Answer: Not always.
Barring heavy haul and centipede permitted loads and ONLY referring to standard OTR tractor trailers there are a few variables that come into play.
First and foremost without being permitted the Maximum gross weight is 80,000 lbs. But this is not written in stone because there is a 480lb allowance if the truck is equipped with an APU totaling 80,480lbs gross max.
But we will stick with 80,000lbs just for example.
Your allowable axle weights depend on the type of trailer you are pulling; Standard tandems or spread axles.
Steer axles on the tractor max out at 12,000lbs
Drive axles on the tractor max out at 17,000lbs each (34,000lbs total)
Standard Tandems on a trailer max out per axle at 17,000 per axle (34,000lbs total)
----> Add all this up and it equals 80,000lbs.<-----
Now, what about spread axles on trailers?
Steer axle on the tractor 12,000lbs
Drive axles on the tractor 17,000lbs (34K total)
Each axle as part of a spread axle 20,000lbs each (40K total)
----> Add this all up and you got 86,000lbs gross<-----
So yes, you can be perfectly legal on axle weights and still get an overweight ticket for being over GROSS.
Whoops, looks like I mis-read your post. The answer is yes, the individual axle weights do in fact total the actual weight on the vehicle. However I hope you also find the above information helpful.
Last edited by XDT; 07-19-2013 at 10:47 AM.
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