Oversize loads through Pueblo County need route approval homework

Most drivers will go a lifetime without ever needing route approval for a load. But move heavy equipment, a wide manufactured component, or a big construction load through Pueblo County, and ordinary trip planning falls short of what the roads require.

Pueblo County is still developing its permitting process for overweight and oversized transportation, and in the meantime any such trip passing through the county needs approval from the appropriate department before it rolls. Expect to hand over details of the transportation plan along with a route map marking the county portion of the trip. The statewide piece runs separately: CDOT operates Colorado’s oversize and overweight permit system for travel on state roads.

The whole thing rewards planning early rather than the morning of the haul. A route a pickup clears without a thought can stop a tall, wide, or heavy load cold, because bridge clearances, tight turns, road condition, and which agency owns each segment all come into play. Sort the state permits with CDOT and the county leg with Pueblo County well before the load is loaded, and the trip becomes a sequence of cleared checkpoints instead of a stranded rig waiting on paperwork.