| Field Motor Carrier Services |
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| What's New |
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Cameras catch bypassers in the act
The Motor Carrier Transportation Division is installing cameras at major Oregon weigh stations to take pictures of trucks that illegally bypass when they’re open. Bypass detection system installations are now complete at Ashland, Farewell Bend, Klamath Falls, La Grande, Umatilla, and Woodburn. Installation is underway at Cascade Locks.
The first camera system at the northbound I-5 Ashland Port of Entry near the California border quickly proved to be much more efficient than the past practice of calling police for assistance or chasing a truck in order to identify it. Police are not always available and Oregon motor carrier enforcement officers, who are not trained and equipped like police, work under a policy that requires them to stop following a truck if safety or other conditions warrant. In the 12 months before cameras were installed, Ashland initiated enforcement actions against 101 drivers for not stopping at the station. In the first month after cameras were installed, it initiated 56 actions. A few months later, in July, weighmasters reported only 3 undocumented bypasses of the station that month.
The camera systems include one high-speed video camera that captures images of license plates under any lighting conditions and a second camera that captures an image of each vehicle. The entire stream of traffic is recorded on a DVR for playback at any time. This is not like the camera systems many cities have installed at intersections to catch vehicles running red lights. Those systems have a dual purpose of enforcing the law and raising revenue. Oregon’s weigh station bypass cameras are only there to enforce the law. The Oregon Department of Transportation receives no part of the fines collected through the citations issued by its motor carrier enforcement officers. Fines paid by motor carriers are split between circuit courts, justice courts, or municipal courts and various law enforcement agencies, along with a unitary assessment that goes to the Oregon Department of Revenue and a county assessment that goes to county treasuries.
 Report details size and weight enforcement safeguards
In preparation for a recent Federal Highway Administration program review, the Motor Carrier Transportation Division assembled a report of various safeguards that are in place to protect Oregon roads and bridges from overweight trucks. The report provides details about how Oregon identifies and tracks weight-restricted bridges, notifies everyone of restrictions, takes action in the field in response to restrictions, strives to maintain enforcement capabilities statewide, and continually measures and refines enforcement efforts.
Read Size and Weight Enforcement Program Safeguards Protecting Oregon Bridges.
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| Ports of Entry & Field Offices |
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Ashland Port of Entry
NB I-5, California border, PO Box 666, Ashland OR 97520-0023
Registration Services, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m., Monday through Friday
Phone: 541-776-6117 ~ FAX: 541-776-6018
Truck Size and Weight Enforcement, 24 / 7
Phone: 541-776-6005 ~ FAX: 541-776-6009
Manager Sven Johnson
Cascade Locks Port of Entry
EB I-84, east of Portland, 500 SE Frontage Road, Cascade Locks OR 97014-9801
No Registration Services
Truck Size and Weight Enforcement, 24 / 7
Phone: 541-374-8980 ~ FAX: 541-374-2240
Manager Terry Cook
Farewell Bend Port of Entry
WB I-84, Idaho border, 5920 Highway 30, Huntington OR 97907-9707
Registration Services, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m., Monday through Friday
Phone: 541-869-2293 ~ FAX: 541-869-2021
Note: Farewell Bend is in the Mountain Time Zone --
8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mountain Time is 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Pacific Time.
