck  tractor-semitrailer
combinations  operating  upon  designated  Class II highways,
provided the length of the semitrailer unit, unladen or  with
load,  operated  in  a  truck tractor-semitrailer combination
shall not exceed 53 feet and the distance between the kingpin
and the center of the rear axle of a semitrailer longer  than
48  feet  shall  not  exceed  45  feet,  6  inches.   A truck
tractor-semitrailer-trailer  combination  may   be   operated
provided  that  the wheelbase between the front axle and rear
axle shall  not  exceed  65   feet  and  the  length  of  any
semitrailer   or   trailer,   unladen  or  with  load,  in  a
combination  shall  not  exceed  28  feet  6  inches.   Local
authorities  and  road district commissioners with respect to
streets and highways under their jurisdiction,  may  also  by
ordinance  or resolution allow the length limitations of this
paragraph (e).
    A maxi-cube combination, a truck in transit  transporting
3  trucks  coupled together by the triple saddlemount method,
and  a  combination  of  vehicles  specifically  designed  to
transport  motor  vehicles  or  boats  may  operate  on   the
designated  streets  or  highways provided the overall length
shall not exceed 65 feet, and provided that a stinger steered
combination of vehicles specifically  designed  to  transport
motor  vehicles  or  boats  shall  not exceed 75 feet overall
length, with the length limitations inclusive  of  front  and
rear bumpers but exclusive of the overhang of the transported
vehicles as provided for in paragraph (i) of this Section.
    The  length  limitations  described in this paragraph (e)
shall be exclusive of safety and energy conservation devices,
such as rear view mirrors, turn signals, marker lamps,  steps
and   handholds   for   entry  and  egress,  flexible  fender
extensions,  bumpers,   mudflaps   and   splash   and   spray
suppressant  devices,  load-induced tire bulge, refrigeration
units  or  air  compressors  and  other  devices,  that   the
Department  may interpret as necessary for safe and efficient
operation;  except  that  no  device  excluded   under   this
paragraph  shall  have by its design or use the capability to
carry cargo.
    Vehicles operating under this paragraph  (e)  shall  have
access  for  a  distance  of  5  highway miles on a street or
highway in the system of State highways, and upon any  street
or  highway  designated by local authorities or road district
commissioners, to points of  loading  and  unloading  and  to
facilities  for food, fuel, repairs and rest. Household goods
carriers  shall  have  access  to  points  of   loading   and
unloading.
    Section 5-35 of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act
relating  to procedures for rulemaking shall not apply to the
designation of highways under this paragraph (e).
    (f)  On any street or highway  in  the  system  of  State
highways that has not been designated by the Department under
paragraph  (d)  or  (e), the wheelbase between the front axle
and the rear axle in a truck tractor-semitrailer  combination
shall not exceed 55 feet or, effective June 1, 1996, no truck
tractor  and  semitrailer,  unladen  or  with  load, except a
semitrailer other than a house trailer, shall exceed a length
of 65 feet between extreme overall dimensions, the length  of
the  semitrailer,  unladen  or with load, shall not exceed 53
feet and the distance between the kingpin and the  center  of
the  rear axle of a semitrailer longer than 48 feet shall not
exceed 42 feet, 6 inches. On any street  or  highway  in  the
State  system of highways that has not been designated by the
Department   under   paragraph   (d)   or   (e),   no   truck
tractor-semitrailer-trailer combination shall exceed a length
of 60 feet extreme overall dimension.
    (g)  Length limitations in the preceding  subsections  of
this  Section  15-107 shall not apply to vehicles operated in
the daytime, except on Saturdays, Sundays or legal  holidays,
when  transporting poles, pipe, machinery or other objects of
a structural nature that cannot readily be  dismembered,  nor
to vehicles transporting those objects operated on Saturdays,
Sundays or legal holidays or at nighttime by a public utility
when   required   for  emergency  repair  of  public  service
facilities  or  properties,  but  in  respect  to  the  night
operation  every  vehicle  and  the  load  thereon  shall  be
equipped with a sufficient number of clearance lamps on  both
sides   and  marker  lamps  upon  the  extreme  ends  of  any
projecting load to clearly mark the dimensions of  the  load,
provided  that  the  overall length of vehicle and load shall
not exceed 100 feet and no object exceeding 80 feet in length
shall  be  transported,  except  by  a  public  utility  when
required for emergency repairs, unless  a  permit  has  first
been  obtained as authorized in Section 15-301. A combination
of vehicles, including a tow truck and a disabled vehicle  or
disabled  combination  of  vehicles,  that exceeds the length
restriction imposed by this Code, may be operated on a public
highway in this State upon the following conditions:
         (1)  The towing vehicle must be:
              a.  specifically designed as a tow truck having
         a gross vehicle weight rating  of  at  least  18,000
         lbs. and equipped with air brakes;
              b.  equipped   with   flashing,   rotating   or
         oscillating  amber  lights,  visible for a least 500
         feet in all directions; and
              c.  capable  of  utilizing  the  lighting   and
         braking   systems   of   the   disabled  vehicle  or
         combination of vehicles.
