The Canadian vehicle weights and dimensions study: from research to regulation

In February 1988, the Ministers of Transportation signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Interprovincial Vehicle Weights and Dimensions, marking the culmination of a 15 year long effort of discussion, research, and regulatory development designed to improve the uniformity of regulation across Canada. As a result of this agreement, the trucking industry in Canada has been provided with minimum, nationally accepted standards for vehicle size and weight which apply to a network of highways stretching from coast to coast. The paper describes the background to this initiative and the issues which were addressed. A review of the content and scope of a major research program undertaken in support of the discussions is provided, which included an examination of the influence of size and weight variables on articulated vehicle stability and on pavement response. The key findings of this research are discussed, and their importance to regulatory development reviewed. The means used to incorporate the results of the research program in the development of regulatory principles is discussed, whereby vehicle performance and highway infrastructure impacts were factors in the selection of size and weight limits. The research findings which could not be acted upon in the development of proposed regulatory revisions are also discussed, and the outstanding research needs in these areas reviewed (A).