Chapter 7: Routing and Permits

Section 1: Role of District Permit Officers, District Bridge Inspection Coordinators, and the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles

The following describes roles of various parties involved in the permit process with respect to bridges.
District Permit Officer
  • Assist the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles (TxDMV) in the evaluation of oversize permit routes. Should there be any question regarding the accuracy of the current Bridge Inspection Management System Files (bridge files in AssetWise), the actual plans should be reviewed and/or a field visit made prior to issuing a permit. The TxDMV issues the permit only after review by the District Permit Officer, who also coordinates closely with the District Bridge Inspection Coordinator.
  • The TxDMV maintains a master set of maps showing the various width, height, and load restrictions on all highways. Each District Permit Officer coordinates with the TxDMV in maintaining the maps. Copies of the maps showing all restrictions for load, width, and heights on the various routes are distributed to each district.
  • All permits are issued by the TxDMV with the cooperation of the District Permit Officer. For overweight permits, the District Permit Officer works closely with the District Bridge Inspection Coordinator.
District Bridge Inspection Coordinator
  • Notify the District Permit Officer of any changes to bridge load postings, particularly for bridges not previously posted.
  • Track and monitor construction of new bridges.
    It is imperative that all bridges being built over On-System routes be entered into AssetWise as soon as they are known. Likewise, archive demolished bridges as soon as the last member has been removed from over the roadway. Include documentation in AssetWise indicating the reason the bridge is archived. Timely communication with Area Offices is critical.
  • Perform Pre- and Post-Move Inspection. An occasional responsibility of the District Bridge Inspection Coordinator is to inspect bridges before and after the passage of a particular overweight permit load. A representative of the owner-mover should be present at these types of inspections. Cast-in-place short span slab bridges, particularly those which have been widened from an original H-10 design to an H-15 or H-20 design, are susceptible to cracking by overloads.
    1. Unusual bridges, such as arch spans, segmentally constructed post-tensioned spans, or long-span plate girder bridges, may also need special attention before, during, and after the move of an overweight permit load. It has been found that simple attention to the sounds made by a bridge when the load passes will call attention to possible broken diaphragm connections or lateral wind bracing connections that actually act as torsional bracing for curved and/or heavily skewed structures.
Texas Department of Motor Vehicles
  • The TxDMV, in conjunction with the mover, selects a route based on known information in the Bridge Inventory Files, day-to-day construction status, road closures, and other known route restrictions.