Lake County Sheriff’s Office issues statement on Vehicle Weight Limit Enforcement

Lake County Sheriff Oscar Martinez Jr. released the following statement regarding vehicle weight limit enforcement:

As of June 2025, I have directed the Lake County Sheriff’s Department Traffic Unit to initiate enforcement operations targeting overweight vehicles which are damaging roadways and impacting driver safety along the state line in southwest Lake County.

Beginning this month, the Lake County Sheriff’s Department will send more than 60 warning notices to companies and individuals operating vehicles in violation of weight limits.

From this point forward, traffic citations will be issued to those continuing to ignore weight restrictions on county roadways. I urge anyone using our roads to be aware that they will be subject to receiving a traffic citation which will require them to appear in court if their vehicle exceeds the weight limit.

Lake County has a 15-ton limit on the following roads:

• 197^th from US-41 west to State Line Road
• 185^th from US-41 west to State Line Road
• 151^st from US-41 west to State Line Road

We are taking this proactive approach to help reduce the kind of heavy traffic on weight restricted roads that causes significant wear and tear to the roads.  The accelerated degradation of the roads leads to increased maintenance costs for taxpayers.  In addition, overweight vehicles also pose a safety risk for people operating farm equipment and for other drivers who may have difficulty navigating these roads because of vehicles barred from these areas.

We have worked with the Lake County Highway Department to increase signage to make drivers more aware.

We encourage members of the public to call the Lake County Sheriff’s Department Traffic Unit at 219-755-3392 if they witness vehicles violating the weight limit.

Public safety is our top priority and your cooperation helps keep out roads safe and serviceable for everyone.

-Sheriff Oscar Martinez Jr.