(A) The municipality, with respect to highways under its jurisdiction, upon application in writing and for good cause shown, may issue a special permit in writing authorizing the applicant to operate or move a vehicle or combination of vehicles of a size or weight of vehicle or load exceeding the maximum specified in R.C. §§ 5577.01 through 5577.09, or otherwise not in conformity with R.C. §§ 4513.01 through 4513.37, upon any highway under its jurisdiction.
(B) Notwithstanding R.C. §§ 715.22 and 723.01, the holder of a special permit issued by the Director of Transportation under R.C. § 4513.34 may move the vehicle or combination of vehicles described in the special permit on any highway that is a part of the state highway system when the movement is partly within and partly without the corporate limits of the municipality. No local authority shall require any other permit or license or charge any license fee or other charge against the holder of a permit for the movement of a vehicle or combination of vehicles on any highway which is a part of the state highway system. The Ohio Director of Transportation shall not require the holder of a permit issued by the municipality to obtain a special permit for the movement of vehicles or combination of vehicles on highways within the jurisdiction of the municipality. Permits may be issued for any period of time not to exceed one year, as the local authority in its discretion determines advisable or for the duration of any public construction project.
(C) The application for a permit shall be in the form that the municipality prescribes. The municipality may prescribe a permit fee to be imposed and collected when any permit described in this section is issued. The permit fee may be in an amount sufficient to reimburse the municipality for the administrative costs incurred in issuing the permit, and also to cover the cost of normal and expected damage caused to the roadway or a street or highway structure as the result of the operation of the nonconforming vehicle or combination of vehicles. For the purposes of this section and of rules adopted by the Director under R.C. § 4513.34, milk transported in bulk by vehicle is deemed a nondivisible load.
(D) The municipality may issue or withhold a permit. If a permit is to be issued, the municipality may limit or prescribe conditions of operation for the vehicle and may require the posting of a bond or other security conditioned upon the sufficiency of the permit fee to compensate for damage caused to the roadway or a street or highway structure. In addition, the municipality, as a condition of issuance of an overweight permit, may require the applicant to develop and enter into a mutual agreement with the municipality to compensate for or to repair excess damage caused to the roadway by travel under the permit.
(E) Every 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 the permit. No person shall violate any of the terms of a permit.
(R.C. § 4513.34)
(F) Whoever violates this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor on a first offense; on a second offense within one year after the first offense, the person is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree; on each subsequent offense within one year after the first offense, the person is guilty of a misdemeanor of the third degree.
(R.C. § 4513.99) Penalty, see § 70.99
Statutory reference:
Overweight or oversized vehicles, state permit regulations, see O.A.C. Chapter 5501:2-1