Crane Transport & Hauling
Rough terrain, all terrain and crawler cranes, planned load by load
Quick answer
How do they transport large cranes?
By type. An all terrain crane travels on its own five axles under an overweight permit, with most of its counterweight on separate trucks. A crawler crane is taken apart and hauled as a base unit plus crawlers, counterweights and boom sections: Manitowoc's plan for one MLC165-1 setup is nine trailer loads. A rough terrain crane, built for job sites, rides a lowboy or RGN.
Updated November 2026 by the HTS Logistics broker team (FMCSA MC# 1178470).
Crane transport is the part of heavy equipment transport where the load count changes most: one crane can be a single trailer load, a permit load that drives itself with counterweight trucks behind it, or nine trailers, depending on its type.
HTS Logistics, a licensed property broker, builds that load plan from the manufacturer's transport data and your crane's configuration, books a carrier for each piece and arranges the permits. The figures here come from Manitowoc (including Grove), Link-Belt, Tadano and Liebherr documents for six cranes, checked in October 2026.
How each type of crane is hauled: dimensions and weights
Six cranes, as their makers publish them for road travel. Rough terrain cranes are shown stripped where the maker's tables allow it, the all terrain crane on its own axles, and the crawlers as base units only. Road height is our estimate on a deck about 2 ft high, except for the all terrain crane, which rides on its own tires:
| Crane | How it moves | Size as moved (L x W x H) | Road height (est.) | Weight as moved | Ships separately |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rough terrain Grove RT765E-2 Manitowoc lists it as non-current; data fits units in service | On an RGN or lowboy | 44 ft 8 in x 10 ft 11 in x 11 ft 10 in | about 13 ft 10 in | 89,349 lbbasic machine, 14,365 lb counterweight pinned on | Bi-fold swingaway, hook block, headache ball |
| Rough terrain Link-Belt 100|RT | On an RGN or lowboy | 50 ft 7 in x 10 ft 11 in x 12 ft 7 in | about 14 ft 7 in | 88,450 lbstripped; computed from Link-Belt's axle-load table | 28,800 lb self-removing counterweight, two-piece fly, hook block, hook ball |
| Rough terrain Tadano GR-1000XL-4 | On an RGN or lowboy | 47 ft 2 in x 10 ft 11 in x 12 ft 6 in | about 14 ft 6 in | 92,210 lbstripped; computed from Tadano's axle-weight chart | 20,100 lb self-removable counterweight, base and top jib, hook block, hook ball |
| All terrain Liebherr LTM 1100-5.2 replaced by the LTM 1100-5.3; data fits units in service | Drives on its own five axles under permit | 44 ft 9 in x 9 ft 0 in x 13 ft 1 in | 13 ft 1 in on its own tires | 132,277 lb60 t road weight (132,000 lb on Liebherr's US sheet) with 25,353 lb of counterweight and the jib aboard | The other 23.5 t (51,809 lb) of counterweight |
| Crawler Manitowoc MLC165-1 | Base unit on an RGN or lowboy, components on other trailers | 34 ft 7 in x 9 ft 10 in x 10 ft 6 in | about 12 ft 6 in | 84,000 lbbase unit | Crawlers, counterweight tray and boxes, carbody counterweights, boom and jib sections |
| Crawler Liebherr LR 1160.1 | Base unit on an RGN or lowboy, components on other trailers | 33 ft 10 in x 9 ft 10 in x 10 ft 5 in | about 12 ft 5 in | 77,162 lbbase unit, without hoist rope | Crawler side frames, rear and carbody counterweights, boom foot, head and sections |
Rough terrain crane transport
Rough terrain cranes are built for job sites, not highways: Grove lists a top speed of 23 mph for the RT765E-2 and Tadano 22 mph for the GR-1000XL-4, so road moves put them on a lowboy or RGN. All three in our data are about 10 ft 11 in wide across the carrier and 11 ft 10 in to 12 ft 7 in tall, so on a deck about 2 ft high they stand about 13 ft 10 in to 14 ft 7 in. Every one needs width, height and overweight permits.
