Truck Axle Load Limits South Africa: The Official Table

Most guides to South African axle limits give you four numbers: 7,700 kg, 9,000 kg, 18,000 kg, 24,000 kg. That is not wrong, but it is incomplete. The actual table in TRH11, the Department of Transport’s own technical reference for Regulation 240 of the National Road Traffic Regulations, breaks limits down by whether the axle steers, whether it carries dual wheels, and how many axles sit in the group. Get the wrong row and you can be legally overloaded while thinking you’re within limits.

Regulation 240: The Full Table, Not the Simplified Version

Regulation 240 of the National Road Traffic Regulations sets the maximum legal mass load on axles and axle groups. Per Figure 3.1 of TRH11, the Department of Transport’s technical document on dimensional and mass limitations:

Axle configuration	Single axle	Tandem group (2 axles)	Tridem group (3 axles)
Steering axle	7,700 kg	15,400 kg	23,100 kg
Non-steering, single wheels	8,000 kg	16,000 kg	24,000 kg
Non-steering, dual wheels	9,000 kg	18,000 kg	24,000 kg

The numbers you’ll see quoted everywhere (7,700 / 9,000 / 18,000 / 24,000) are the steering-axle figure plus the dual-wheel row, because that’s the configuration on most rigid trucks and articulated combinations. But if your trailer runs single-wheel axles rather than duals, your legal tandem limit is 16,000 kg, not 18,000 kg. Check your vehicle’s actual axle and tyre configuration against the right row before you assume a number.

Gross Vehicle Mass and Gross Combination Mass

Regulation 239 requires that the manufacturer’s rated Gross Vehicle Mass (GVM), Gross Combination Mass (GCM), and any gross axle or axle-unit massload printed on the vehicle’s information plate must not be exceeded. Your permissible mass is always the lower of what the manufacturer plated and what the sum of your axle groups (constrained by the bridge formula below) allows.

On top of that manufacturer’s-plate limit, Regulation 237 sets a hard regulatory ceiling: the permissible maximum combination mass may not exceed 56,000 kg, however the axle-group sums and the bridge formula otherwise add up — except where the drawing vehicle is a haulage tractor with a single driving axle, in which case the combination is capped at 48,000 kg instead. Regulation 236 sets the equivalent 56,000 kg ceiling for a single, non-combination vehicle. See the consolidated National Road Traffic Act and Regulations text, pages 262-263, for regulations 236 and 237 in full.

The Bridge Formula: Regulation 241

Regulation 241 caps the mass any group of axles can carry, based on how far apart the first and last axle in that group are, to protect bridges and culverts rather than the road surface itself. Per TRH11 section 3.5.1, the formula is stated exactly as:

P = 18,000 + 2,100 × L

Where P is the permissible maximum mass of the axle group in kilograms, and L is the distance from the centre of the first axle to the centre of the last axle in that group, measured in metres and rounded up to the next tenth of a metre.

Worked example: axles spaced 4.5 m apart are limited to 18,000 + (2,100 × 4.5) = 27,450 kg, regardless of what the flat per-axle-group table above would otherwise allow. The bridge formula can be the binding constraint on longer combinations even when every individual axle group is within its own limit, so check both.

The Overloading Fine Schedule

Almost every South African trucking blog quotes a fine figure for overloading, and they rarely agree. RTMC’s own site returned broken links and unreadable scanned PDFs during this review, but the actual schedule exists in the AARTO Regulations themselves, and it explains the disagreement rather than settling on one number.

• The exact overloading fine schedule in Rand. AARTO Regulations, 2008, Schedule 3 — the official AARTO charge book, gazetted under the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences Act — sets a graduated administrative fine for exceeding permissible axle, axle-unit, or gross vehicle/combination mass (regulations 234, 235, 236, 237 and 241 of the National Road Traffic Regulations): R250 for an overload of 2-3.99% of the limit, rising in steps to R1,500 at 12-13.99%, before the standard early-payment discount most AARTO infringements carry. At 13.99% over or more, the charge is reclassified from a fixed-fine infringement to an offence and referred to court, where the fine is at the magistrate’s discretion rather than set by the schedule.

