What is the most weight (load) a semi truck can carry?

(2011-12-01 15:25:05)

1. Lucas Says: I know that semis are limited to 80k lbs in the US is that right? That's counting the vehicle itself right? So does that mean it only carries around 40 to 50k lb of load at most? And does it really carry that much weight all the time? For example, some cargo might not be dense, so that might use up all the space in thet truck yet still weight a lot less than 40 or 50k lbs.

Yes, a lot of questions, hopefully you can answer some of them. thanks

2. Old Man Dirt Says: This is also determined by number of axles.
"Federal commercial vehicle maximum standards on the Interstate Highway System are:
Single Axle: 20,000 pounds
Tandem Axle: 34,000 pounds
Gross Vehicle Weight: 80,000 pounds"
Off interstate is governed by the individual states and may be more. So a check of state laws would be required.

3. DeerTracker2 Says: semi's are only limited to what they are able to pull and how many semi's are "helping" pull/push the load, some semi's carry loads into the 100,000's lbs. mark, also semi's do not carry the 40-50k loads all of the time take a load of chickens for example i assume the total weight of the chickens cannot be more then 5-10k lbs.