GENERALLY

Denver Revised Municipal Code ch. 54, art. XIII, div. 1

in effect

Denver Revised Municipal Code § 54-692 Width of vehicle.

Sec. 54-692. - Width of vehicle. No vehicle shall be operated upon any thoroughfare having a total outside width of vehicle or load thereon exceeding eight (8) feet six (6) inches in width. (Code 1950, § 525.1-1; Ord. No. 477-00, § 1, 6-19-00)

Denver Revised Municipal Code § 54-693 Unlawful objects attached to motor vehicle.

Sec. 54-693. - Unlawful objects attached to motor vehicle. It shall be unlawful for any person to operate a motor vehicle upon the streets and highways of the city which has attached thereto any chain, rope, wire or other object or equipment which drags, swings or projects in any manner so as to endanger the person or property of another. (Code 1950, § 507.11; Ord. No. 477-00, § 1, 6-19-00)

Denver Revised Municipal Code § 54-694 Height of vehicle.

Sec. 54-694. - Height of vehicle. No vehicle loaded or unloaded shall exceed a height of thirteen (13) feet six (6) inches. (Code 1950, § 525.1-2; Ord. No. 477-00, § 1, 6-19-00)

Denver Revised Municipal Code § 54-695 Length of vehicle.

Sec. 54-695. - Length of vehicle. No single vehicle shall exceed a length of forty-five (45) feet extreme overall dimensions, inclusive of front and rear bumpers, except a vehicle used exclusively for the mass transportation of passengers may have a length of sixty (60) feet extreme overall dimensions, inclusive of front and rear bumpers. (Code 1950, § 525.1; Ord. No. 477-00, § 1, 6-19-00)

Denver Revised Municipal Code § 54-696 Length of combined vehicles.

Sec. 54-696. - Length of combined vehicles. No combination of vehicles coupled together shall consist of more than four (4) units and no combination of vehicles shall exceed a total overall length of seventy (70) feet. (Code 1950, § 525.1-4; Ord. No. 15, § 1, 1-14-80; Ord. No. 477-00, § 1, 6-19-00)

Denver Revised Municipal Code § 54-697 Projecting load.

Sec. 54-697. - Projecting load. (a) The load upon any vehicle operated alone, or the load upon the front vehicle of a combination of vehicles, shall not extend beyond the front wheels of the front vehicle or beyond four (4) feet of the front-point of the grill assembly of the vehicle engine compartment, provided that the part of any load projecting ahead of the rear of the cab or driver's compartment shall be so loaded as not to obscure the vision of the driver to the front or either side. (b) In no event shall a load project for a distance of more than ten (10) feet from the rear of the vehicle except as permitted in this article. (Code 1950, § 525.1-5; Ord. No. 477-00, § 1, 6-19-00)

Denver Revised Municipal Code § 54-698 Trailers and towed vehicles.

Sec. 54-698. - Trailers and towed vehicles. (a) When one (1) vehicle is towing another, the drawbar or other connection shall be of sufficient strength to pull all weight towed thereby and the drawbar or other connection shall not exceed fifteen (15) feet from one (1) vehicle to the other, except the connection between any two (2) vehicles transporting poles, pipe, machinery or other objects of structural nature which cannot readily be dismembered. (b) When one (1) vehicle is towing another and the connection consists of a chain, rope or cable, there shall be displayed upon such connection a white flag or cloth, not less than twelve (12) inches square. (c) When one (1) vehicle is towing another, in addition to the drawbar or other connection, safety chains shall be used, arranged in such a way that it will be impossible for the vehicle being towed to break loose from the vehicle towing if the drawbar or other connection were to be broken, loosened or otherwise damaged. This shall apply to all trailers and other towed vehicles, except semi-trailers connected by a proper fifth wheel, and to any dolly used to convert a semi-trailer to a full trailer. (Code 1950, § 525.1-8; Ord. No. 428 § 1, 8-25-80; Ord. No. 477-00, § 1, 6-19-00)

Denver Revised Municipal Code § 54-699 Wheel and axle load.