         (2)  The towing of vehicles on the highways of  this
    State shall not exceed 50 miles from the initial point of
    wreck  or  disablement.  Any  additional  movement of the
    vehicles shall only occur upon issuance of  authorization
    for  that movement under the provisions of Section 15-301
    through 15-319 of this Chapter.
    The  Department  may  by  rule  or  regulation  prescribe
additional requirements regarding length  limitations  for  a
tow truck towing another vehicle.
    For  the purpose of this subsection, gross vehicle weight
rating, or GVWR,  shall  mean  the  value  specified  by  the
manufacturer  as  the  loaded  weight of the tow truck. Legal
holidays referred to in this Section shall  be  specified  as
the  day  on  which  the  following  traditional holidays are
celebrated:
    New Year's Day;
    Memorial Day;
    Independence Day;
    Labor Day;
    Thanksgiving Day; and
    Christmas Day.
    (h)  The load upon any vehicle  operated  alone,  or  the
load  upon  the  front  vehicle of a combination of vehicles,
shall not extend more than 3 feet beyond the front wheels  of
the  vehicle  or  the  front  bumper  of the vehicle if it is
equipped  with  a  front  bumper.  The  provisions  of   this
subsection  (h) shall not apply to any vehicle or combination
of vehicles specifically  designed  for  the  collection  and
transportation  of waste, garbage, or recyclable materials if
the vehicle is traveling at a speed not in excess of 15 miles
per hour during the vehicle's operation and in the course  of
collecting garbage, waste, or recyclable materials.  However,
in  no instance shall the load extend more than 7 feet beyond
the front wheels of the vehicle or the front  bumper  of  the
vehicle if it is equipped with a front bumper.
    (i)  The  load upon the front vehicle of a combination of
vehicles specifically designed to  transport  motor  vehicles
shall not extend more than 3 feet beyond the foremost part of
the   transporting   vehicle  and  the  load  upon  the  rear
transporting vehicle shall not extend more than 4 feet beyond
the rear of the bed or body of the vehicle.   This  paragraph
shall   only   be  applicable  upon  highways  designated  in
paragraphs (d) and (e) of this Section.
    (j)  Articulated  vehicles  comprised  of   2   sections,
neither  of  which  exceeds a length of 42 feet, designed for
the carrying of more than 10 persons, may be up to 60 feet in
length, not including energy absorbing bumpers, provided that
the vehicles are:
         1.  operated by or for  any  public  body  or  motor
    carrier    authorized    by   law   to   provide   public
    transportation services; or
         2.  operated in local public transportation  service
    by  any  other  person  and the municipality in which the
    service is to be provided approved the operation  of  the
    vehicle.
    (j-1)  Charter  or  regulated route buses may be up to 45
feet in length, not including energy absorbing bumpers.
    (k)  Any  person  who  is  convicted  of  violating  this
Section is subject to the penalty as  provided  in  paragraph
(b) of Section 15-113.
    (l)  A  combination  of  3 vehicles not to exceed 60 feet
overall length may be operated on the highways of the  State,
provided that the vehicles meet the following requirements:
         (1)  The  towing  vehicle  is  a properly registered
    vehicle  capable  of  towing  another  vehicle  using   a
    fifth-wheel type assembly.
         (2)  The   second  vehicle  in  the  combination  of
    vehicles shall be a recreational vehicle that is towed by
    a fifth-wheel assembly. This vehicle  shall  be  properly
    registered  and  be  equipped  with  brakes regardless of
    weight.
         (3)  The third vehicle shall be the lightest of  the
    3  vehicles  and be a trailer or semi-trailer designed or
    used  for  transporting  a  boat,  all-terrain   vehicle,
    personal watercraft, or motorcycle.
         (4)  The  towed  vehicles may only be for the use of
    the operator of the towing vehicle.
         (5)  All vehicles shall be  properly  equipped  with
    operating  brakes  and  safety equipment required by this
    Code,  except  the  additional   brake   requirement   in
    paragraph (2) above.
(Source: P.A.  88-45;  88-384;  88-670, eff. 12-2-94; 89-219,
eff. 1-1-96; 89-434, eff. 6-1-96; 89-626, eff. 8-9-96.)

    Section 99.  Effective date.  This Act takes effect  upon
becoming law.

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