ENROLLED
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
H. B. 4631
(By Delegate Pettit)
[Passed March 13, 1998; in effect ninety days from passage.]
AN ACT to amend and reenact section one, chapter one hundred
seventy-six, acts of the Legislature, regular session, one
thousand nine hundred ninety-one, relating to directing the
commissioner of highways to issue a permit to certain users
of two highways in the city of Weirton and allowing the
increasing of gross weight limitations on certain roads in
the city of Weirton, West Virginia.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section one, chapter one hundred seventy-six, acts of
the Legislature, regular session, one thousand nine hundred
ninety-one, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
SIZE, WEIGHT AND LOAD LIMITATIONS ON CERTAIN ROADS IN WEIRTON,
WEST VIRGINIA.
§1. Authority of the commissioner of the division of highways to
increase weight limitations upon highways within the city of Weirton, West Virginia.
If the commissioner of the division of highways determines
that the design, construction and safety of the highways within the city of Weirton, West Virginia, are such that tonnage limits
may be increased without undue damage, the commissioner may
increase them. The commissioner shall then set new weight
limitations applicable to said highways or portions thereof.
The commissioner may not establish any weight limitation in
excess of or in conflict with any weight limitation prescribed by
or pursuant to acts of Congress with respect to the national
system of interstate and defense highways.
If the commissioner determines that the portion of State
Route 2 located in the city of Weirton in the counties of Hancock
and Brooke, named "Main Street" and that portion of U.S. Route 22
within the city of Weirton in the county of Brooke named "Freedom
Way" are designed and constructed to allow the gross weight
limitation to be increased up to one hundred twenty thousand
pounds without undue damage, the commissioner may increase the
weight limitations from eighty thousand pounds up to one hundred
twenty thousand pounds on those sections of State Route 2 and
U.S. Route 22 described above:
Provided, That any person,
organization or corporation exceeding eighty thousand pounds
gross weight limitation while using said routes shall first
obtain a permit from the commissioner before proceeding and shall
provide the commissioner with a bond sufficient to cover any
potential undue damage which may result from the use:
Provided,
however, That if it is the determination of the commissioner that
said routes, as specifically described herein, are in need of
repaving, those persons, organizations or corporations shall pay
the cost of repaving in amounts as assessed, from time to time, by the commissioner:
Provided further, That the commissioner
also determines that the increased limitation is not barred by an
act of the United States Congress and the commissioner has
received approval from the United States department of
transportation to increase the weight limitation.
The director of the enforcement division of the division of
highways shall identify the trucks exceeding eighty thousand
pounds gross weight using the said routes and the companies they
represent and report this information to the commissioner of the
division of highways.
The commissioner of the division of highways shall, every six
months, review the damages to the said routes and report the
damages to: (1) The local legislative delegation, consisting of
two delegates from Brooke County and two delegates from Hancock
County and the two senators representing the first senatorial
district; and (2) the companies identified by the director of the
enforcement division.
The commissioner shall assess the damages to the companies,
identified by the director of the enforcement division, using the
said routes. Notification, by the commissioner, of the amount of
the assessment to the companies shall be by certified mail. A
copy of the notice of the assessment of damages shall also be
forwarded to the local legislative delegation.
The companies must pay the assessed damages to the division
of highways within thirty days of receipt of the notice or
penalties. If such payments are not made within thirty days, a
penalty in the amount of ten percent per annum of the outstanding assessment shall be imposed quarterly. The division of highways
shall, to the best of its ability, commence the repair of the
damaged routes within six months of the assessment.
The commissioner of the division of highways shall report to
the Legislature before the fifteenth day of January, two thousand
one. The report shall contain: (1) How the increased weight of
trucks has affected the said routes; (2) damages caused; (3) how
much was assessed in damages; and (4) how much was paid. After
review by the legislature, the legislature shall continue, amend,
or terminate this practice.