Sec. 54-699. - Wheel and axle load. (a) The gross weight upon any wheel of a vehicle shall not exceed the following: (1) When the wheel is equipped with a solid rubber or cushion tire, eight thousand (8,000) pounds; (2) When the wheel is equipped with a pneumatic tire, nine thousand (9,000) pounds. (b) The gross weight upon any one (1) axle of a vehicle shall not exceed the following: (1) When the wheels attached to the axle are equipped with solid rubber or cushion tires, sixteen thousand (16,000) pounds; (2) When the wheels attached to the axle are equipped with pneumatic tires, twenty thousand (20,000) pounds. (c) For the purposes of this section, an axle shall be defined as the total load on all wheels whose centers are included within two (2) parallel transverse vertical planes not more than forty (40) inches apart. (d) The gross weight upon any one (1) wheel of a steel tired vehicle shall not exceed five hundred (500) pounds per inch of cross-sectional width of tire. (Code 1950, § 525.1-9; Ord. No. 15, § 2, 1-14-80; Ord. No. 477-00, § 1, 6-19-00)

Denver Revised Municipal Code § 54-700 Gross weight of vehicles and loads.

Sec. 54-700. - Gross weight of vehicles and loads. (a) No vehicle or combination of vehicles shall be moved or operated on any street, highway, bridge or viaduct when the gross weight thereof exceeds the limits specified below: (1) The gross weight upon any one (1) axle of a vehicle shall not exceed the limits prescribed in section 54-699. (2) Subject to the limitations prescribed in section 54-699, the gross weight of any single vehicle having two (2) axles shall not exceed thirty-six thousand (36,000) pounds. (3) Subject to the limitations prescribed in section 54-699, the gross weight of any single vehicle having three (3) or more axles shall not exceed fifty-four thousand (54,000) pounds. (4) Where the maximum load limit is posted on any bridge or viaduct, it shall be unlawful for any vehicle whose gross weight is in excess of such posted maximum weight limit to proceed to cross such bridge or viaduct; nothing in this article to the contrary. (5) Subject to the limitations prescribed in section 54-699, the maximum gross weight of any vehicle or combination of vehicles shall not exceed that determined by the formula W = 1000 × (L + 40), where W equals the gross weight in pounds, L equals the length in feet between the centers of the first and last axles of such vehicle or combination of vehicles; but in computation of this formula no gross vehicle weight shall exceed eighty-five thousand (85,000) pounds. (b) For the purposes of this section where a combination of vehicles is used, no vehicle shall carry a gross weight of less than ten (10) percent of the over-all gross weight of the combination of vehicles; except that these limitations shall not apply to specialized trailers of fixed public utilities whose axles may carry less than ten (10) percent of the weight of the combination. The limitations provided in this section shall be strictly construed and enforced. (c) The gross weight limits provided in this section are increased by one thousand pounds for any vehicle or combination of vehicles if the vehicle or combination of vehicles contains an alternative fuel system and operates on alternative fuel or both alternative and conventional fuel. For the purpose of this section "alternative fuel" has the same meaning provided in C.R.S. 25-7-106.8(1)(a). (Code 1950, § 525.1-10; Ord. No. 15, §§ 3—5, 1-14-80; Ord. No. 477-00, § 1, 6-19-00)

Denver Revised Municipal Code § 54-701 Officers may weigh vehicles and require removal of excess loads.

Sec. 54-701. - Officers may weigh vehicles and require removal of excess loads. (a) Any police officer having reason to believe that the weight of a vehicle and load is unlawful is authorized to require the driver to submit to a weighing of the vehicle on certified weight scales. A certified weight scale can be either portable or fixed. (b) Whenever an officer, upon weighing a vehicle and load, as above provided, determines that the weight is unlawful, such officer may require the driver to stop the vehicle in a suitable place and remain standing until such portion of the load is removed as may be necessary to reduce the gross weight of such vehicle to such limit as permitted under this article. All materials so unloaded shall be cared for by the owner or operator of such vehicle at the risk of such owner or operator, who shall promptly remove such materials, leaving the premises in a clean and orderly condition. (c) It shall be unlawful for any driver of a vehicle to fail or refuse to stop or to submit the vehicle and load to a weighing or to fail or refuse to permit the unloading of the vehicle to the gross weight of such vehicle as permitted in this article. (Code 1950, § 525.1-11; Ord. No. 15, §§ 6, 7, 1-14-80; Ord. No. 477-00, § 1, 6-19-00)

Denver Revised Municipal Code § 54-702 Permits for excess weight.