Truck Size and Weight Enforcement, 24 / 7
Phone: 541-869-2474 ~ FAX: 541-869-2021
Manager Lloyd Pratt
Klamath Falls Port of Entry
NB US97, California border, 4647 Highway 97 N, Klamath Falls OR 97601-9387
No Registration Services
Truck Size and Weight Enforcement, 24 / 7
Phone: 541-883-5701 ~ FAX: 541-883-5564
Manager Phil Grant
Umatilla Port of Entry
SB I-82, Washington border, 1801 SW Highway 730 E, Umatilla OR 97882-0770
Registration Services, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m., Monday through Friday
Phone: 541-922-3761 ~ FAX: 541-922-2979
Truck Size and Weight Enforcement, 24 / 7
Phone: 541-922-5183 ~ FAX: 541-922-2979
Manager Ben Derby
Woodburn Port of Entry
SB I-5, south of Washington border, PO Box 244, Woodburn OR 97071-0244
No Registration Services
Truck Size and Weight Enforcement, 24 / 7
Phone: 503-982-0804 ~ FAX: 503-982-7201
Manager Don Shinpaugh
Portland Bridge Office
I-5, Oregon/Washington Border, 12348 N Center Avenue, Portland OR 97217-7871
Phone: 971-673-5900 ~ FAX: 971-673-5893
Registration Service, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Manager Laurie Hall
Bend - District Office, Size & Weight Enforcement
20340 Empire Avenue, Bend OR 97708
Phone: 541-388-6217
District Manager Bruce Ward
Burns - District Office, Size & Weight Enforcement
252 S Date Street, Burns OR 97720
Phone: 541-573-2261
District Manager Lloyd Pratt
La Grande - District Office, Size & Weight Enforcement
3012 Island Avenue, La Grande OR 97850
Phone: 541-963-3170
Senior Enforcement Officer Michael Hovde
District Manager Ben Derby
Portland - District Office, Size & Weight Enforcement
3700 SE 92nd Avenue, Portland OR 97266
Phone: 503-731-3238
Senior Enforcement Officer Kermit Meling
District Manager Terry Cook
Roseburg - District Office, Size & Weight Enforcement
3500 NW Stewart Parkway, Roseburg OR 97470
Phone: 541-957-3605
District Manager Dave Gaffney
Springfield - District Office, Size & Weight Enforcement
640 A Street, Springfield OR 97477
Phone: 541-736-2314
District Manager Dave Gaffney
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| Green Light |
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Green Light uses high-speed weigh-in-motion scales and transponders so truckers can save the time and money otherwise wasted stopping at major Oregon weigh stations. It's a truck weigh station "preclearance" system that's just like systems in many other states. It's a free, voluntary service available to carriers operating in Oregon.
Green Light systems are currently in place at 21 Oregon weigh stations. Motor carriers using Green Light transponders to preclear Oregon weigh stations are subject to no extra regulatory scrutiny. The information Oregon collects automatically through Green Light is the same information it collects manually when a truck stops at the weigh station.
Visit the Green Light Web page for more information.
Check a list of the Green Light weigh-in-motion sites throughout Oregon.
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| Oregon Weigh Stations |
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Oregon Motor Carrier Enforcement Officers work at the 6 Ports of Entry, 84 other fixed weigh stations, and dozens of sites capable of supporting portable weigh scale operations. This includes the 22 sites equipped with Green Light weigh-in-motion scales. The Ports of Entry are usually open all the time, but the other weigh stations follow a random schedule for opening and closing.
View a map of Oregon weigh stations and portable sites (1.24MB file).
Who must report to an OPEN scale?
Vehicles and vehicle combinations exceeding 20,000 pounds must stop and weigh at an OPEN scale.
The following are exempt from the requirements of reporting to an open scale when directed to do so by an OPEN sign -- see ORS 818.400(2):
- An empty log truck and bunked pole trailer.
- A vehicle or combination of vehicles that is enroute to a terminal or other legitimate business that requires turning off the highway after passing the OPEN sign but before reaching the scale.
- A vehicle or combination of vehicles directed to bypass by a weigh-in-motion system. Exception: Vehicles operating under direction of a Special Transportation Variance Permit directing them to stop at OPEN scales even if they receive a green light on their transponder.
- Fire equipment with red warning lights and/or siren operating.
- RV’s (by ORS definition of Commercial Motor Vehicle, ORS 801.208).
- A bus (by MCTD policy).
- Military vehicles in convoy (by MCTD Policy).
NOTE: Even when exempt from entering an OPEN scale, motor carriers must obtain Oregon weight-mile tax and registration credentials and comply with safety regulations, unless otherwise exempt by law or rule.
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| Entry & Enforcement Policy |
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Tax and Registration Credentials
Motor carriers with movements that originate in Oregon must obtain tax and registration credentials prior to operation.
