How Long is Too Long?

Q: Is it legal to have stuff sticking ten feet out of a pickup truck bed? How far out the back of a vehicle can something project?

A: As a child, you probably had moments when you thought the rules from your parents were unreasonable, or at least limited your free will. And at some point you might have decided to make your own choices. Maybe at age 14 you went on a school field trip to the Pacific Science Center, and when you got hungry you spent your lunch money on a dozen donuts, and ate all of them, because you could. And within an hour you deeply regretted your choice. Hypothetically, of course.

 Experiences like that teach us that just because you can, doesn’t mean you should. What the law permits and what is prudent in your situation isn’t always the same. The law sets the bare minimum standard for driving. Following traffic laws doesn’t automatically make you a good driver (although it’s a great start), it just makes you a legal driver. A good driver also considers what’s smart for a given situation.

Before we get to the maximum length, if your load projects more than four feet from the back of a vehicle you’re required to attach a red or orange fluorescent flag, at least 18 inches square, on the end of the load. If you’re transporting that load at night it also needs red lights on the back and side of the load.

Clearly then, we’re allowed to haul a load that sticks out more than four feet. The maximum length, though, isn’t measured from the end of the vehicle but from the rear-most axle, and that limit is 15 feet. If the distance from the center of your rear axle to the back of your vehicle is less than five feet, you could conceivably haul a load that sticks out ten feet beyond your bumper.

Although that law has a 15-foot maximum, we should also consider the “secure your load” law. Unless you’ve got an extra-long flatbed truck, a ten-foot protrusion would mean at least half of your load sticks out past the end of your vehicle. You’ll be fighting physics and gravity to get it secure. Maybe it’ll seem okay while you’re parked, but will your setup handle a bump in the road without the load breaking or the straps failing?

In addition to preventing a load from coming off a vehicle, there’s another rule. Drivers are required to prevent their load from becoming “in any manner a hazard to other users of the highway.” You can probably think of several ways a ten-foot projection could be a hazard. Here’s one: when you turn a corner the back end of your vehicle swings out wider than the track of your tires. Now add another ten feet to that. Let’s say you’re at an intersection making a right turn. As your tail end swings around it could strike a car passing you in the oncoming direction.

And then there’s vehicle handling. If your load is at all heavy, by placing the weight far past your rear tires you’ve created a rolling teeter-totter that wants to lift your front wheels off the road. Obviously that’s bad for handling.

Can you haul a load that sticks out ten feet past the end of your pickup? Maybe you can secure it in a way that won’t come loose, pick a route that won’t interfere with other drivers, and load the vehicle so it doesn’t ruin your handling. But should you? A good driver would probably say no.