The models differ in what comes off. Link-Belt and Tadano build their counterweights to remove themselves hydraulically: three slabs totaling 28,800 lb on the 100|RT and 20,100 lb on the GR-1000XL-4, and Link-Belt states the 100|RT transports at under 95,000 lb without counterweight. Grove's RT765E-2 carries a 14,365 lb counterweight pinned to the superstructure, with a hydraulic removable counterweight only as an option, and Grove publishes no weight without it, so we plan from its 89,349 lb basic machine figure.
Small settings change the numbers. Link-Belt's suspension lowers for transport, from a 12 ft 11 in working height to 12 ft 7 in, and Tadano quotes its dimensions with the boom at minus 1.5 degrees. Overall lengths run from 44 ft 8 in (Grove) to 50 ft 7 in (Link-Belt) before the trailer is counted.
Height decides the escorts. In New York a load 14 ft or taller needs a front escort with a height pole, which catches the Link-Belt (about 14 ft 7 in loaded) and the Tadano (about 14 ft 6 in) but not the Grove (about 13 ft 10 in). Pennsylvania's line is over 14 ft 6 in, where it adds a height-pole pilot car, a route survey and 24-hour utility notice; the Link-Belt crosses it. Weight is the other line: with a tractor and trailer under it, any of the three passes the 120,000 lb gross that makes a load an Ohio superload.
All terrain crane transport: driving on permit
An all terrain crane is close to legal size but far over legal axle weight. Liebherr's LTM 1100-5.2 travels on five axles at 12 t each, 60 t in all (132,000 lb on Liebherr's US sheet), carrying 25,353 lb of counterweight and its double folding jib. That is 26,400 lb per axle against the 20,000 lb federal single-axle limit, so it moves under an overweight permit.
It is 9 ft 0 in wide on the standard US 445/95 R25 tires and 9 ft 4 in on 525/80 R25 tires, so a width permit applies too. At 13 ft 1 in tall, or 12 ft 10 in with the suspension lowered, it stays under a 13 ft 6 in limit.
At 132,000 lb gross, the same crane is a routine overweight permit in New York and Pennsylvania, whose superload lines start at 200,000 and 201,000 lb, but a superload in Ohio (over 120,000 lb) and in Massachusetts, where anything over 130,000 lb pays the $300 super load fee and needs engineering calculations (see our Massachusetts oversize permit rules). Florida lets a permitted mobile crane travel at any hour outside local curfews if it is no wider than 12 ft, no taller than 14 ft 6 in and no longer than 100 ft (F.S. 316.550), and this one qualifies; the Florida oversize permit rules cover the rest.
The rest of the counterweight is the logistics problem. The crane uses 35 t (77,200 lb) of counterweight in total, and only the 6.5 t base plate and 5 t top plate ride on it. The remaining 23.5 t, in 3 t, 8 t and 3.5 t slabs and two 4.5 t side blocks, is hauled to the job separately. Liebherr does not say how many trucks that takes, so we size those loads from the slab weights. Liebherr has since replaced this model with the LTM 1100-5.3; the 5.2's data still applies to units in service.
Crawler crane transport: counting the loads
Crawler cranes are too heavy and too wide to move assembled, so they are broken into a base unit and components. Manitowoc publishes a load plan for the MLC165-1 set up with a 276 ft No. 74A boom, an 80 ft No. 134 fixed jib and Series 2 counterweight: nine trailer loads, before blocking and straps.
| Load | Contents | Payload | Weight check on a standard rig |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Basic crane: carbody, upperworks, cab, mast and drums | 84,000 lb | Overweight permit |
| 2 | Crawler plus 19.7 ft boom insert | 34,200 lb | Usually legal |
| 3 | Crawler plus insert with sheaves | 35,200 lb | Borderline |
| 4 | Side counterweight, carbody counterweight, boom top | 41,125 lb | Borderline |
| 5 | Side counterweight, carbody counterweight, boom butt, 5,000 lb miscellaneous | 49,723 lb | Overweight permit |
| 6 | Three side counterweights plus 39.4 ft insert | 36,275 lb | Borderline |
| 7 | Three side counterweights plus 39.4 ft insert | 36,275 lb | Borderline |
| 8 | Counterweight tray plus 9.8 ft insert | 36,550 lb | Borderline |
| 9 | Counterweight tray plus insert with sheaves | 35,834 lb | Borderline |
Read the payloads against the 45,000 lb line. The base unit and load 5 are over it and need overweight permits; the other seven sit between 34,200 and 41,125 lb, light enough that a well-matched tractor and trailer may run them legal. The components are narrow too: the crawlers are 4 ft 4 in wide and the side counterweights 6 ft 8 in by 5 ft 5 in, so the width permit falls on the 9 ft 10 in base unit. Manitowoc's listed items for load 9 add up to 38,100 lb, more than the printed 35,834 lb, so we would plan that load at the higher figure.
