Section 558.10  Authority

 

This Part is promulgated by authority contained in Illinois Revised Statutes, Chapter 95½, Section 15-109(c).

 

Section 558.20  Title

 

This Part, entitled "Securement of Steel Coils and Other Objects on Flatbed Vehicles," shall be known as Title 92, Chapter 1, Subchapter f, (Highways), Part 558 of the Illinois Department of Transportation Rules and Regulations (92 Ill. Adm. Code 558).

 

Section 558.30  Scope

 

This Part establishes regulations for protection against the shifting or falling of steel coils or other objects being transported on flatbed vehicles, which for the purposes of this rule are defined as all single vehicles having a flatbed and/or all combinations of vehicles that include one or more vehicles having a flatbed and are comprised of trucks, truck tractors, semitrailers and/or trailers.  This Part applies to all persons operating flatbed vehicles on any highway in this State, provided, however, this Part does not apply to the transportation of hazardous materials on flatbed vehicles where such transportation is subject to regulation under the Illinois Hazardous Materials Act or the regulations pursuant thereto.

 

Section 558.40  Regulations for Securing Cargo

 

Each flatbed vehicle on which objects meeting the limits indicated in paragraph (d) or (e) of this section are being transported must be equipped with devices providing protection against shifting or falling cargo.  These devices must meet the requirements of at least one of the following paragraphs – (a), (b), (c), or (d) – and, in addition, must conform to the rules in Sections 558.50, 558.60, and 558.70.

 

a)         The flatbed vehicle must have sides, sideboards, or stakes and a rear endgate, endboard, or stakes.  Those devices must be strong enough and high enough to assure that cargo will not shift upon, or fall from, the vehicle. Those devices must have no aperture large enough to permit cargo in contact with one or more of the devices to pass through it.

 

b)         The flatbed vehicle must have at least one tiedown assembly that meets the requirements of Section 558.50 for each 10 linear feet of lading or fraction thereof.  In addition, the vehicle must have as many additional tiedown assemblies meeting the requirements of Section 558.50 as are necessary to secure all cargo being transported either by direct contact between the cargo and the tiedown assemblies or by dunnage which is in contact with the cargo and is secured by tiedown assemblies.  Tiedown assemblies or dunnage in contact with sufficient exterior (including topmost) pieces of the cargo and securely holding each interior piece comply with this requirement.

 

c)         The flatbed vehicle must have other means of protecting against shifting or falling cargo which are at least as effective as those specified in paragraph (a) or (b) of this Section.

 

d)         Whenever a motor carrier transports one or more coils of metal which, individually or as a combination banded together, weigh 5,000 pounds or more and the vehicle does not conform to the rules in paragraphs (a), (b), or (c) of this Section, the coils shall be secured as listed below.  The same tiedown assembly shall not be used to comply with more than one of the requirements of paragraphs (d)(1)(A), (B), or (C) of this Section.

 

1)         Coils with eyes vertical (see Illustration A – Figure 1):  One or more coils which are grouped and loaded side by side in a transverse or longitudinal row must be secured by all three of the following tiedown assemblies –

 

A)        A tiedown assembly against the front of the coil or row of coils, restraining against forward motion; and

 

B)        A tiedown assembly against the rear of the coil or row of coils, restraining against rearward motion; and

 

C)        A tiedown assembly over the top of each coil or transverse row of coils, restraining against vertical motion.

 

2)         Coils with eyes crosswise (see Illustration A-Figure 2):  Each coil transverse row of coils loaded side by side and having approximately the same outside diameters must be secured by –

 

A)        A tiedown assembly through the eye of each coil, restricting against forward motion and making an angle of less than 45 degrees with the horizontal when viewed from the side of the vehicle; and

 

B)        A tiedown assembly through the eye of each coil, restricting against rearward motion and making an angle of less than 45 degrees with the horizontal when viewed from the side of the vehicle; and

 

C)        Timbers, having a nominal cross section of 4 x 4 inches or more and a length which is at least 75 percent of the width of the coil or row of coils, tightly placed against both the front and rear sides of the coil or row of coils and restrained to prevent movement of the coil or coils in the forward and rearward directions.

 

D)        If coils are loaded to contact each other in the longitudinal direction and relative motion between coils, and between coils and the vehicle, is prevented by tiedown assemblies and timbers –

 

i)          Only the foremost and rearmost coils must be secured with timbers; and

 

ii)         A single tiedown assembly, restricting against forward motion, may be used to secure any coil except the rearmost one, which must be restrained against rearward motion.  However, in every case, at least one tiedown assembly shall be used for each coil or transverse row of coils.

