(a) General Prohibition. No person shall operate or move a vehicle or combination of vehicles of a size or weight of vehicle or load exceeding the maximum specified in West Virginia Code Article 17C-17 upon any street or highway within the Municipality, except pursuant to special written permit issued by the Commissioner of Highways or the City Manager. Every such permit shall be carried in the vehicle or combination of vehicles to which it refers and shall be open to inspection by any police officer.
No holder of a permit issued by the Commissioner of Highways shall be required to obtain any local permit or license or pay any local fee or charge for movement on any State route within the Municipality; however, it shall be unlawful to operate any such vehicle or combination of vehicles upon any roadway within the Municipality which is not a State route except as provided in subsection (c) hereof. (Passed 10-19-82.)
(b) Limitation on Local Streets.
(1) Generally. No person shall operate any truck, tractor, traction engine, commercial vehicle or other vehicle designed or used for the transportation of merchandise or freight having a gross weight, including load, of more than 10,000 pounds upon or over any street or alley within the City which is unimproved, unpaved or surfaced with gravel, cinders or like material. No person shall operate any such vehicle having a gross weight, including load, of more than 14,000 pounds upon or over any other street or alley within the City, providing that any commercial vehicle delivering or obtaining product or inventory from a local business; moving vans transporting furniture; or concrete truck or other vehicle used in construction of houses or businesses, may exceed 14,000 lb. limit herein and further providing that in no event shall such vehicle exceed 40,000 lbs. without obtaining a permit as described in Section 347.03.
(Ord. 2003-4. Passed 3-4-03.)
(2) Signs. Limitations as to weight as herein imposed shall be designated by appropriate signs.
(3) Permit to exceed weight limitations; emergency permits. Council may, in its discretion, upon application in writing, issue a special permit authorizing the applicant to operate or move a vehicle of a weight exceeding the maximum provided for in subsection (b)(1) hereof upon any street or alley in the City. In case of emergency, such permit may be issued by the Mayor without action by Council, but such permit shall not be valid beyond the next regular meeting of Council after the emergency permit is issued. Any conditions or limitations upon the operation of any vehicle necessary to assure against undue damage to any such street or alley may be imposed upon the issuance of such permit. No person shall violate any of the terms or conditions of such permit and any such violation shall be grounds for revocation of the permit by the authority granting the same.
(4) Bond may be required. As a further condition for the granting of any special permit authorized by subsection (b)(3) hereof, Council or the officer issuing the same may require the applicant to enter into bond in such penalty and with such surety as Council or the officer shall deem sufficient and conditioned to save the City harmless from any damage which the City might sustain or incur by reason of the operation by the applicant which would be destructive of or damage to any street or alley in the City to such an extent that the costs of repair or maintenance thereof would be more than the average costs of repairs or maintenance of other streets or alleys of like type and construction in the City.
(5) Application to City vehicle. The weight limitations imposed by subsection (b)(1) hereof shall not apply to any vehicle operated by the City nor to any vehicle operated under a permit granted by the City.
(6) Application to State roads or highways within City. This section shall not apply to any State road or highway situated within the City or to the following streets providing access to the Quaker State Oil Refining Corporation Plant, namely, Court Lane or streets from its junction with West Virginia State Route No. 2 near Creel Street to the junction with Court Lane to the entrance of the Quaker State Oil Refining Corporation Plant.
(7) Penalty. Any violation of this ordinance shall subject the violator, upon conviction thereof, to a fine of not more than three hundred dollars ($300.00) or imprisonment of not more than thirty days, or both fine and imprisonment. (Passed 10-19-82.)