Brazil’s Federal Highway Police (PRF) activated its annual Labour-Day road-safety drive on 30 November, but the most disruptive element kicked in this week: from Wednesday afternoon through Sunday night (4 December) trucks requiring an Autorização Especial de Trânsito (AET) are barred from BR-163 and several parallel corridors across Mato Grosso, the country’s grain powerhouse.
The restriction targets over-dimensioned, hazardous-materials or escorted convoys, which PRF says slow traffic and elevate crash risks during a four-day weekend that floods highways with holidaymakers. Non-compliance brings a R$1,467 fine and three demerit points; police escorts are withdrawn for non-essential hauls.
![Holiday Highway Blitz Bans Oversize Loads on Mato Grosso’s Export Corridors]()
For exporters and project-cargo shippers, timing is awkward. Soy processors in Sorriso and meat-packers in Rondonópolis typically dispatch end-week consignments to reach coastal ports before Monday futures cut-off. Logistics firms are diverting loads to storage yards near Cuiabá or rerouting via the Ferrovia Norte-Sul rail line, though capacity is tight.
Global-mobility managers supervising expatriate drivers or engineers must verify that transport partners have contingency plans and ensure any AET-exempt cargo carries documentation proving eligibility. PRF hinted the clamp-down could be extended if outbound traffic remains heavy—worth monitoring for teams relocating equipment in the run-up to Carnival construction projects.
Tip: book roadside accommodation early; past blitzes have seen unscheduled lay-overs sell out along BR-163.
The restriction targets over-dimensioned, hazardous-materials or escorted convoys, which PRF says slow traffic and elevate crash risks during a four-day weekend that floods highways with holidaymakers. Non-compliance brings a R$1,467 fine and three demerit points; police escorts are withdrawn for non-essential hauls.
For exporters and project-cargo shippers, timing is awkward. Soy processors in Sorriso and meat-packers in Rondonópolis typically dispatch end-week consignments to reach coastal ports before Monday futures cut-off. Logistics firms are diverting loads to storage yards near Cuiabá or rerouting via the Ferrovia Norte-Sul rail line, though capacity is tight.
Global-mobility managers supervising expatriate drivers or engineers must verify that transport partners have contingency plans and ensure any AET-exempt cargo carries documentation proving eligibility. PRF hinted the clamp-down could be extended if outbound traffic remains heavy—worth monitoring for teams relocating equipment in the run-up to Carnival construction projects.
Tip: book roadside accommodation early; past blitzes have seen unscheduled lay-overs sell out along BR-163.