Liebherr's LR 1160.1 breaks down the same way: a 77,162 lb base machine (Liebherr gives a maximum transport width of 9.84 ft), two 38,576 lb crawler side frames, 137,400 lb of rear counterweight in one 26,500 lb slab and ten 11,000 lb slabs, two 22,000 lb carbody counterweights, and the boom foot, head and sections. Liebherr does not publish a load count, but its total operating weight of about 167 t (368,172 lb) shows the scale.
Which trailer does each crane load need?
Each piece of a crane move is matched to its own trailer:
| Load | Trailer | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Rough terrain crane | RGN or lowboy | 88,000 to 92,000 lb as hauled and 11 ft 10 in to 12 ft 7 in tall, so it needs a low deck and overweight capacity |
| Crawler crane base unit | RGN or lowboy | 77,162 to 84,000 lb and 10 ft 5 in to 10 ft 6 in tall; about 12 ft 5 in to 12 ft 6 in on a low deck |
| All terrain crane | None: drives on its own axles | Axle loads of 26,400 lb need an overweight permit; separate trucks carry the rest of the counterweight |
| Crawlers, counterweights, boom sections | Open-deck trailers matched to each piece | Most pieces are under 8 ft 6 in wide; weight per load is the limit |
An RGN trailer with a low deck can take a rough terrain crane out of height-permit range. On a low-profile RGN with a 14 to 15 in loaded deck, such as Trail King's TKHD-S or XL's 110 HDGS, the Grove's 11 ft 10 in carrier rides at about 13 ft 0 in, under 13 ft 6 in, if the trailer is rated for the weight; the taller Link-Belt and Tadano still need a height permit. Escort triggers for every state are in our oversize permit rules by state, and the oversize load checker tests a crane's loaded size against 48 states at once.
How much does crane shipping cost?
Price follows the load count. A rough terrain crane is one permitted lowboy load; an all terrain crane drives on permit, but its 23.5 t of loose counterweight needs trucks; a crawler crane can be nine or more trailers, each with its own rate, permits and escorts. We quote once the load plan is set.
Our guide to the cost to ship a crane or any other machine shows how each load is priced: the miles at the carrier's per-mile rate, with fuel, permits, escorts, crossings and loading added.
What we need to plan a crane move
The configuration decides the load plan, so these come first:
- Make, model and year, and the configuration it leaves in: boom length, jib, counterweight package, hook blocks.
- For rough terrain and all terrain cranes: what comes off before loading (counterweight, jib, blocks) and how.
- For crawler cranes: the manufacturer's load list for your configuration if you have it, plus any extra boom or jib sections.
- Options that add weight, such as auxiliary power units or extra counterweight.
- Pickup and delivery site access, ground conditions and room to unload or assemble.
Crane transport questions
How much does a rough terrain crane weigh for transport?
In our data, roughly 88,000 to 92,000 lb as hauled. A Link-Belt 100|RT is about 88,450 lb with its 28,800 lb counterweight, fly, hook block and ball removed, a Tadano GR-1000XL-4 about 92,210 lb stripped the same way (both computed from the makers' own weight tables), and Grove's RT765E-2 weighs 89,349 lb as a basic machine, counterweight (14,365 lb) still pinned on. All need overweight permits.
Can a crane drive itself to a job site?
An all terrain crane can. The Liebherr LTM 1100-5.2 drives on five axles at 26,400 lb each, 132,000 lb in total, under an overweight permit, with most of its counterweight hauled separately. Rough terrain cranes are not built for highway travel, with top speeds of 22 to 23 mph, so road moves put them on a trailer. Crawler cranes are taken apart and hauled.
How many truckloads does it take to move a crawler crane?
