Vehicle marking/Identification - Colorado

Federal regulations

The Colorado Department of Public Safety has adopted Sec. 390.21 of the Federal Regulations.

All commercial vehicles operating solely in intrastate transportation must display their USDOT number followed by “CO” on all vehicles.

Applicability

Sec. 390.21 applies to a self-propelled or towed vehicle bearing an apportioned plate or having a manufacturer’s gross vehicle weight rating or gross combination rating of at least 16,001 pounds. Sec. 390.21 also applies to a vehicle used on a public highway to transport a placardable amount of hazardous materials.

Exception — Repossessors as defined in Sec. 42-6-146(4), CRS are not subject to the marking requirements in Sec. 390.21.

Additional requirements

Combination vehicles with a GVWR or GCWR equal to or in excess of 16,001 pounds, but not in excess of 26,000 pounds, and not transporting placarded hazardous materials, may meet the requirements of Sec. 390.21 by marking the trailer or secondary unit if the power unit GVWR is less than 16,001 pounds.

VIN Display — Colorado law no longer requires power units to display the last 8 digits of the vehicle’s serial number on the passenger side of the vehicle. Although Colorado systems are designed to use the VIN marking, which does allow units to clear the ports and weigh stations more quickly, the state is working on alternate methods to expedite clearing Colorado ports.

Interstate

All commercial motor carriers (for-hire and private) operating interstate are subject to the marking requirements of 49 CFR 390.21 which requires all CMVs to display, on both sides of the power unit, the US DOT number and the legal name of the business entity that owns or controls the motor carrier operation, or the “doing business as” (DBA) name, as it appears on the Form MCS-150.

Any new or used commercial vehicles added to a motor carrier’s fleet must be identified with the US DOT number and single trade name before being put into service.

The regulations do not require the MC number, city, or state to be displayed on the vehicle.

VIN display: Colorado law no longer requires power units to display the last 8 digits of the vehicle’s serial number on the passenger side of the vehicle. Although Colorado systems are designed to use the VIN marking, which does allow units to clear the ports and weigh stations more quickly, the state is working on alternate methods to expedite clearing Colorado ports.