Flatbed Question - Automatic Lifting Axle

The front axle on my flatbed lifts automatically when I'm running light. This is to save wear and fuel naturally. As I was rolling through Arkansas earlier another trucker got on the CB and said " hey man you know that's illegal in Arkansas don't ya?". Umm no I didn't know that. Somehow I've never heard or even considered such a thing, and it was certainly never brought up during training.

So I pulled over and hit the switch under the trailer, manually lowering the axle for now. I gotta get back rolling, and I'll research this later.

So anyway flatbedders, is this true? And is it just Arkansas or are other states this way? I'm gone.

The front axle on my flatbed lifts automatically when I'm running light. This is to save wear and fuel naturally. As I was rolling through Arkansas earlier another trucker got on the CB and said " hey man you know that's illegal in Arkansas don't ya?". Umm no I didn't know that. Somehow I've never heard or even considered such a thing, and it was certainly never brought up during training.

So I pulled over and hit the switch under the trailer, manually lowering the axle for now. I gotta get back rolling, and I'll research this later.

So anyway flatbedders, is this true? And is it just Arkansas or are other states this way? I'm gone.

It might be...tolls are typically assessed by the number of axles touching the pavement. It's a money grab.

On top of what gtown said. Were you loaded or empty? Were you still compliment with the bridge law? The one thing I did find it that the bridge law is figard out by the maximum axel groups so depending on your situation you might be out of compliance on that. It might have something to do with permitting. I know I am permitted as a 5 axel combo not a 5/4 axel combo. King pin compliment? But I did not find anything that said you were braking the law by running with a lift axel lifted just by that fact.

In the State of Arkansas Dept. of Highways pdf, I found this:

I asked other drivers, and none have heard of this. But the way it's worded, I'd have to say that running with the axle lifted is illegal. This is totally baffling to me.

I have no problem running with the axle down, and frankly I'm usually heavy most of the time anyway so it's rarely lifted unless I'm between 90 and 01. But this makes no sense to me unless it's like G-Town said: a money grab.

Oh, and yes I'm compliant in all other ways.

I have never heard that, but the document you posted seems to indicate they want it down. I don't remember any toll roads in Arkansas though lol, so I doubt that's the reason. It probably has more to do with bridge weights.

Anyway, I hated those lift axle trailers that Prime has. I almost always dropped the axles when empty or light. It really sucks to only have one axle down 48 feet back.

Someone in your company's safety, permits or compliance departments should also be able to answer that for you. If they don't then you should get a gold star for informing them.