 

3)         Coils with eyes lengthwise (see Illustration A-Figure 3):  A coil or transverse row of coils having approximately equal outside diameters and loaded side by side or a longitudinal row of coils having approximately equal outside diameters and loaded end to end must be secured as follows:

 

A)        The coil or coils must be restrained against side-by-side and fore-and-aft movement by –

 

i)          One or more tiedown assemblies over the top of each coil or transverse row; or

 

ii)         Two or more tiedown assemblies through the eye of each coil or longitudinal row; or

 

iii)        One or more tiedown assemblies, crossing from one side of the vehicle to the other, through the eye of each coil or longitudinal row of coils in a transverse row.

 

B)        Timbers having nominal cross section of 4 x 4 inches or more must be tightly placed against the sides of each coil or against the outboard sides of each transverse row of coils which are loaded side by side so that the timbers restrain against side-to-side movement,

 

C)        If, in accordance with paragraph (d)(3)(A)(i) of this Section, only one tiedown assembly over the top of each coil or transverse row of coils is used to restrain against side-to-side movement and fore-and-aft movement, timbers a nominal cross section of 2 x 4 inches or more and which are firmly secured to longitudinal blocking must be tightly placed against the front and back of each coil, each longitudinal row of coils, and each transverse row of coils in a manner which restricts forward and rearward movement.

 

4)         Timber which is used for blocking must be sound lumber which is free of defects (such as knots or cracks) that materially reduce its strength.

 

5)         Timbers need not be used on vehicles which have depressions in the floor or are equipped with other restraining devices which perform the functions specified for timbers by the rules in this Section.

 

6)         As used in this Section, the term "nominal", when used to describe timber, means commercially dressed sizes generally designated by the dimensions indicated.

 

e)         Except as provided in paragraph (e)(3) of this Section, whenever a motor carrier transports steel rolls or other objects including, but not limited to, cut-to-length bars, plates, rods, sheet and tin mill products, billets, blooms, ingots, slabs, structural shapes, or pipe, and other tubular products and those objects, either individually or as a combination of objects banded or boxed together and handled as a single unit, weigh more than 2,000 pounds, and the vehicle does not conform to the rules in paragraphs (a), (b), or (c) of this Section, the object shall be secured in the following manner:

 

1)         A single object, a group of objects, or a combination of objects loaded side by side across the width of the vehicle must be secured by at least one tiedown assembly over its top for at least every 8 feet of its length and at least two tiedown assemblies securing each individual object or combination of objects banded or otherwise secured together and handled as a single unit.  However, objects which individually have a strength of 8 feet or less and which are securely butted against each other in the fore-and-after direction may be secured by metal angles secured by tiedown assemblies, or they may be secured by a timber having a nominal cross section of 4 x 4 inches or more placed longitudinally over the objects and secured by tiedown assemblies.  Tiedown assemblies may not be located beyond the ends of the object which they secure.

 

2)         If objects are tiered and each tiered object rests securely on the one beneath it, the tier may be secured in the same manner as a single level of those objects is secured in accordance with the rules in this Section.

 

3)         The rules in this paragraph do not apply to special loads consisting of machinery or fabricated structural items, such as beams, girders, and trusses, which are fastened by special methods.  However, those loads must be securely and adequately fastened to the vehicle.

 

Section 558.50  Securement Systems

 

The rules in this Section apply to tiedown assemblies (including chains, cables, steel straps, and fiber webbing), other securement devices, and attachment or fastening devices used in conjunction therewith, which are used to secure cargo to motor vehicles in transit.  All devices which are used to secure cargo to a motor vehicle in transit under the rules in this Part must conform to the requirements of this Section.

 

a)         Tiedown assemblies.  The aggregate static breaking strength of the tiedown assemblies used to secure an article against movement in any direction must be at least 1½ times the weight of that article.  Chain used as a component of a tiedown assembly must conform to the requirements of the November, 1975 edition of the National Association of Chain Manufacturer's Welded Chain Specifications applicable to all types of chain.  Steel strapping used as a component of a tiedown assembly must conform to the requirements of Federal Specification No. QQ-S-781H (as amended May 18, 1977).  Copies of both of these specifications are available in the Illinois State Library and the office of the Illinois Department of Transportation.  Steel strapping that is one inch wide or wider must have at least two pairs of crimps in each seal and, when end-over-end lap joints are formed, must be sealed with at least two seals.