Motor carriers with drivers entering Oregon must obtain tax and registration credentials prior to operating in Oregon except in certain situations. Read Oregon´s Entry Policy for Tax and Registration Credentials.
Check the Registration Services page for information about how to get started trucking in Oregon.
Over-Dimension Loads
Similarly, carriers transporting oversize or overweight loads that originate in Oregon must obtain a variance permit and the driver must possess that permit prior to transport.
Carriers entering Oregon with an oversize or overweight load must obtain a variance permit and the driver must possess that permit prior to entering the State except in certain situations. Read Oregon´s Entry Policy for Over-Dimension Loads.
Check the Over-Dimensions Operations page for information about obtaining a permit.
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| Size, Weight, Length Limits |
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Oregon law related to truck size, weight, and length limits - ORS Chapter 818 - Vehicle Limits
The "legal" operating weight of a truck is determined by tire size, the number of axles, and the wheelbase of the truck or the combination of truck and trailer(s). Legal weights are determined on the basis of the gross allowable weight for single axles and tandem axles and the gross allowable weight for any vehicle, group of axles, and combination of vehicles.
In Oregon, the maximum legal gross weight limit is 80,000 pounds. The gross weight of a single axle cannot exceed 600 pounds per inch of total tire width on the axle (limited also by manufacturer´s sidewall tire rating), or 20,000 pounds, whichever is less. The gross weight of a tandem axle cannot exceed 600 pounds per inch of total tire width of the wheels on tandem axle, or 34,000 pounds, whichever is less.
Combinations with a total gross weight over 80,000 pounds and up to 105,500 pounds must obtain a special permit, called an Extended Weight permit. These permits are often needed, for example, by truckers operating double- and triple-trailer combinations that have legal axle, tandem and group weights, the total of which weigh between 80,001 and 105,500 pounds.
Check a three-page guide to Size Limits and a four-page guide to Weight Limits. Vehicles exceeding the limits are required to obtain a variance permit. See more about Over-Dimension Operations. Also, check an informational handout about using dromedary plates, decks, or boxes to extend cargo-carrying capacity.
Other Restrictions:
Special Oregon road and bridge restrictions
Bridge restrictions on major routes in Oregon
Bridge restrictions on lesser routes
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| Auxiliary Power Units |
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photo courtesy of Willis APU / Auxiliary Power Dynamics
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Oregon allows weight exception for Auxiliary Power Units
Oregon allows a truck to be up to 400 pounds over maximum axle and gross weight limits if it’s equipped with a working idle reduction system (Auxiliary or Alternate Power Unit, APU) designed to reduce fuel use and engine emissions. Senate Bill 223 passed both the Senate and the House with no opposition and Governor Ted Kulongoski signed it into law on May 7, 2007. Since not all states have taken such action, however, the interstate trucking industry still bears the burden of determining which states have an APU allowance and which do not. Although a provision of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 increased federal weight limits to allow for APUs, the FHWA has noted that states are not required to follow suit.
A February 2007 FHWA notice clarified that if a state adopts the exemption, it should allow up to 400 pounds in axle, tandem, gross, or bridge weight formula (an axle weight calculation), or the weight of the APU unit, whichever is less. For example, if a truck has an APU with a certified weight of 750 pounds, the truck will be allowed the maximum 400 pounds additional weight. But if a truck has an APU with a certified weight of 300 pounds, it will be allowed a 300-pound exception. It’s also expected that trucks equipped with an APU will carry a written certification of the APU’s weight. The certification must be in writing but can include a wide range of options, such as a manufacturer's certification sticker or specification plate, certified scale tickets listing the vehicle’s weight both before and after the unit’s installation, or a component parts list with listed weights of each component if the unit is manufactured by the owner or operator, so long as it accurately reflects the weight of the unit and is available to roadside enforcement officers. Since many APUs use the truck tractor’s fuel supply, the FHWA determined that it will only consider the APU’s empty weight and not allow the weight calculation of the unit to include fuel. A requirement that the APU be "fully functional at all times" was more problematic for FHWA to address in rules because there will be times when a unit is temporarily broken down. For this, the FHWA has simply noted that there will be little or no incentive for a driver to install and transport a non-working APU.
