Minnesota Session Laws - 1990, Regular Session

  

                         Laws of Minnesota 1990 

                        CHAPTER 548-S.F.No. 2213 
           An act relating to traffic regulations; regulating 
          wheel flaps and covered loads; imposing a penalty; 
          amending Minnesota Statutes 1988, sections 169.733; 
          and 169.81, subdivision 5, and by adding a subdivision.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1988, section 169.733, is 
amended to read: 
    169.733 [WHEEL FLAPS ON TRUCKS AND TRAILERS.] 
    Subdivision 1.  [VEHICLES GENERALLY.] Every truck, trailer, 
semitrailer, pole trailer, and rear-end dump truck, excepting 
rear-end dump farm trucks and military vehicles of the United 
States, shall be provided with wheel flaps or other suitable 
protection above and behind the rearmost wheels of the vehicle 
or combination of vehicles to prevent, as far as practicable, 
such wheels from throwing dirt, water, or other materials on the 
windshields of vehicles which follow.  Such flaps or protectors 
shall be at least as wide as the tires they are protecting and 
shall have a ground clearance of not more than one-fifth of the 
horizontal distance from the center of the rearmost axle to the 
flap under any conditions of loading or operation of the motor 
vehicle.  
    Subd. 2.  [VEHICLE WITH CONVEYOR BELT.] Provided that in 
the case of For a dump truck or truck with a rigid box fastened 
to its frame and having a conveyor belt or chain in the bottom 
of the vehicle which moves the cargo to the rear end of the 
vehicle, the flaps shall be mounted as far to the rear of the 
vehicle as practicable and shall have a ground clearance of not 
more than 18 inches when the vehicle is loaded. 
    Subd. 3.  [BOTTOM-DUMP VEHICLES.] A bottom-dump cargo 
vehicle transporting sand, gravel, aggregate, dirt, lime rock, 
silica, or similar material must be equipped with flaps that are 
mounted to the rear of the axles, cover the entire width of the 
vehicle, and have a ground clearance of six inches or less when 
the vehicle is fully loaded.  
    Subd. 4.  [ALTERNATIVE REQUIREMENTS.] If the motor vehicle 
is so designed and constructed that the above requirements are 
accomplished by means of body construction or other means of 
enclosure, then no such protectors or flaps shall be required. 
    Subd. 5.  [EXTENDED FLAPS.] If the rear wheels are not 
covered at the top by fenders, body or other parts of the 
vehicle, the flap or other protective means shall be extended at 
least to a point directly above the center of the rearmost axle. 
    Subd. 6.  [LAMPS OR WIRING.] Lamps or wiring shall not be 
attached to fender flaps. 
     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1988, section 169.81, 
subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
    Subd. 5.  [MANNER OF LOADING.] No vehicle shall be driven 
or moved on any highway unless such vehicle is so constructed, 
loaded, or the load securely covered as to prevent any of its 
load from dropping, sifting, leaking, blowing, or otherwise 
escaping therefrom, except that sand may be dropped for the 
purpose of securing traction, or water or other substances may 
be sprinkled on a roadway in cleaning or maintaining such 
roadway.  This subdivision shall not apply to motor vehicles 
operated by a farmer or the farmer's agent when transporting 
produce the farmer has produced such as small grains, shelled 
corn, soybeans, or other farm produce of a size and density not 
likely to cause injury to persons or damage to property on 
escaping in small amounts from a vehicle.  Violation of this 
subdivision by a vehicle that is carrying farm produce and that 
is not exempted by the preceding sentence is a petty misdemeanor.
    Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1988, section 169.81, is 
amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
    Subd. 5b.  [SECURING OF LOADS; EXCEPTIONS.] (a) The driver 
of a vehicle transporting sand, gravel, aggregate, dirt, lime 
rock, silica, or similar material shall ensure that the cargo 
compartment of the vehicle is securely covered if:  
    (1) the vertical distance from the top of an exterior wall 
of the cargo compartment to the load, when measured downward 
along the inside surface of the wall, is less than six inches; 
or 
    (2) the horizontal distance from the top of an exterior 
wall of the cargo compartment to the load is less than two feet. 
    (b) The driver shall not operate a vehicle to transport 
sand, gravel, aggregate, dirt, lime rock, silica, or similar 
material in or on any part of the vehicle other than in the 
cargo container.  The driver shall clean the vehicle of loose 
sand, gravel, aggregate, dirt, lime rock, silica, or similar 
material before the vehicle is moved on a road, street, or 
highway following loading or unloading.  
    (c) A driver of a vehicle used to transport garbage, 
rubbish, trash, debris, or similar material is not required to 
cover the transported material as long as (1) the vehicle is 
being operated at a speed less than 30 miles per hour, (2) the 
vehicle is not being operated on an interstate highway, and (3) 
no part of the load escapes from the vehicle.  A driver shall 
immediately retrieve material that escapes from the vehicle, 
when safe to do so. 
    Presented to the governor April 26, 1990 
    Signed by the governor May 3, 1990, 4:58 p.m.