Trucking Permits Illinois

If you own a trucking company in Texas or your trucks simply drive through the Lone Star State, you will need several permits to operate legally. Knowing precisely which permits you will need and when you need them can be confusing and time-consuming. Permits are also quite expensive.

Simplex Group knows that full compliance with the Department of Transportation and compliance with all state laws is critical to the success of any trucking company. We have been in the trucking business for 20 years, and we know what trip permits you will need for carrying cargo through Texas and other states.

The FMCSA requires that all trucks that weigh over 10,000 pounds and cross state lines get a U.S. Department of Transportation Number. You must also have this number if you transport hazardous materials in an amount that requires placarding. 

The state of Illinois requires even intrastate trucks to have DOT numbers if they weigh over 26,000 pounds. To get a DOT number, you will need to register your business with the state as an LLC, Corporation, or Partnership. If you are an owner-operator with one truck, you can register yourself as a sole proprietor.
We will use the Unified Registration System to apply for your number. You will receive your number in four to six weeks (depending on government processing times).

The Illinois Department of Transportation has strict rules regarding driving oversized trucks on its roads. There is a maximum width of eight feet and five inches for commercial trucks. Trucks over eight feet and six inches wide, Thirteen feet and six inches in height, or forty-three feet in length, require an oversize permit.

If the gross weight of a truck is over 80,000 pounds, you will need a permit as well. Your driver must carry the permit with them when they drive through the state. The permit shows the oversize overweight limits the truck is authorized to take.

The type and cost of the special permit you need will depend on the size of your vehicle. The larger the load, the more expensive your permit will be. The cost will also depend on the number of axles you have. You will always have to have prior approval to drive an oversized vehicle in the state. We will make sure to apply for your oversized permits well in advance.

Operating time is important in Illinois. You may not be able to operate during daylight hours if you have a certain oversized load. Loads exceeding sixteen feet in width and seventeen feet in height will only be able to operate from one-half hour before sunset Monday to Friday to sunrise on weekdays and Saturdays.

The state will not let you drive an oversized vehicle on Sundays, holidays, or some holiday weekends. The roads are very busy on major holidays in Illinois. In some cases, the state will issue special permits if you need to operate an oversized vehicle during hours when it would normally not be permitted.

You will have to have red flags to drive an oversize load that has any rear overhang. You might also need escort vehicles. The escort requirements will depend on the size of your load.

If you are driving through Chicago, you should know that Cook County has other restrictions for oversize vehicles. For example, you will not be able to drive an oversized vehicle on a boulevard in the city.

You will find these rules strictly enforced on Illinois toll roads and the expressway. Simplex Group is very familiar with all of the oversized restrictions in Illinois. You will have everything you need to operate your vehicles safely and legally from the Wisconsin line to the Indiana line.

The IFTA is an agreement between Canada provinces and the U.S. states to make paying fuel taxes easier. It used to be that an interstate trucking company would have to obtain a fuel tax permit in every state through which its trucks traveled. They would then have to report fuel purchases to each state quarterly. 

The IFTA allows trucking companies to get one permit through a local office and report all their fuel purchases to that office every quarter.

When a driver buys fuel, taxes paid are credited to the IFTA license account. When the fiscal quarter ends, the trucking company turns in its fuel tax report to the IFTA office. The report lists all miles traveled through each state as well as the gallons of fuel purchased. The average amount of fuel and the number of miles traveled is applied to determine how much you owe or the amount of your tax return. 

We will make sure that you are fully IFTA compliant and that your taxes are always paid right on time.

The state of Illinois may have strict and complicated rules when it comes to trucking, but Simplex Group is familiar with all of them. We have over 20 years of experience in the trucking industry. 

We will ensure that your drivers are 100% compliant and that your taxes are paid right on time and in the right amount. Call us today.