Oregon motor carrier enforcement officers have been allowing the weight exception since February 2006 when provisions of the Federal Energy Act of 2005 took effect. According to Field Motor Carrier Services Manager Ed Scrivner, enforcement officers expect most APUs will be mounted above or near the lead tandem axles or between the steering axle and drive axle. “We won’t allow anyone to claim the extra weight on the trailer if the tractor is at legal weight,” Scrivner said.
The U.S. Commerce Department estimates that more than 400,000 long-haul truckers routinely travel over 500 miles from their home base. For these people, their truck becomes a second home. During the hours the drivers rest each day, many let the trucks idle in order to run heaters, air conditioners, and accessories like tvs, microwaves, refrigerators, and computers.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Lab, the average truck sits idling for up to 1,800 hours each year — equivalent to 75 straight days. The Environmental Protection Agency contends the problem is worse than that. It estimates that the average truck sits idling up to 3,000 hours each year. If a truck consumes eight gallons of diesel for every 10 hours of idling, the two estimates put the average truck in the range of using 1,400 to 2,400 gallons just for idling its engine each year. In a study recently presented to the Transportation Research Board, the Institute of Transportation Studies-Davis concludes that if one-third of the highest-burning trucks used alternate power units, the fuel lost by idling would drop by half.
Idling also wears down an engine, requiring more preventative maintenance and repairs. Moreover, idling creates excess emissions. The Argonne National Lab estimates that long-haul heavy trucks produce 10 million tons of carbon dioxide, about 60,000 tons of nitrogen oxides, and nearly 100,000 tons of carbon monoxide just by idling.
Many truck drivers prefer to carry their own anti-idling device because they park in varied locations and their routes often change. They can’t always take advantage of “truck stop electrification” areas where they can plug in to a stand-alone heating, air conditioning, and power system or the more sophisticated shore power systems available for specially-modified trucks.
Alternate devices include direct-fired burners for cab and engine block heating, thermal storage devices for heating and cooling, and auxiliary power units for heating, cooling, and electrical power. They use only 10%-15% of the fuel a diesel engine uses to heat the engine or run cab heating and air conditioning. Costing as much as $7,000, they’re easy to install and relatively inexpensive to operate.
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| Chains & Traction Tires |
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In Oregon, chains or traction tires are required whenever winter conditions exist and signs are posted advising drivers to carry or use them. State law mentions no dates for when chain and traction tire requirements start and end. That’s because no one knows for sure when winter conditions will start and end for the varied climates throughout the state. Motorists should be prepared and watch for the signs advising when they´re required to carry chains or have traction tires, and when they´re required to use chains. Under certain conditions traction tires may be used in place of chains on vehicles rated at 10,000 pounds gross vehicle weight or less if they´re not towing or being towed.
Winter Travel in Oregon
Oregon Chain Laws and Minimum Chain Requirements are posted on the Internet at ODOT's TripCheck Web site (look for Winter Travel links in lower left corner of TripCheck home page).
View a two-page summary of the minimum chain requirements.
The TripCheck site also features Road Cams with regularly-updated camera images of highways around the state.
For road and weather information by phone, dial 511 or 1-800-977-ODOT (within Oregon) or 503-588-2941 (outside Oregon).
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| DMV |
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The ODOT Motor Carrier Transportation Division urges truck drivers to stop at one of its five offices around the state or call a 24-hour Service Center at 503-378-6699 if they need registration or permit service. Check the Motor Carrier Division Office Locations and Service Schedule. Companies can also sign up for Trucking Online and conduct business from a home or office computer via the Internet.
