How to read a North Dakota oversize permit
A North Dakota permit from the Highway Patrol is three pages: truck, load and sizes on page 1, fifteen numbered travel Requirements on page 2, and the route on page 3. The route can be very short: ours was one row, I-94 for 353.60 miles from the Minnesota line to the Montana line, so the Requirements page is where most of your reading is.
Issued by the North Dakota Highway Patrol through E-Permits. Written from a real permit we read.
How to read the route
Under 'Route:' you get From, To and a 'Route Description' that lists the roads (here just 'I-94,'). The 'Driving Directions' table below has the steps. The first, unlabeled column is only the row number. 'Route' is the road, 'Miles' is how far you stay on it, and 'To' is what happens at the end. Row 1 is the origin and the last row is the final destination, both 0.00; on our one-road permit, Miles and Distance are the same 353.60.
Columns, left to right: Miles · Route · To · Distance · Time.
What's on each page
- Page 1: Owner and contact, truck and trailer details, load description, From and To, maximum permitted size, and the price. No route and no rules.
- Page 2: Liability text, the permission statement, a bold note that the permit covers only state, interstate and U.S. roads, then 15 numbered Requirements: flags, sign, travel hours, weather and more.
- Page 3: A routing link and a QR code to view the route online, then 'Route:' with From, To, Route Description and the Driving Directions table.
Road names on North Dakota permits
| On the permit | Means |
|---|---|
| I-94 | Interstate 94 |
| I-94;MN;Fargo | I-94 at the Minnesota state line, at Fargo |
| I-94;MT;Beach | I-94 at the Montana state line, near Beach |
Where the route starts and ends
Each end is written as road;neighboring state;nearest North Dakota town, split by semicolons: 'I-94;MN;Fargo' and 'I-94;MT;Beach'. They show as From and To on pages 1 and 3, and as the 'Origin:' and 'Final Destination:' rows of the Driving Directions table.
Conditions to watch for
Travel time
No travel in the dark. Move from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset.
“No travel in hours of darkness. Movement must occur within 1/2 hour prior to Sunrise through 1/2 hour after Sunset.”
Night travel exceptions
Requirement 15 allows night travel if the load is 12 ft wide or less, 120 ft long or less, 14 ft high or less and properly lighted. Requirement 11 bans night travel when trailer plus load is longer than 53 ft.
“Nighttime travel allowed if 12ft wide and 120ft long or less and when properly lighted (Height must be 14' or less)”
Flags
Put 18 by 18 inch red or orange flags on the front and rear, on the traffic side of the load.
“Require 18" x 18" red or orange flags, front & rear, traffic side of load.”
Oversize sign
Show a 12 by 60 inch OVERSIZE LOAD sign on the front and rear.
“Must display a 12" x 60" 'OVERSIZE LOAD' sign front and rear.”
Weather
Stop when the weather turns bad, when you can see half a mile or less, or when the road is slippery.
“No travel when inclement weather prevails, if visibility is 1/2 mile or less, or highway is slippery.”
Traffic and shoulders
Let all traffic pass, and don't drive on the shoulder.
“Allow all traffic to pass.”
Which roads it covers
The permit covers state, interstate and U.S. roads only; ask local authorities about local roads. Any speed limit written in the driving directions overrides all others.
“The NDHP permit system authorizes movement on state, interstate, and U.S. roadways only.”
Easy to miss
- Pages 1 and 2 have no route. It is on page 3, under 'Route:', below the routing link and QR code.
- The Requirements can pull in different directions. Requirement 3 says no travel in darkness, 11 bans night travel when trailer plus load is over 53 ft, and 15 allows night travel for loads 12 ft wide, 120 ft long and 14 ft high or less when properly lighted. Read all 15 before you plan a night run.
- The first column of the Driving Directions table has no header. The numbers 1, 2, 3 are row numbers, not miles or exits.
- Speed limits can hide in the driving directions. The permit says any speed restriction listed there overrides all other speed requirements, so check every row.
Questions
Can I run an oversize load at night in North Dakota?
Our permit says no travel in hours of darkness, with movement from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset. Requirement 15 allows night travel for loads 12 ft wide, 120 ft long and 14 ft high or less when properly lighted, and requirement 11 bans night travel when trailer plus load is over 53 ft.
What oversize sign and flags does North Dakota require?
Our permit requires a 12" x 60" 'OVERSIZE LOAD' sign front and rear, and 18" x 18" red or orange flags front and rear on the traffic side of the load.
How long is a North Dakota single trip permit good for?
Check Begin Date/Time and End Date/Time on page 1. The Highway Patrol's e-permits page says a single trip permit is valid for one load movement for up to five days.
Your permit is the legal document; follow everything it says. Permits change, and yours may differ from the ones we read.Last checked October 2026.