CHAPTER 1
TRAFFIC AND MOTOR VEHICLES
Article 1 TRAFFIC ORDERS
6.1.102 Purpose of Article.
The purpose of this article is to establish a procedure for the adoption of traffic regulations applying to particular streets, highways, intersections, or areas within this City.
6.1.104 Establishment of Regulations.
The City Engineer may make traffic orders establishing any of the following regulations:
a. Regulating traffic by means of semaphores or other official traffic-control devices;
b. Designating particular highways as one-way highways and requiring that all vehicles thereon be moved in one specified direction;
c. Closing any highway or a portion of it, when in the opinion of the City Engineer, the highway is no longer needed or cannot safely be used for vehicular traffic;
d. Designating any highway as a through highway and requiring that all vehicles stop before entering or crossing the highway;
e. Designating any intersection as a stop intersection and requiring all vehicles to stop at one or more entrances to the intersection;
f. Prohibiting the use of particular highways by certain vehicles, except as otherwise provided by the Public Utilities Commission pursuant to Article 2 of Chapter 5 of Part 1 of Division 1 of the Public Utilities Code of the State of California;
g. Closing particular streets during regular school hours for the purpose of conducting automobile driver training programs in the secondary schools and colleges in the City;
h. Closing to vehicular traffic that portion of any street or highway crossing or dividing any school grounds when in the opinion of the City Engineer the closing is necessary for the protection of persons attending the school or using the school grounds. The closing to vehicular traffic may be limited to the hours and days that the City Engineer may specify;
i. Establishing crosswalks between intersections;
j. Directing that pedestrians shall not cross in a crosswalk indicated at an intersection;
k. Regulating vehicular traffic on privately owned and maintained roads or ways within the boundaries of a privately owned airport, when the roads or ways are expressly open to the general public for purposes of vehicular traffic;
l. Regulating vehicular and pedestrian traffic in subways, tubes, and tunnels or on bridges or viaducts;
m. Requiring that all vehicles stop before entering or crossing the tracks at any highway railroad grade crossing;
n. Regulating vehicular traffic on privately owned and maintained roads or ways within the boundaries of any housing project or within the site of any housing owned or operated by a Housing Authority created under and by virtue of the Housing Authorities Law, commencing at Section 34200 of the Health and Safety Code of the State of California, on privately owned and maintained roads or ways within areas which would be a residence district if the road or way were a public highway, or, with the consent of the owner, on publicly owned and maintained roads and ways within areas not owned by this City;
o. Prohibiting the making of any turning movement by any vehicle at any intersection or between any designated intersections;
p. Prohibiting the parking or standing of vehicles on certain streets or highways, or portions thereof, during all or certain hours of the day;
q. Declaring a prima facie speed limits of 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, or 60 miles per hour, or a maximum speed limit of 65 miles per hour, on any street other than a State highway otherwise subject to a prima facie speed limit of 25 miles per hour;
r. Declaring a prima facie speed limit of 60, 55, 50, 45, 40, 35, 30 or 25 miles per hour on any portion of any street other than a State Highway where the street is subject to a speed limit of 65 miles per hour;
s. Regulating the installation and operation of mechanical devices for the control of vehicular and pedestrian traffic;
t. Establishing weight limitation for vehicles traveling over roads and bridges;
u. Providing for the delineation of parking spaces.
6.1.106 Standards.
Every traffic order made under Section 6.1.104 shall be based on a traffic and engineering survey and shall conform with accepted principles and practices of traffic engineering.
6.1.108 Adoption and Posting.
No traffic order shall be effective until:
a. It has been adopted by resolution of the City Council; and
b. Appropriate signs or markings, meeting the requirements of the Vehicle Code of the State of California, are placed to give notice of the regulation to the traveling public, unless the regulation itself constitutes notice.
6.1.110 Numbering and Filing of Adoption Resolutions.
a. Resolutions adopting traffic orders shall be numbered consecutively, in a numerical series separate from that applied to other resolutions of the City Council.
b. A copy of each resolution adopting a traffic order shall be filed with the City Engineer.
