Heavy haul trucking: transportation challenge in Alaska.

• Author: Barbour, Tracy
• Position: TRANSPORTATION

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Heavy haul trucking is a specialized and demanding business that presents a unique set of challenges--especially in Alaska. The most common heavy haul moves in Alaska involve "overweight and oversize" equipment, including excavators, dozers, loaders and cranes. More specialized moves entail bridge girders, mobile drill rigs, wind mill generators, houses and even airplanes. Some of the heaviest shipments in the state have included transporting 446,000 pounds of module units for Prudhoe Bay and moving a 416,000-pound refinery reactor from Anchorage to Kenai, according to Dan K. Breeden, director of the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, Division of Measurement Standards and Commercial Vehicle Enforcement.

"I generally think of overweight or over-dimensional loads as anything over the legal weight or over the legal size of 8 feet 6 inches wide, 15 feet high, or greater than 75 feet long," Breeden says.

In the Municipality of Anchorage, for example, weight restrictions for legal axle loads may apply to all vehicles over 10,000 gross vehicle weight. These restrictions--designed to reduce pavement damage to roads during spring breakup--are normally required from March/April through May. The duration of the restrictions depends on the weather and temperature. The existence and condition of bridges along heavy haul routes can also impact weight restrictions.

"Anything over 428,000 pounds is pretty much a show-stopper on all routes, if there are bridges involved," Breeden says.

SPECIAL HANDLING

For Carlile Transportation Systems, heavy haul trucking equates to more than moving things that are extremely large, long or heavy. It also involves special handling requirements, says Gene Carlson, Carlile's vice president of special projects.

Typical heavy haul freight for Carlile includes machinery, oil field materials (pre-fab modular buildings weighing up to 110 tons), construction materials and refinery materials for expansions and upgrades. The company also provides special handling for helicopters and other high-value pieces. When moving these items, special provisions can be made to ensure extra protection during transport, including a securement plan, tarping and limited speed. In addition, Carlile uses powerful Kenworth tractors to support heavier loads.

"We order them with a larger radiator (to dissipate the heater), larger rear ends (for more weight capacity), a stranger frame, a larger transmission and a larger motor," Carlson says.

For Carlile, heavy haul trucking helps its clients solve complex logistical problems. The company's wholly-owned terminals serve Alaska from Anchorage, Fairbanks, Kenai, Kodiak, Prudhoe Bay and...