Weight limitUnited Kingdom
Traffic rules
United Kingdom
1. Weight limit
A weight limit prohibits vehicles or vehicle combinations whose mass exceeds the value shown from entering or passing a road section, bridge, tunnel or other structure. Depending on local law, the restriction may concern the vehicle’s actual loaded mass, maximum authorised mass or load on an individual axle.
Drivers must know which type of mass the sign refers to and must include the vehicle, passengers, cargo and any trailer where required. A vehicle that exceeds the limit must use another suitable route.
Does every weight-limit sign measure the same kind of vehicle weight in the United Kingdom?
No. A British maximum gross weight restriction normally uses the vehicle’s plated maximum gross weight, rather than how heavily it happens to be loaded. Other signs and bridge rules can concern a different measurement. Read the sign and any exemption plate carefully.
🔗 gov.uk • Great Britain Highway Code: Rule 109; maximum gross weight and exemption plates
🔗 gov.uk • GOV.UK: maximum authorised mass and gross vehicle weight
🔗 gov.uk • DfT Know Your Traffic Signs: regulatory signs (Great Britain)
Vehicles heavier than indicated prohibited.
English • GB diagram 626.2A • Weak bridge — maximum gross weight. Vehicles with a maximum gross weight exceeding 7.5 tonnes must not cross the bridge. The limit refers to maximum gross weight, not merely the load currently carried. This artwork does not show an exemption for empty vehicles.
Sources
🔗 Commons.wikimedia.org (Martinvl • Crown copyright • OGL v1.0)
🔗 Legislation.gov.uk • Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions • Great Britain
🔗 Gov.uk • Department for Transport • Know your traffic signs
SVG source: Martinvl • OGL v1.0 • Original revision 2015-01-05. Wikimedia original unmodified. © Crown copyright. Traffic signs are Crown copyright. You may reproduce traffic signs free of charge and without having to seek permission, but you must reproduce them accurately and not in a misleading context (e.g. not on roadside billboards where they could mislead drivers). (ref [1])
Artwork verified against Gov.uk • official published diagram 626.2A.
Current design and permitted variants verified against Legislation.gov.uk • TSRGD, current text.
Do cargo and trailers matter for a posted weight restriction in the United Kingdom?
Yes, whenever the rule is based on actual loaded mass or the total mass of a combination. Cargo, passengers and the trailer affect that figure; weight on individual axles may be limited separately. If the sign instead uses authorised maximum mass, an empty vehicle may still be prohibited.
🔗 gov.uk • Great Britain Highway Code: Rule 109; maximum gross weight and exemption plates
🔗 gov.uk • GOV.UK: vehicle and combination weight definitions
🔗 gov.uk • DfT Know Your Traffic Signs: regulatory signs (Great Britain)
What should you do if your vehicle exceeds a bridge weight limit in the United Kingdom?
Do not drive onto the bridge. Follow the signed alternative route and check the vehicle’s gross and axle loads as applicable. A general heavy-vehicle permit does not automatically authorise crossing every restricted bridge.
🔗 gov.uk • Great Britain Highway Code: Rule 109; maximum gross weight and exemption plates
🔗 gov.uk • DfT Know Your Traffic Signs: regulatory signs (Great Britain)
