Is This Legal? Iowa DOT Weighs In On… Unique Trailer [PHOTOS]

Now here’s something you don’t see every day, never mind just driving around on Iowa streets.

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I grew up around trucks. My family owns a milk trucking business so I have been no stranger to the workings of an 18-wheeler. Now can I hop in one and drive it? No, but that’s beside the point here.

As I was doing my morning Facebook scroll, I came across this photo that caught my attention. This driver truly MacGyvered his way into saving an extra trip.

These photos floating around on the Iowa DOT Motor Vehicle Enforcement page have sparked a mini “debate” in the comments. All around the question “is this even legal?”

And according to Iowa DOT, yes, yes, it is.

The Iowa DOT Motor Vehicle Enforcement commended the work saying that it is in fact legal “so long as it is structurally sound.”

Digging into the legality of this setup, it does not violate any length limits. As stated in the Iowa DOT truck guide, there are “no overall length limits on truck-tractor, semitrailer combinations.”

Many on the Facebook post started to look for safety violations on the truck to prove that it was illegal. Few pointed out that such as the brake away cable dangling.

However, the DOT answered these concerns by saying that the breakaway cables were noted on the inspection which was approved.

There seems there continue to be questioned on towing laws in Iowa. Just recently, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled against the placement of a ball hitch after much debate and split court decisions.