 

b)         Load binders and hardware.  The strength of load binders and hardware that are part of, or used in conjunction with, a tiedown assembly must be equal to, or greater than, the minimum strength specified for that tiedown assembly in paragraph (a) of this Section.

 

c)         Attachment to the vehicle.  The hook, bolt, weld, or other connector by which a tiedown assembly is attached to a vehicle, and the mounting place and means of mounting the connector, must be at least as strong as the tiedown assembly when that connector is loaded in any direction in which the tiedown assembly may load it.

 

d)         Winches or other fastenings.  The anchorages of a winch or other fastening devices mounted on a vehicle and used in conjunction with a tiedown assembly must have a combined tensile strength equal to, or greater than, the strength of the tiedown assembly.

 

e)         Adjustability.  A tiedown assembly and its associated connectors and attachment devices must be designed, constructed, and maintained so that the driver of an in-transit vehicle can tighten them.  However, the rules in this paragraph do not apply to a securement system in which the tiedown assembly consists of steel strapping or a tiedown assembly which is not required by the rules in this Section.

 

Section 558.60  Blocking and Bracing

 

a)         Protection against longitudinal movement.  When a flatbed vehicle carries cargo that is not firmly braced against a front-end structure that conforms to the requirements of Section 558.70, the cargo must be secured so that, when the vehicle decelerates at a rate of 20 feet per second per second, the cargo will remain on the vehicle and will not penetrate the vehicle's front-end structure.

 

b)         Protection against lateral movement.  When a vehicle carries cargo that may shift sideways in transit, the cargo must either be securely blocked or braced against the sides, sideboards, or stakes of the vehicle or be secured by devices that conform to the requirements of paragraph (b) or (c) of Section 558.40.

 

Section 558.70  Front-end Structure

 

a)         General rule.  Except as provided in paragraph (g) of this Section, every flatbed vehicle transporting objects meeting the limits indicated in Section 558.40(d) and (e) must be equipped with a headerboard or similar device of sufficient strength to prevent load shifting and penetration or crushing of the driver's compartment.

 

b)         Location.  The front-end structure must be located between the vehicle's cargo and the vehicle's driver.

 

c)         Height and width.  The front-end structure must extend either to a height of 4 feet above the floor of the vehicle or to a height at which it blocks forward movement of any item of cargo being carried on the vehicle, whichever is lower.  The front-end structure must have a width which is at least equal to the width of the vehicle or which blocks forward movement of any item of cargo being transported on the vehicle, whichever is narrower.

 

d)         Strength. The front-end structure must be capable of withstanding the horizontal forward static load specified in either paragraph (1) or (2) as follows.

 

1)         For a front-end structure less than 6 feet in height, a horizontal forward static load equal to one half ½ of the weight of the cargo being transported on the vehicle uniformly distributed over the entire portion of the front-end structure that is within 4 feet above the vehicle's floor or that is at or below a height above the vehicle's floor at which it blocks forward movement of any item of the vehicle's cargo, whichever is less.

 

2)         For a front-end structure 6 feet in height or higher, a horizontal forward static load equal to four-tenths (0.4) of the weight of the cargo being transported on the vehicle uniformly distributed over the entire front-end structure.

 

e)         Penetration resistance.  The front-end structure must be designed, constructed, and maintained so that it is capable of resisting penetration by any item of cargo that contacts it when the vehicle decelerates at a rate of 20 feet per second per second.  The front-end structure must have no aperture large enough to permit any item of cargo in contact with the structure to pass through it.

 

f)         Substitute devices.  The requirements of this Section may be met by the use of devices performing the same functions as a front-end structure, if the devices are at least as strong as, and provide protection against shifting cargo at least equal to, a front-end structure which conforms to those requirements.

 

g)         Exemptions.  The following flatbed vehicles are exempt from the rules in this Section:

 

1)         A vehicle which is designed and used exclusively to transport other vehicles, if each vehicle it transports is securely tied down by devices that conform to the requirements of 558.50.

 

2)         A semitrailer being towed by a truck tractor that is equipped with a front-end structure that conforms to the rules in this section.

 

3)         A full trailer being towed by a vehicle that is equipped with a front-end structure that conforms to the requirements of this section for a front-end structure.

 

4)         A full trailer being towed by a vehicle that is loaded in such a manner that the cargo on the towing vehicle conforms to the requirements of this section for a front-end structure.

 

5)         The rules in paragraphs (d) and (e) of this Section do not apply to a motor vehicle manufactured before January 1, 1974.

Section 558.ILLUSTRATION A   Coil Loading Diagrams