Sec. 54-702. - Permits for excess weight. (a) The city traffic engineer, in cooperation with the city engineer, may, upon application in writing and good cause being shown therefor, issue a single trip, special or an annual permit in writing, authorizing the applicant to operate or move a vehicle of a weight exceeding the maximum specified in this article or otherwise not in conformity with the provisions of this article; provided, however, that no permit shall be issued for vehicles to cross structures if such vehicles are of weights in excess of the structural capacity of such structures as determined by the city engineer. These permits are subject to the rules and regulations adopted by the city engineer/transportation director. (b) The application for any such permit shall specifically describe the vehicle and load to be operated or moved and the particular streets or other public ways for which permit to operate is requested and whether such permit is for a single trip or for continuous operation and the time of such movement. (c) In granting such permit, the city traffic engineer may, at the traffic engineer's discretion, limit the number of trips or establish seasonal or other time limitations within which the vehicles described may be operated on the public ways indicated or otherwise to limit or prescribe conditions of operation of such vehicle, when necessary to assure against undue damage to streets, viaducts and other public ways and may require such undertaking or other security as may be deemed necessary to compensate for any injury to any public way, viaduct, bridge or other road or structure. (d) Every such permit shall be carried in the vehicle or combination of vehicles to which it refers and shall be open to inspection by any police officer or authorized agent of any authority granting such permit and no person shall violate any of the terms or conditions of such special permit. (e) No permit shall be necessary for the operation of authorized emergency vehicles or public transportation vehicles operated in the city. (Code 1950, § 525.1-12; Ord. No. 477-00, § 1, 6-19-00)

Denver Revised Municipal Code § 54-703 Loads on tailgates.

Sec. 54-703. - Loads on tailgates. It shall be unlawful for the driver or person in control of any vehicle, designed to carry merchandise, materials, objects or other loads, which has a tailgate, to drive, stand, stop or park such vehicle in traffic with the tailgate in a down position so that it extends beyond the normal limits of the vehicle regardless of whether the tailgate is operated manually, mechanically or electrically; provided, that the provisions of this section shall not prohibit the placing of freight or merchandise on such tailgate for the purpose of transporting the same, or while the vehicle is actually being loaded or unloaded. (Code 1950, § 517.17; Ord. No. 477-00, § 1, 6-19-00)

Denver Revised Municipal Code § 54-704 Spilling loads on public ways prohibited.

Sec. 54-704. - Spilling loads on public ways prohibited. It shall be unlawful for any person to drive or move a vehicle on any public way unless such vehicle is so constructed or loaded as to prevent any of its load from dropping, sifting, leaking or otherwise escaping therefrom, except that sand, or sand and salt combined, may be dropped for the purpose of securing traction, or water or other substance may be sprinkled on a roadway in cleaning or maintaining such roadway. (Code 1950, § 525.1-7; Ord. No. 477-00, § 1, 6-19-00)

Denver Revised Municipal Code § 54-705 Fine schedule.

Sec. 54-705. - Fine schedule. The presiding county judge and the county judges who hear traffic cases shall specify by suitable schedules the fines for violations of this article. The amount of such fines for weight violations shall increase as the excess weight over the allowable limit increases. (Code 1950, § 525.1-13; Ord. No. 477-00, § 1, 6-19-00)

Denver Revised Municipal Code § 54-706 Fees.

Sec. 54-706. - Fees. The city traffic engineer in cooperation with the city engineer is authorized to levy fees for an overweight move commensurate with the services provided, including but not limited to an application fee, an investigation fee and fees to compensate for escort personnel, vehicles, equipment and materials, and fees to compensate for damages to public property attributed to an overweight move. The city traffic engineer shall from time-to-time examine the actual cost of administering applications, permit investigations and other application review costs, and thereupon revise fees to recover city cost. The amount of the fee shall not exceed the actual city cost. (Ord. No. 756-89, § 18, 12-18-89; Ord. No. 477-00, § 1, 6-19-00)

Source: City and County of Denver, Revised Municipal Code and Charter (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/co/denver/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=TITIIREMUCO_CH54TRRE_ARTXIIIWELEHEVELO_DIV1GEFetched: 10/27/2026