As a last resort, the following Oregon DMV field offices can help provide certain motor carrier services:
Albany, 2242 Santiam Hwy SE, Phone: 541-967-2014
Astoria, 705 W Marine Drive, Phone: 503-325-3951
Baker City, 3370 10th Street Suite A, Phone: 541-523-4355
Bend, 1000 SW Emkay Drive, Phone: 541-388-6322
Brookings, Shopping Center Avenue, Suite 1, Phone: 541-469-2441
Burns, 252 S Date Avenue, Phone: 541-573-6019
Canyonville, 241 NE Main, Phone: 541-839-4449
Cave Junction, 103 S Kerby Avenue, Phone: 541-592-3133
Coos Bay, 1155 S Fifth, Phone: 541-269-9717
Coquille, 749 Riverside Drive, Suite B, Phone: 541-269-9717
Corvallis, Corvallis Industrial Park, 3550 SW Deschutes Street, Phone: 541-757-4191
Cottage Grove, 142 Gateway Boulevard, Phone: 541-686-7855
Dallas, 514 E Ellendale, Phone: 503-623-4556
Enterprise, 400 W North Street, Phone: 541-426-4024
Eugene - Drive Test Center, 2870 W 10th Place, Phone: 541-686-7855
Florence, 2056 Hwy 101 N, Phone: 541-997-6837
Gladstone, 10 82nd Drive, Phone: 503-299-9999
Grants Pass, 531 NE "F" Street, Phone: 541-474-3179
Gresham, 2222 E Powell Boulevard, Phone: 503-299-9999
Heppner, 278 Main Street, Phone: 541-676-5165
Hermiston, 945 SE 4th, Phone: 541-567-3804
Hillsboro, 1300 SW Oak, Suite H, Phone: 503-299-9999
Hood River, Port Marine Park, 600 W. Marine Drive, Phone: 541-386-3231
John Day, 193 N Canyon Boulevard, Phone: 541-575-1503
Junction City, 235 W 4th Avenue, Phone: 541-686-7855
Klamath Falls, 1909 Austin Street, Phone: 541-883-5720
La Grande, 3014 Island Avenue, Phone: 541-963-3012
Lakeview, 855 South "F" Street, Phone: 541-947-4233
Lebanon, 2485 S 2nd Street, Phone: 541-451-1145
Lincoln City, 4422 NE W Devils Lake Boulevard, Phone: 541-994-9655
Madras, 249 SW 3rd Street, Phone: 541-475-3382
McMinnville, 1661 N Hwy 99W, Phone: 503-472-2900
Medford, 1174 Progress Drive, Suite 103, Phone: 541-776-6025
Newport, 158 NE 5th, Phone: 541-265-2373
Pendleton, 1732 SW Court, Phone: 541-276-4871
Portland West, 1502 SW Sixth, Phone: 503-299-9999
Prineville, 1595 E Third, Suite A-3, Phone: 541-447-7855
Redmond, 1649 SW Odem Medo Road, Phone: 541-548-0140
Roseburg, 1331 NE Cedar, Phone: 541-440-3395
Salem North, 2640 Portland Road NE, Phone: 503-945-5000
Salem South, 4555 Liberty Road. S, Suite 300, Phone: 503-945-5000
Springfield, 1250 N 18th, Phone: 541-686-7855
Stayton, 144 E Water, Phone: 503-769-4427
The Dalles, 3313 Bret Clodfelter Way, Phone: 541-296-9458
Tillamook, 308 Evergreen Drive, Phone: 503-842-4192
Woodburn, 1550 Industrial Avenue, Phone: 503-982-9961
For more DMV-related information, visit the Oregon DMV Web site.
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| Truck Stops |
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The Motor Carrier Transportation Division has compiled a list of truck stops with a fax service truckers can use to have credentials sent to them. The list does not include all that are in or near Oregon, just key ones that truckers frequent. View a Web page list of Truck Stops or a two-page handout.
Oregon operating credentials are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, from the Salem Service Center at 503-378-6699. Trucking companies and their drivers can also use a home or office computer to sign up for Trucking Online and get credentials via the Internet. Truck drivers headed for Oregon who must do business by phone, fax, or field office visit should first check the schedule for registration service at offices across the state.
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