Texas Pilot Cars / Escort Vechicle Requirements

Escort Vehicles

• General escort and equipment requirements apply to both permitted vehicles and escort vehicles.
• Hauling more than one item may not cause nor increase a dimension or weight that exceeds Texas legal size and weight limits. For example, 10' wide steel plates may be stacked provided the overall height does not exceed 14' and the weight does not exceed legal axle or gross weight limits.
• Review your permit for specific conditions that apply to your load and movement

General

The escort flag vehicle operator must warn the traveling public when any of the following conditions exists:

• A permitted vehicle must travel over the center line of a narrow bridge or roadway.
• A permitted vehicle makes any turning movement that will require the permitted vehicle to travel in the opposing traffic lanes.
• A permitted vehicle reduces speed to cross under a low overhead obstruction or over a bridge.
• A permitted vehicle creates an abnormal and unusual traffic flow pattern.

See the Special Escort Requirements section for manufactured housing and portable building escorts. Escort requirements for most loads and permit types are listed below.

If a load exceeds escort requirements in two dimensions, front and rear escorts are required. For example, if a load is 16-feet wide and 112-feet long, one escort is required for the width and one escort is required for the length. This rule does not apply if the two dimensions are length and overhang.

Convoy 

Overlength loads may convoy and share escorts under the following conditions:

• 110 feet to 150 feet long – Convoy up to four loads with one front and one rear escort
• 150 feet, 1 inch to 180 feet long – Convoy two loads with one front and one rear escort

Each permitted load in the convoy must:

• Travel at least 1,000 feet, but not more than 2,000 feet, from any other load in the convoy.
• Have a rotating amber beacon or an amber pulsating light not less than eight inches in diameter mounted at the top, rear of the load.

Equipment 

Escort vehicles are required to be a single unit with a gross vehicle weight of not less than 1,000 pounds and not more than 10,000 pounds. Escort flag vehicles must be equipped as follows:

Lights

An escort flag vehicle must have two flashing amber lights or one rotating amber beacon of not less than eight inches in diameter fixed to the roof of the escort flag vehicle. The light must be visible from all sides of the escort flag vehicle.

Starting Sept. 1, 2019, escort flag vehicles may be equipped with alternating or flashing blue and amber lights.

Signs

An escort flag vehicle must display a sign on either the roof of the vehicle or the front and/or rear of the vehicle with the words "OVERSIZE" or "WIDE LOAD." The sign must be:

• Size – 5 to 7 feet in length, 12 to 18 inches in height
• Color - yellow background with black lettering
• Size of lettering – 8 to 10 inches high with a brush stroke at least 1.41 inches wide
• Visibility - visible from the front and rear of the vehicle while escorting the permitted load
• The sign must not be used at any other time.

Flags

Warning flags must be made of red or orange fluorescent material and at least 12-inches square. Flags should be securely mounted on a staff or securely fastened to at least one corner to the widest extremities of the overwidth vehicle and placed at the rear of an overlength vehicle or vehicle with a rear overhang in excess of four feet.

Radio

An escort flag vehicle must maintain two-way communications with the permitted vehicle and other escort flag vehicles involved with the movement of the permitted vehicle.

Height pole

Any permitted vehicle that exceeds 17-feet in height must have a front escort flag vehicle equipped with a height pole made of nonconductive metal to accurately measure overhead obstructions.

Special Requirements

Manufactured housing and portable buildings have special escort requirements when moved under the provisions of permit types specific to these load types.

The number of required escorts and escort placement are as follows:

• If the load exceeds 16 feet wide, but does not exceed 18-feet wide, one escort is required. If traveling on a two-lane highway, the escort must be in the front of the load. If traveling on a highway with four or more lanes, the escort must be in the rear.
• If the load exceeds 18 feet wide, two escorts are required: one in the front and one in the rear.
• Two manufactured homes or two sections of a multi-section manufactured home may be moved in a convoy and share the required escorts if the distance between the two units does not exceed 1,000 feet.

Lights

A manufactured house over 12 feet wide must have one rotating amber beacon not less than eight inches in diameter mounted somewhere on the roof at the rear of the manufactured house. Or, instead of a roof beacon, two five-inch flashing amber lights may be mounted approximately six feet from ground level at the rear corners of the manufactured house.

The towing vehicle is required to have one rotating amber beacon not less than eight inches in diameter mounted on the top of the cab. These beacons are to be operational and luminous during any permitted move over the highway.

Motorcycles

An official law enforcement motorcycle may be used as a primary escort flag vehicle for a permitted vehicle traveling within the limits of an incorporated city if a highway patrol officer, sheriff, duly authorized deputy or municipal police officer operates the motorcycle.

An escort motorcycle must maintain two-way radio communications with the permitted vehicle and other escort vehicles involved with the movement of the permitted vehicle.

Source of information: https://www.txdmv.gov/oversize-weight-permits/escort-and-equipment-requirements