(A)(1) No vehicle, unladen or with load, may exceed a height of thirteen feet six inches except that the height of an automobile transporter unit or a heavy truck transporting one or more other heavy trucks in a saddle mount combination may not exceed fourteen feet. Automobile transporters and heavy trucks transporting one or more other heavy trucks in a saddle mount combination are responsible for any personal injury or property damage resulting from operating a unit at a height in excess of thirteen feet six inches.

(2) To qualify for the fourteen foot exception contained in subsection (A)(1), the owner or operator of the heavy truck transporting one or more other heavy trucks in a saddle mount combination must have a valid routing permit issued by the Department of Transportation. All applicants shall be issued routing permits at no charge upon providing the department with evidence of its general liability coverage. Routing permits shall remain valid for twelve months from the date of issuance and specify the routes that may be traveled by the permittee and the conditions the permittee must observe while transporting heavy trucks in a saddle mount combination. Routing permits do not limit or otherwise affect the holder’s liability for personal injuries or property damage.

(B) It is unlawful for any person to operate or attempt to operate under any underpass having a vertical clearance of less than thirteen feet six inches any vehicle with a height in excess of the vertical clearance of the underpass posted in accordance with the manual on uniform traffic-control devices provided for in § 56-5-920. No person is required to raise, alter, construct, or reconstruct any existing underpass, wire, pole, trestle, or other structure to permit the passage of any vehicle, and neither the State nor any of its agencies or political subdivisions are liable for any personal injury or property damage resulting from the operation of a vehicle over any highway, road, or bridge or through any underpass having a vertical clearance of less than fourteen feet where the Department of Transportation or other body having maintenance jurisdiction of the underpass has posted notice of the reduced vertical clearance in accordance with the manual on uniform traffic-control devices provided for in § 56-5-920.