Details in works for timber harvest permit

Louisiana loggers can now haul a little more weight on state roadways thanks to a new timber harvest permit, but some details are still being worked out.

Tammy Anderson, transportation permits manager with the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, said loggers have two options: the regular harvest permit and the new timber harvest permit.

Under the harvest permit, the $10 per truck permit loggers have used for many years, the gross vehicle weight of fully loaded log trucks is up to 86,600 pounds on state roadways. They are permitted to use interstate highways, as long as they adhere to the federal weight limit of 83,400 pounds.

Under the new timber harvest permit, which is $100 per truck, gross vehicle weight for loaded log trucks is 88,000 pounds on state highways and requires onboard scales. The permit also allows log trucks to travel interstate highways, provided their gross vehicle weight does not exceed the 83,400-pound federal weight requirement.

One issue being worked out as of Thursday, Jan. 9, was a question of speed when carrying a load.

“Under the regular harvest permit, they can’t exceed 55 mph,” Anderson said. “All permit loads cannot exceed 55 mph.”

When the timber harvest permit law was written, it stated that loaded log trucks “cannot exceed the maximum posted speed limit,” Anderson said, which is contrary to requirements for all other permit loads.

Anderson said because all permits have a speed limit of 55 mph and that provision was included in the new timber harvest permit.

Loggers wanting to obtain timber harvest permits or regular harvest permits for their trucks must first establish an account with LaGeaux at the DOTD website. The link is http://wwwsp.dotd.la.gov/Business/Pages/DOTD_LaGeaux.aspx.