It depends on the crane and its configuration. Manitowoc's own load plan for an MLC165-1 with a 276 ft boom, 80 ft fixed jib and Series 2 counterweight lists nine trailer loads: the 84,000 lb base unit plus eight loads of crawlers, counterweights and boom sections. Longer booms and bigger counterweight packages add loads.
Does crane counterweight ship separately?
Usually, at least in part. Link-Belt and Tadano design the 100|RT and GR-1000XL-4 counterweights to remove themselves hydraulically before transport. On the Liebherr LTM 1100-5.2, only 11.5 t of its 35 t of counterweight stays aboard for road travel. On crawler cranes the counterweight is its own set of loads; the Liebherr LR 1160.1 carries 137,400 lb of rear counterweight alone.
Do crane loads need escorts?
Often, for height rather than width. Rough terrain cranes are about 10 ft 11 in wide, under the 12 to 14 ft width triggers across the Northeast, but on a deck about 2 ft high two of the three in our data reach 14 ft, where New York requires a front escort with a height pole. Massachusetts also requires a following pilot car for any crane on the Mass Pike and the Boston highway system (700 CMR 7.07).
Can spec sheet weights be used to permit a crane?
Only as a starting point. Link-Belt states its weights are within plus or minus 3%, Grove's metric and imperial guides for the RT765E-2 give different basic machine weights, and options add weight, such as 780 lb for the auxiliary power unit on the Tadano GR-1000XL-4. We confirm the actual configuration and weights with you before permits are ordered.
Do you also rig or assemble the crane at the site?
No. HTS Logistics arranges the road move: the carriers, trailers, permits and escorts for each load. Assembly, rigging and any assist crane on site are handled by the crane's owner or a rigging contractor. Crawler bases such as the Liebherr LR 1160.1 carry jack-up legs, and the Manitowoc MLC165-1 offers self-assembly jacks, which raise the base for loading and unloading.
Sources
Facts on this page were checked in October 2026 against the sources below. Rules and rates change; we confirm current requirements on every move.
- Grove RT765E-2 (Grove RT765E-2 Product Guide, ANSI B30.5 Imperial 85%, ©2020, Part No. 10-009-2M-0721PDF)
- Link-Belt 100|RT (Link-Belt 100RT Technical Data, Specifications & Capacities, 5808-0820-T9, ©2019)
- Tadano GR-1000XL-4 (Tadano GR-1000XL-4 Technical Data Imperial, February 2025, ©Tadano Ltd. 2025)
- Liebherr LTM 1100-5.2 (Liebherr LTM 1100-5.2 Technical Data, lwe-td-206-00-defisr10-2017 (metric/multilingual), hosted by Nordic Crane)
- Manitowoc MLC165-1 (Manitowoc MLC165-1 Product Guide ASME B30.5 Imperial, ©2022, Part No. 15-001/.15/0622)
- Liebherr LR 1160.1 (Liebherr LR 1160.1 Crawler crane technical data, EN-US, LR 1003.04.08)
- eCFR: 23 CFR Part 658, truck size and weight (658.15 width; 658.17 gross and axle weights)
- NYSDOT: NYS Certified Escort Manual 2025
- NYSDOT: Superloads (Type 1S permits, bonds, police escorts)
- 67 Pa. Code 179.10: permit conditions and pilot cars
- ODOT: Operational Guide for Vehicles Operating with a Special Hauling Permit (superload definition, escorts)
- MassDOT: 700 CMR 8.00, permits and fees (super loads over 130,000 lb)
- MassDOT: 700 CMR 7.00, Turnpike and Metropolitan Highway System (pilot cars)
- F.S. 316.550: special permits, including mobile cranes (Florida)
- Trail King TKHD-S one-pager (14 in loaded deck height), 2026
- XL Specialized low-profile HDG (XL 110 HDGS, 15 in loaded deck)
Get a crane transport quote
Send the crane's make, model and year, the configuration it will travel in, and the pickup and delivery sites. We build the load plan from the manufacturer's data, then book a carrier and arrange permits for each load.
- FMCSA-licensed property broker, MC# 1178470
- Permits, escorts and route surveys arranged for each move
- Carriers checked for authority, insurance and safety record
- Commercial shippers, dealers, contractors and auction buyers
Prefer to talk? Call (631) 683-8275.
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