Spring Load Restrictions

Mille Lacs County follows the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) for placement and removal of load restrictions on county state aid highways and county roads.  The dates vary depending on frost and weather conditions.  Mille Lacs County does reserve the right to place load restrictions on roads as deemed necessary by road conditions.

Spring load restrictions are a strategy to preserve paved and gravel roadway surfaces during the time when they are most vulnerable to damage.  The cost of asphalt resurfacing projects in Mille Lacs County typically exceeds $200,000 per mile, and the taxpayers have made a significant investment in our road system.  Overweight vehicles during spring load restrictions could literally cause millions of dollars of damage.

Efficient trucking for the movement of goods and materials is critical for our economy and for the livelihood of businesses.  The need for efficient commerce must be balanced against the need to protect the taxpayer investment in roadway infrastructure.  Most state highways (Interstate, US and Minnesota Trunk Highways) remain at 10-ton axle limits during spring load restrictions.  

Many county roads in Mille Lacs County have adequate structure and are posted at 9 or 10-ton axle limits during spring load restrictions, to allow for normal commerce.  For those roads that are posted at lower values and on unpaved roads, we ask everyone’s cooperation in adhering to the spring load restriction weight limits.  In most cases, if a road is destroyed there is simply no money available to repair or replace the surfacing – unless funds are diverted from other resurfacing projects.  

General Information

Mille Lacs County does not issue overweight permits during spring load restrictions.

During spring load restrictions, on roads that are not posted with specific weight limits, allowable weights under Minnesota law¹ are:

• 10-tons per axle on paved roads (the same as normal), and
• 5-tons per axle on unpaved roads.

Most gravel township roads are not specifically posted during spring load restrictions, so they have a 5-ton axle weight limit during spring load restrictions.

Normal allowable weights² (not during spring load restrictions) are as follows unless a lower weight limit is posted on the road:

•10-tons per axle on paved roads, and

•9-tons per axle on unpaved roads.

¹ Minnesota Statutes, Section 169.87, Subdivision 2

² Minnesota Statutes, Section 169.823