6.1.112 Penalty for Violation.
Violations of traffic orders adopted under this section shall be punished as provided in California Vehicle Code Sections 40000.1 and 42001.
Article 2 MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
6.1.202 Parking on Hills.
a. No person driving, in control of, or in charge of any vehicle shall stand or park if on any street or highway where the grade exceeds 3%, in any business or residential district as defined by the California Vehicle Code, without setting the brakes and blocking the wheels of the vehicle by turning them against the curb or by other means.
b. Any person violating this section shall be punished as provided in Vehicle Code Section 42001.
6.1.204 Parking of Commercial Vehicles.
a. Prohibition. No person shall stand or park a commercial vehicle on public or private property in any residential district as defined by subsection (b) of this section unless such vehicle is permitted through a home based business permit or exempted per subsection (c) of this section. For the purpose of this subsection a "commercial vehicle" means any vehicle defined by California Motor Vehicle Code Section 15210.
b. Residential District. For the purposes of this section, "residential district" shall be defined as any residential zoning district listed in the City of Oakley Zoning Ordinance, including any area zoned P-1 that has residential uses, or any area designated for residential uses in the City of Oakley General Plan. This definition includes any highway or street that abuts a residential district.
c. Exemptions. This section does not apply to any commercial vehicle actively making any delivery or pick-up of goods, wares, building materials and merchandise to any dwelling or structure located in a residential district. The term "commercial vehicle" does not include recreational vehicles, such as camping trailers, motor homes, and recreational boats on trailers. The term "commercial vehicle" also does not include any pickup truck, whether having commercial license plates or not. The term "commercial vehicle" also does not include a moving truck being used for the purposes of moving.
d. Punishment. Any person violating this section shall be punished as provided in Vehicle Code Section 42001.
(Sec. 2, Ordinance No. 05-14, adopted May 13, 2014; Sec. 1, Ordinance No. 18-06, adopted October 9, 2006; Sec. 3, Urgency Ordinance No. 17-06, adopted September 25, 2006)
6.1.206 Parking: Five or More Consecutive Days.
a. Application of Regulations.
1) The provisions of this chapter prohibiting the stopping, standing or parking of a vehicle shall apply except when it is necessary to stop a vehicle to avoid conflict with other traffic or in compliance with directions of a police officer or official traffic control device.
2) The provisions of this chapter imposing a time limit on standing or parking shall not relieve any person from the duty to observe other and more restrictive provisions of the Vehicle Code or this chapter prohibiting or limiting the standing or parking of vehicles in specified places or at specified times.
3) In addition to any other persons authorized by law, any employee of the City classified as a Police Service Aide or Parking Enforcement Officer is authorized to give the notice required by the Vehicle Code of the State of California of any violation of this Code or of local regulations governing the stopping, standing or parking of vehicles.
b. Use of streets or public parking facilities for storage of vehicles.
1) No person who owns or has possession, custody, or control of any vehicle shall park or leave such vehicle standing upon any highway, street or alley or public parking facility for a period of five or more consecutive hour days.
a) For the purposes of this section, a vehicle shall be considered to have been parked or left standing for five or more consecutive days if it has not been moved 100 or more feet in that time.
2) Prior to removing any vehicle, notice shall be affixed to the vehicle advising that the vehicle will be removed for violation of this section, five days after providing such notice, unless before the expiration of that five-day period, the odometer shows that the vehicle has been moved at least 100 feet or more. The Police Department may adopt regulations to define special circumstances under which the owner of a vehicle in violation of this chapter will receive a second five-day notice prior to removal of the vehicle.
3) In the event a vehicle is parked or left standing upon a highway, street or alley or public parking facility in excess of a consecutive period of five or more consecutive days, any member of the Police Department authorized by the Chief of Police may remove such vehicle from the street as authorized by the California Vehicle Code and subject to the provisions of this section.
c. Adoption of supplemental regulations. The Police Department may adopt additional regulations for the implementation of the provisions of this chapter, including but not limited to the definition of special circumstances under which the owner of a vehicle in violation of this chapter will be provided with a second five-day notice prior to the removal of the vehicle from the public streets.
