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Fla. Stat. § 316.555

civil infractionverified

Weight, load, speed limits may be lowered; condition precedent

How Florida classifies this section

Noncriminal traffic infraction (civil)

Except as provided in ss. 318.17 and 320.07(3)(c), any person cited for a violation of chapter 316, s. 320.0605, s. 320.07(3)(a) or (b), s. 322.065, s. 322.15(1), s. 322.16(2) or (3), s. 322.1615, s. 322.19, or s. 1006.66(3) is charged with a noncriminal infraction

§ 318.14(1), Fla. Stat., verbatim

The statute, verbatim

316.555 Weight, load, speed limits may be lowered; condition precedent. — Anything in this chapter to the contrary notwithstanding, the Department of Transportation with respect to state roads, and local authorities with respect to highways under their jurisdiction, may prescribe, by notice hereinafter provided for, loads and weights and speed limits lower than the limits prescribed in this chapter and other laws, whenever in its or their judgment any road or part thereof or any bridge or culvert shall, by reason of its design, deterioration, rain, or other climatic or natural causes be liable to be damaged or destroyed by motor vehicles, trailers, or semitrailers, if the gross weight or speed limit thereof shall exceed the limits prescribed in said notice. The Department of Transportation or local authority may, by like notice, regulate or prohibit, in whole or in part, the operation of any specified class or size of motor vehicles, trailers, or semitrailers on any highways or specified parts thereof under its or their jurisdiction, whenever in its or their judgment, such regulation or prohibition is necessary to provide for the public safety and convenience on the highways, or parts thereof, by reason of traffic density, intensive use thereof by the traveling public, or other reasons of public safety and convenience. The notice or the substance thereof shall be posted at conspicuous places at terminals of all intermediate crossroads and road junctions with the section of highway to which the notice shall apply. After any such notice has been posted, the operation of any motor vehicle or combination contrary to its provisions shall constitute a violation of this chapter. However, no limitation shall be established by any county, municipal, or other local authorities pursuant to the provisions of this section that would interfere with or interrupt traffic as authorized hereunder over state roads, including officially established detours for such highways, including cases where such traffic passes over roads, streets or thoroughfares within the sole jurisdiction of the county, municipal or other local authorities unless such limitations and further restrictions have first been approved by the Department of Transportation. With respect to county roads, except such as are in use as state road detours, the respective county road authorities shall have full power and authority to further limit the weights of vehicles upon bridges and culverts upon such public notice as they deem sufficient, and existing laws applicable thereto shall not be affected by the terms of this chapter. History. — s. 1, ch. 71-135; s. 1, ch. 76-31. Note. — Former s. 316.202.

sha256 3613b6e8cf6eb9857d5a2d8276daf985… · 2025 Fla. Stat., dual fetch-path pipeline · permanent corpus page →

Which text, as of when

2025 Florida Statuteslast amended 1976

Decoded against the 2025 Florida Statutes as ingested — dual fetch-path verified, hash-pinned. Session laws amend sections on their own effective dates; the 2026 Laws of Florida are indexed as the corpus's overlay.

History. — s. 1, ch. 71-135; s. 1, ch. 76-31. Note. — Former s. 316.202.

License points — the scale, shown

Point values attach on conviction, under § 322.27(3)(d)'s graduated scale. Which row a case lands on can turn on facts the citation and the disposition determine — the rows that could reach this section are shown with their own words and conditions. The scale is shown, not applied.

3 points§ 322.27(3)(d) row 8

All other moving violations (including parking on a highway outside the limits of a municipality)—3 points.

4 points§ 322.27(3)(d) row 9only resulting in a crash (speed and wireless-device rows carry their own crash values)

Any moving violation covered in this paragraph, excluding unlawful speed and unlawful use of a wireless communications device, resulting in a crash—4 points.

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Questions drivers ask

Is a section 316.555 ticket criminal or a civil infraction in Florida?

Section 316.555 sits in the noncriminal traffic infraction framework: Except as provided in ss. 318.17 and 320.07(3)(c), any person cited for a violation of chapter 316, s. 320.0605, s. 320.07(3)(a) or (b), s. 322.065, s. 322.15(1), s. 322.16(2) or (3), s. 322.1615, s. 322.19, or s. 1006.6… (§ 318.14(1), Fla. Stat.). The § 318.17 criminal exceptions do not name this section.

What is the deadline after a section 316.555 citation?

Under § 318.14(4)(a), a person charged with a noncriminal infraction who does not elect to appear generally has 30 days after the date of issuance to pay or enter the clerk's payment plan. The War Room computes the exact window from your citation's issuance date, arithmetic shown, and § 318.15 states what follows a missed window. Verify any date with the clerk of the county on the citation.

What are the options after a section 316.555 ticket?

The § 318.14 menu, where it applies: pay the penalty (an admission by statute), enter a payment plan, elect the basic driver improvement course where eligible (adjudication withheld, no points, once per 12 months and eight times lifetime), or request the infraction hearing where the state must prove the infraction beyond a reasonable doubt (§ 318.14(6)). Any option can be walked with a licensed attorney — choosing is yours, or one to make with counsel.

How many license points can section 316.555 carry?

Points attach on conviction under § 322.27(3)(d)'s graduated scale. The rows that could reach this section carry 3, 4 points, with conditions the statute itself states (crash involvement, speed over the limit, school-zone factors). The scale is shown, not applied — which row fits a case depends on facts the citation and the disposition determine.

Can this page tell me what to do about my ticket?

No — and that line is the product. It shows the statute verbatim, the classification, the point rows, and the options with their stated consequences. What to do about a specific ticket is a decision for you, or for a licensed attorney; the free War Room decodes your citation, and the attorney connection is free to request with the firm billing directly.

Related sections

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