That two-tier structure is the actual explanation for the “wildly divergent” numbers you’ll see quoted: the low end (a few hundred to R1,500) is the fixed AARTO administrative fine for moderate overloads, and the high end (court-imposed penalties reported as high as R120,000-R240,000) is magistrate’s-discretion sentencing for severe or repeat overloading above the 13.99% threshold. Both figures are real; they describe different severities of the same offence, not competing claims about a single number.

Consignor and Consignee Duties: Regulations 330A to 330D

Regulations 330A to 330D of the National Road Traffic Regulations, 2000, place four duties on consignors and consignees: a prohibition on offering or accepting goods on an overloaded vehicle (330A), a requirement for the consignor to use a documented method of determining load mass and keep records of it (330B), a goods declaration that must travel with the vehicle covering the vehicle, cargo, and the parties involved (330C), and a requirement that the transported goods and vehicle be fully insured against incident damage (330D). Regulation 1’s definitions confine “consignor” and “consignee” to parties handling more than 500,000 kg of goods by road in a month, and the whole package took effect on 31 January 2015.

This is confirmed directly from the consolidated regulation text, not just secondary summaries: regulations 330A–330D and the mass-based definitions were inserted by regulation 73 and regulation 2(c) respectively of Government Notice R846 in Government Gazette 38142 of 31 October 2014, with regulation 73’s provisions commencing 31 January 2015. See the consolidated National Road Traffic Act and Regulations text, cross-checked against gov.za’s own summary of Government Gazette 38142.

What This Means for Your Fleet

Whatever the exact fine amount, the practical exposure is the same: an overload stops your vehicle at the weighbridge, holds the load until it’s corrected, and puts the trip’s margin at risk regardless of which figure in the fine range applies to you. The way to avoid finding out which number applies is to know your actual axle configuration against the table above, and to check planned loads against both the flat axle-group limit and the bridge formula before the truck leaves the yard.

A transport management system that stores your vehicles’ real axle configuration (steering, dual or single wheels, group spacing) can flag a planned load against the correct row of the table automatically, instead of relying on whoever is planning the trip to remember which limit applies to which trailer. That same record is also the evidence an RTMS audit asks for under its loading-control requirements.

Thwala keeps vehicle configuration, planned loads, and trip records in one place for South African freight operators. See how Thwala supports fleet compliance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the truck axle limit in South Africa always 9,000 kg?

Only for a non-steering axle with dual wheels. A steering axle is limited to 7,700 kg, and a non-steering axle running single wheels is limited to 8,000 kg. Check which row of the Regulation 240 table matches your actual axle and tyre configuration.

What is the bridge formula and when does it apply?

Regulation 241’s bridge formula (P = 18,000 + 2,100 × L, with L the distance in metres between the first and last axle of a group) can limit a group’s legal mass below what the flat per-group table allows, especially on shorter axle spacings. Both limits apply; you’re bound by whichever is lower.

How much is the fine for overloading in South Africa?

It scales with severity. AARTO Regulations, 2008, Schedule 3 sets a fixed administrative fine that rises with the percentage of overload, from R250 (2-3.99% over the limit) up to R1,500 (12-13.99% over), before the standard early-payment discount. Overload by 13.99% or more and the matter goes to court instead of carrying a fixed fine, which is where the much larger reported figures — up to R120,000-R240,000 for serious or repeat cases — come from.

Do consignors carry any legal responsibility for overloading?

Yes. Regulations 330A to 330D of the National Road Traffic Regulations bar a consignor or consignee from offering or accepting goods on an overloaded vehicle, and require a documented method of determining load mass, a goods declaration that travels with the vehicle, and full insurance of the goods and vehicle. These duties apply to consignors and consignees handling more than 500,000 kg of goods by road per month, and have been in force since 31 January 2015. Check with a transport compliance specialist about how this applies to your own risk position.