6.1.208 Parking: in Marked Spaces.
The City Engineer may cause municipal roads to be marked with white lines designating parking spaces. Where parking spaces have been so designated, no vehicle shall be parked except within such marked spaces.
6.1.210 Parking: Removal of Parked Vehicles.
The City Engineer may have signs placed giving notice that vehicles may be removed from any municipal road, and twenty-four (24) hours thereafter may have the vehicle removed in accordance with the provisions of this code and the Vehicle Code, when:
a. The use of any municipal road, or a portion thereof, is either:
1) Necessary for the cleaning, repair or construction of the road or for the installation of underground utilities; or
2) Authorized by permit for a purpose other than the normal flow of traffic, or for the movement of equipment, articles or structures of unusual size; and the parking of any vehicle would prevent or interfere with any such use; or
b. A vehicle is illegally on a municipal road in violation of a municipal traffic ordinance or resolution forbidding standing or parking.
6.1.212 Vehicle Weight Limits Raised – Highways Designated.
Pursuant to the authority contained in Vehicle Code Section 35700, trucks, and vehicle combinations transporting garbage, rubbish and/or swill shall be deemed in compliance with Vehicle Code Sections 35550 and 35551 if the maximum gross weight imposed on City Highways in subsection (b) by the wheels on any one axle is not over twenty-three thousand (23,000) pounds and the gross weight on the wheel(s) supporting one end of an axle and resetting on the roadway is not over twelve thousand five hundred (12,500) pounds.
6.1.214 Parking on Private Property.
It is unlawful and a public nuisance for any person to operate, drive, or park any motor or recreational vehicle, including but not limited to cars, trucks, SUVs, motor homes, boats, trailers, ATVs, motorcycles, and commercial haulers, in, over or upon a private driveway of a vacant parcel or a private vacant parcel without the express permission of the owner of the private driveway of the vacant parcel or private vacant parcel, or person in lawful possession of the private driveway of the vacant parcel or private vacant parcel, or the authorized agent of either if a sign has been posted prohibiting such activity or if a person engages in such activity after a warning citation has first been issued to such person. A code enforcement officer or other officer with citation authority may request from any person proof of consent from the owner, person in lawful possession or the authorized agent of either.
Any person not in compliance with this section shall be guilty of an infraction and shall incur a fine as set forth in Section 1.5.002(d). Any person may appeal a fine as set forth in Section 1.8.002.
(Sec. 1, Ord. No. 04-11, adopted March 22, 2011)
Article 3 TRAFFIC REGULATIONS
6.1.302 Definitions.
As used in this section:
a. "Restricted street" shall mean all streets in the City except through truck routes established in this section.
b. "Through truck route" shall mean a street upon which the unrestricted use of trucks is permitted.
c. "Truck" shall mean a vehicle exceeding a maximum gross weight of fourteen thousand (14,000) pounds.
6.1.304 Prohibition of Use of the City Streets.
No person may drive or park or permit a vehicle exceeding a gross maximum weight of fourteen thousand (14,000) pounds to be driven or parked on a restricted street within the City.
6.1.306 Through Truck Route Established.
a. The streets listed in the schedule below are declared to be through truck routes for the movement of trucks.
b. The City Council determines under the authority of Vehicle Code Section 35701(b) that the posting of appropriate signs as "Through Truck Route" is the method of designation which will best serve to give notice of this section. This section is effective when appropriate signs are erected as indicated.
|
Name of Street |
Location |
|---|---|
|
Main Street |
Highway 160 to Empire Avenue |
|
Empire Avenue |
Main Street to Laurel Road |
|
Laurel Road |
Highway 4 to Main Street |
(Sec. 1, Ordinance No. 20-14, adopted December 9, 2014)
6.1.308 Weigh-In.
A police officer may require a person driving or in control of a truck not proceeding over a through truck route to proceed to a public or private scale available for the purpose of weighing and determining whether this section has been complied with.
