DOT in NY bites

[tuney443]

Well,long story short,just when you think you're all legal,the DOT tells you otherwise.Last Wed.,going up to Albany with my backhoe on my 10 ton trailer being pulled by my 7500 dump,I run into a DOT inspection.Young kid,cocky,I can feel he wants to make my life miserable--sure power trip.After he can't find anything wrong,he wants to weigh the trailer--he does but then does more inspecting.So I ask him twice--how much longer,once at app. 40 min. in,the next time at app.1 hr.and 20min.---tells me 15min. more,then 20 min. more.I tell him an engineer is waiting for me 2 hours away--I have to give him an answer.So finally,he comes over with 3 pages in his hand--1 for minor violations--just warnings,the other 2 overweight tickets,1 for just over on the registered weight,the second over on the tires.I tell him impossible,been weighed before,always legal.Then,he drops the bomb--''Oh,yeah,by the way,I'm taking your trailer out of service."Said I would either have to unload the hoe or get another trailer. b*****d--ruined the whole day--had to unload the hoe,drive the truck and trailer back to the shop,then a friend drove me back so I could run the hoe over the road.Then,because 8:75--16.5's are not popular anymore,I had to run all the way up to Syracuse to get heavier 12 ply's that could run the weight that the cop had me down for. Un****ingbelievable.Sorry for the long rant.What pissed me off more than anything was the fact that all these old,ratty rigs that were pulling in to the inspection area were being waved through because there were only 2 inspectors.

 

[tuney443]

Forgot to mention that he wanted my shovel and a wood chock that was in my loader bucket thrown in the dump bed---safer he said---wasn't secured.Right next to the loader bucket in the A-frame storage area of my trailer sat a 5 gallon bucket of sand,8 or so more chocks,extra chains,etc. He never once said anything about that---haven't got around to making a cover yet for that.Just shows that it really depends on what inspector you get.I definitely have to get my old CB up and running to avoid these pricks.

 

[tonka]

Man that sux, any way you can fight it or would it not be worth the trouble?

 

[tuney443]

Man that sux, any way you can fight it or would it not be worth the trouble?

Well,10 minutes ago I plead not-guilty on the 2 tickets---probably be about 2 months until trial.

 

[Bob Horrell]

DOT stopped a water truck in my area (the guy owns a water company with several water trucks) and cited him for overweight. DOT said that he was overweight on one side of his rear axles. He went to court and beat it by saying that water equalizes itself and it would be impossible to be overweight on one side of an axle if he was weighed on level ground. He also asked to see the recent certification slip on the scales used and DOT couldn't produce them in court.
Right after that the DOT guys parked right outside of his place where he loads and inspected him almost every day for a while. They now stop him almost every time they see him or one of his trucks. You can't win with these guys even if you win one.

 

[surfer-joe]

That's pretty good Bob. So the water truck was over on one side huh? Hilarious!

 

[Sam]

Do as you are Told.
It's the Law! :bash

I'll be nice, now:
Gov't controls behavior with taxation and regulation.
It has been apparent, for years, that our gov't has been doing all they can, to take your money, slow you down and otherwise just get in the way.

Yet, you get a free pass, assistance and often subsidies, if you can't speak English.

More and more, I'm thinking that the vote is worthless.
Big brother is in full control, and it will get much worse, before it gets better.

Thank a liberal - D or R, it don't matter.

What to do?
Enforcement agencies, military, ect, are all too big and sophisticated, to fight. All you can do, is just roll right over.

I resent it.
What to do... ?

 

[RamDodge]

I wonder how a post about a DOT man on a power trip can turn into politics?

 

[tonka]

Do as you are Told.
It's the Law! :bash

I'll be nice, now:
Gov't controls behavior with taxation and regulation.
It has been apparent, for years, that our gov't has been doing all they can, to take your money, slow you down and otherwise just get in the way.

Yet, you get a free pass, assistance and often subsidies, if you can't speak English.

More and more, I'm thinking that the vote is worthless.
Big brother is in full control, and it will get much worse, before it gets better.

Thank a liberal - D or R, it don't matter.

What to do?
Enforcement agencies, military, ect, are all too big and sophisticated, to fight. All you can do, is just roll right over.

I resent it.
What to do... ?

Hola Sam;61007, kay no habla, como esta?

 

[tuney443]

I wonder how a post about a DOT man on a power trip can turn into politics?

HOW? Women will tell you why. We all think with our little heads,not our big ones. Basically same thing though seriously---it's all about who has the power and who needs the money----could you imagine if the DOT had enough agents to stop every car,light truck on the road???? There would be immediate outrage.By the way, does anybody know why motor homes are exempt from getting inspected by the DOT at their checkpoints? That just doesn't seem right.

 

[DirtHauler]

Were you overweight? was there defects with your trailer?

 

[tuney443]

Were you overweight? was there defects with your trailer?

Yeah,like I said,2 overweights,nada on defects.

 

[DirtHauler]

Yeah,like I said,2 overweights,nada on defects.

Just curious about the out of service, was it due to the weight/tire size issue? Generally around they will not take you out of service for weight unless its a safety issue (too much weight for number of axels with breaks) not just due to tire size/bridge law (lenght) violation. Did you figure out what changed to cause you to be overweight?

 

[tuney443]

Just curious about the out of service, was it due to the weight/tire size issue? Generally around they will not take you out of service for weight unless its a safety issue (too much weight for number of axels with breaks) not just due to tire size/bridge law (lenght) violation. Did you figure out what changed to cause you to be overweight?

It was a safety issue.10 ply tires that were on it were not adequate for the load so I had to upgrade to 12 ply.My fault I guess as long as those scales were accurate--I should have weighed my new hoe beforehand--way heavier than the owner's manual would have you believe.I definitely am going to weigh in each dual tire setup independently before I go to trial.

 

[ctkiteboarding]

same **** here with the local ******* , he hit me for well over a grand in violations ,tied me up for the morning, mostly B.S. , he had me unload and promise to move the hoe on another trailer and bring the trailer back to the yard empty, then left the scene , i waited 20 mins loaded my hoe and left the scene myself , pleaded not gulity to all counts, 1st court date when he showed up i asked for a continuence to waste his morning, the second time no show from the ahole and they threw it out after a 50 to the local charity of my choice, bottom line be super nice when they stop you and fight tooth and nail if its unjustified

 

[mikef87]

CT is tough esp. those scales down there on 84. A lowbed guy around here went to CT to get a loader, they stopped him for 2 hours because he had an air lift axle on the rear of the trailer and they said the trailer was to long to not have a permit. They were wrong, but it cost him 2 hours of being held up. They should spend more time busting these drug addicts and criminals than the working man whose paying taxes.

 

[Sam]

Hola Sam;61007, kay no habla, como esta?

No, other than one word: "Hola".
Learned that years ago, when I was influenced by motivation and ambition. That's not the problem that it used to be...

I'm easily confused, as well.
"61007" - This leaves me scratching my head.
I still have all my hair, though.

And, do not confuse this as being an apology.

 

[xcavate]

The Dot here got me for driving a F550 with a bobcat trailer for not having a CDL Class A license. I guess any truck towing a trailer over 10,000 lbs in MA you need a class A license. I thought that only applied to class B vehicles towing a trailer over 10,000.

 

[iron kid]

the great thing about that is you take a pick up and a trailer to get your class A
then go and jump into a 18 wheeler

 

[xcavate]

Yea I would still have to go back for an air brake endorsement but still much easier doing a pre trip on a F550 and driving it is way easier