A 1,000 bu grain cart on a single axle with rubber tires does more damage to a public road than a small tractor on steel rims.
And you don’t see too many of the BTO’s running big carts getting cited for being overweight on a single axle, do you?
You just made that up.
I don’t think it was the steel wheels, it was the cleats. They are several inches long and are designed piece the ground for better traction.
Kind of like walking over hardwood floors with baseball cleats.
There's a much more important issue in this case. In most cases, the government does not own the land under the road, but possesses an easement by which the property owner grants permission to build the road. Should the road be torn out, the property would revert to the owner's exclusive use. I would think a reasonable case could be made that the farmer has an absolute right of way across the a public right of way ON HIS PROPERTY. In short, it's the government's responsibility not to interfere with his reasonable use of the rest of his land by building a road without a crossing capable of supporting the tractor.