6.1.310 Exceptions.
This section does not apply to the following:
a. A truck coming from an unrestricted street having ingress and egress by direct route to and from a restricted street when necessary to make a pickup or delivery of goods, wares and merchandise from or to a building or structure located on a restricted street or for the purpose of delivering material to be used in the actual and bona fide repair, alteration, remodeling or construction of a building or structure upon a restricted street for which a building permit has previously been issued;
b. School bus and passenger bus under the jurisdiction of the Public Utilities Commission;
c. A vehicle owned or operated by a public utility or a licensed contractor while necessarily in use in the construction, installation or repair of a public utility;
d. A vehicle owned or operated by the City or a vehicle used for the removal of refuse under contract with the City;
e. An authorized emergency vehicle.
6.1.312 Penalty.
A person who violates this section is punishable by a fine of not more than $500 or imprisonment for not more than six months, or both. Each violation and each day during any portion of which this section is violated is a separate offense.
Article 4 PARKING OF OVERSIZED VEHICLES AND TRAILERS PROHIBITED.
6.1.402 Findings and Declaration of Intent.
The City Council finds that the parking of oversize vehicles and trailers and unattached trailers on public streets can, unless controlled, provide neighborhood blight and deterioration, impair visibility, constitute a nuisance, and be injurious to the health, safety and general welfare. Therefore the presence of such vehicles on public rights-of-way is prohibited except as permitted in this section and is declared to constitute a public nuisance.
6.1.404 Definitions.
As used in this section:
a. "Loading and unloading" shall mean and include the packing of food, clothing or supplies, preparing a vehicle’s refrigeration, and unpacking the vehicle after a trip.
b. "Oversize vehicle" shall mean a vehicle or vehicle and trailer combination the dimensions of which exceed 20 feet in length or seven feet in height.
c. "Residential area" shall mean a residential land use district as set forth in the City’s Zoning Ordinance.
d. "Trip" shall means an extended overnight use of an oversize vehicle which requires additional time to prepare the vehicle beforehand.
e. "Unattached trailer" shall mean a trailer, as defined in Section 630 of the California Vehicle Code, which is left free standing and is not attached, connected or joined to a motor vehicle.
6.1.406 Parking, Prohibited on Residential Streets.
Except as provided in Section 6.1.408, no person may park or leave standing an oversize vehicle or unattached trailer on a street in a residential area.
(Sec. 1, Ordinance No. 17-07, adopted September 24, 2007)
6.1.407 Parking, Restrictions.
a. No oversize vehicle or trailer may be parked within 25 feet from a street corner or in such a manner as to obstruct or otherwise prevent the free use of sidewalks.
b. An oversize vehicle parked at night under this section shall be equipped with reflecting safety devices to alert oncoming vehicles to its presence.
c. An oversize vehicle or unattached trailer parked pursuant to this section is not permitted to connect to sewer, nor to discharge sewage.
(Sec. 1, Ordinance No. 17-07, adopted September 24, 2007)
6.1.408 Exceptions.
The parking prohibition of Section 6.1.406 does not apply to:
a. An authorized emergency vehicle, as defined by Vehicle Code Sec. 165;
b. A non-commercial oversize vehicle or unattached trailer parked or left standing in front of the registered owner’s address for a period not to exceed 24 hours. Moving the oversize vehicle or unattached trailer from one location to another shall not extend the 24-hour period.
c. A resident with a permit issued by the Oakley Police Department whose oversize noncommercial vehicle or trailer is parked for a period not to exceed forty-eight (48) consecutive hours in front of the permittee’s residence for the purpose of loading or unloading before or after a trip. Permits will be issued for a maximum of forty-eight (48) hours. Permits will not be issued for consecutive forty-eight (48) hour periods, and there must be a minimum of forty-eight (48) consecutive hours between the issuance of permits. No more than two parking permits will be granted in any thirty (30) day period; each permit issued shall cover loading and unloading for the same trip. The permit may also cover loading and unloading the vehicle on a resident’s nonpermitted driveway as referenced in Section 9.1.1122(f)(7).
d. Any bona fide guest of a resident who has secured a permit from the Oakley Police Department. A permit not to exceed seven days may be issued if the guest is not a resident of Oakley and the vehicle is not registered to an address within the city.
e. A commercial oversize vehicle involved in construction activities and parked in front of a property for which there is an active building permit.
(Sec. 4, Ordinance No. 12-18, adopted August 14, 2018; Sec. 1, Ordinance No. 17-07, adopted September 24, 2007)
6.1.410 Posting Signs.
Signs announcing the parking prohibition in this section shall be posted at major entry points to the City and this section applies only after such notice is posted.
6.1.412 Enforcement.
a. Violation of this section is an infraction, punishable under Chapter 1.5 of this Code.
b. In addition, under California Vehicle Code Section 22651, the City may remove a vehicle parked or left standing in violation of this section.
Article 5 PARKING ON CITY PROPERTY REGULATIONS.
6.1.502 Parking on City Property.
Whenever the City Manager or his/her designee shall determine that the orderly, efficient conduct of the City’s business requires that parking or standing of vehicles on City property be prohibited, limited, or restricted, the City Manager or his/her designee shall order signs or markings to be installed, indicating that the parking of vehicles is prohibited, limited, or restricted. When the signs or markings authorized by the provisions of this section are in place, it shall be unlawful for any person to park or stand any vehicle contrary to the directions or provisions of such signs or markings.
6.1.504 Penalties.
Violation of this article shall be an infraction, punishable by a fine of $15 per violation.
Article 6 RIGHTS-OF-WAY
6.1.602 Definitions.
As used in this chapter, these terms have the following meanings:
a. "Darkness" is any time from one-half hour after sunset to one-half hour before sunrise and any other time when there is not sufficient light to render clearly discernible any person or vehicle on the roadway or right-of-way at a distance of 500 feet.
b. "Roadway" is as defined in Section 530 of the California Vehicle Code.
c. "Right-of-way" means all land or interest therein which by deed, conveyance, agreement, easement, dedication, usage, or process of law is reserved or set aside for or dedicated to the use of the general public for road or highway purposes, and all or a portion of which is open to public travel.
d. "Pedestrian" means one who journeys or travels on foot from one point to another on or near a roadway without remaining in one position or area for more than a temporary period, and such status shall not be changed by temporary or intermittent stops or pauses incidental to the journey.
e. "Business district" is as defined in Section 235 of the California Vehicle Code.
6.1.604 Dangerous Activities – Findings.
The City Council finds that any person sleeping, dozing or reclining outside of a motor vehicle or trailer within any public right-of-way is a grave and immediate hazard to the safety of himself and of those entitled to use, and using or trying to use, the roadway or other parts of the public right-of-way, and that persons walking or standing (other than pedestrians walking on the left-hand side of the roadway) within 15 feet of roadways outside a business district during darkness, and not displaying a light or reflector adequate to signify their presence, constitute a danger to themselves and to others using such roadway.
6.1.606 Prohibited Activities.
It is unlawful for any person to sleep, doze, or recline outside of any motor vehicle or trailer within any right-of-way.
6.1.608 When Light or Reflector Required.
It is unlawful for any person to walk or stand within 15 feet of any roadway outside a business district during darkness without displaying on his/her person a light or reflector adequate to signify his/her presence to vehicular traffic on the roadway, except pedestrians walking on the left-hand side of the roadway.
6.1.610 Acts Interfering With Adjacent Business.
It is unlawful for any person to remain on a public street, sidewalk or other public place or place open to the public (inside or outside a public right-of-way), when his/her presence or acts unreasonably interfere with the peaceful conduct of a lawful business or occupation on adjacent property by annoying or disturbing its personnel or customers, after having been asked to leave by the owner, agent or person in lawful possession of such business.