[Adopted as § 11-1 of the 1971 Revised General Ordinances]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
Any road, highway, public way, public alley, easement or other right
of way accepted or maintained by the Township as a public street, as well
as any state or county road or highway over which the Township has acquired
jurisdiction by agreement.
A.
No person shall make an excavation in or tunnel under
any street without first obtaining a permit from the Township Committee.
B.
A tunnel or excavation may be commenced without a permit
where an emergency has arisen which makes it necessary to start work immediately,
provided that the application for a permit is made simultaneously with the
commencement of the work or as soon thereafter as is practical. When issued,
the permit shall be retroactive to the date on which the work has begun.
C.
The Township Clerk shall issue permits to other public
bodies without fee.
The Township Committee is authorized to refuse the issuance of any permit
if it ascertains after consultation with the Township Engineer or otherwise
that such refusal is in the interest of public safety, public convenience
or public health. If a permit is refused an appeal may be taken to the Township
Committee. The Township Committee, after hearing the applicant and such other
evidence as may be produced, may either direct the issuance of the permit
or sustain the refusal.
An application for a permit shall contain the following information:
A.
Name and address of the applicant.
B.
Name of the street where the opening is to be made and
the street number, if any, of the abutting property.
C.
The Township Tax Map block and lot number of the property
for the benefit of which the opening is to be made.
D.
Nature of the surface in which the opening is to be made.
E.
Character and purpose of the work proposed.
F.
Time when the work is to be commenced and completed.
G.
Each application shall be accompanied by a set of plans
in quadruplicate showing the exact location and dimensions of all openings.
H.
The name and address of the workman or contractor who
is to perform the work.
I.
A statement that the applicant agrees to replace at his
own cost and expense, the street, curb, gutter and sidewalk in the same state
and condition in all things as they were at the time of the commencement of
the work within 48 hours of the commencement of same.
Each permit shall state the identity and address of the applicant, the
name of the street and the location where the excavation or tunnel is to be
made, the dimensions of the opening and the period during which the permit
shall be valid. The original of each permit shall remain on file with the
Clerk.
A permit shall be paid when the application is made. The applicant shall
be charged a fee of $25 for each permit.
A.
No permit shall be issued until the applicant has filed
a bond in an amount determined to be sufficient by the Township Engineer.
B.
The bond may be waived in the case of a public utility
upon the presentation of satisfactory proof that the utility is capable of
meeting any claims against it up to the amount of the bond which would otherwise
be required.
C.
The bond shall be executed by the applicant as principal
and a surety company licensed to do business in the State of New Jersey as
surety and shall be conditioned as follows:
(1)
To indemnify the Township and hold it harmless from all
loss, damage, claim or expense, including expenses incurred in the defense
of any litigation arising out of injury to any person or property resulting
from any work done by the applicant under the permit.
(2)
To indemnify the Township for any expense incurred in
enforcing any of the provisions of this article.
(3)
To indemnify any person who sustains personal injuries
or damage to his property as a result of any act or omission of the applicant,
his agents, employees or subcontractors done in the course of any work under
the permit.
D.
One bond may be accepted to cover a number of excavations
by the same applicant. Bonds shall remain in force for a period to be determined
by the Township.
The applicant shall also be required to deposit, in cash or by certified
check, a sum determined by the Township Engineer to be necessary to defray
the expense of restoring the street to its preexisting condition should the
permittee fail to do so.
No permit shall be issued until the applicant has furnished the Township
with satisfactory proof that he is insured against injury to persons and damage
to property caused by any act or omission of the applicant, his agents, employees
or subcontractors done in the course of the work to be performed under the
permit. The insurance shall cover all hazards likely to arise in connection
with the work, including but not limited to collapse and explosion, and shall
also insure against liability arising from completed operations. The limits
of the policy of insurance shall be $100,000 for injury to any one person,
$300,000 for property damage for a single incident. The Township may waive
the requirements of this section in the case of public utilities upon the
presentation of satisfactory proof that it is capable of meeting claims against
it up to the amount of the limits of the insurance policy which would otherwise
be required.
All permits issued under this article shall be subject to the following
rules and regulations:
A.
All excavations shall be kept properly barricaded at
all times and during the hours of darkness shall be provided with proper warning
lights. This regulation shall not excuse the permittee from taking any other
precaution reasonably necessary for the protection of persons or property.
B.
All work shall be done in such a manner as to cause a
minimum of interference with travel on the street affected. No street shall
be closed to traffic unless the closing is approved by the Township Committee.
The Township Committee shall be informed of all street closings at least 24
hours in advance, except where the work is of an emergency nature when notice
shall be given when work commences.
C.
All refuse and material shall be removed within 48 hours.
D.
All excavations shall be completely backfilled by the
permittee, and shall be compacted by tamping or other suitable means in a
manner prescribed by the Township Engineer. Where the Engineer determines
that the excavated material is unsuitable for backfill, the permittee shall
backfill the excavation with sand, soft coal, cinders or other suitable material
which shall be placed in layers not exceeding six inches in depth and thoroughly
compacted with a mechanical vibrator or in the manner prescribed by the Engineer.
The permittee shall replace all shoulder stone to a depth of six inches and
thoroughly compact it with a mechanical compaction device. Upon completion
of the work, the permittee shall remove any excess material and leave the
premises in a clean condition. If it is determined that any backfilled excavation
has settled or caved in, the Engineer shall so notify the permittee, who shall
promptly continue backfilling until settlement is complete.
E.
If tunneling operations are required, the tunnel shall
be backfilled with rammed concrete composed of one part cement to ten parts
sand.
F.
If blasting is required to be done in the course of any
excavation, it shall be done in strict compliance with all applicable state
laws and regulations.
G.
If the work is not completed within the time specified
in the permit or any extension granted by the Township, or is not performed
in accordance with the regulations set forth in this article and any other
regulations that may be established by the Township Committee, then the Township
may complete the work itself and restore the surface of the street. The cost
of completing the work and restoring the street shall be charged to the permittee
and may be deducted from his deposit or recovered by an action in any court
of competent jurisdiction.
In all cases the permittee shall restore the surface of the street in
accordance with the following rules, regulations and requirements:
A.
No permittee shall commence the restoration of any street
foundation or surface until the Township Engineer has determined that settlement
of the subsurface is complete and the area properly prepared for restoration.
B.
The street surface shall be restored so as to extend
six inches beyond the excavation on all sides.
C.
The street surface shall be restored pursuant to the
section designated by the Township Engineer in the permit but in no case shall
be less than the structural equivalent of the following:
A.
Transferability. A permit shall apply only to the person
to whom it is issued and shall not be transferable.
B.
Commencement of work. Work under a permit shall commence
within 45 days from the date of issuance of the permit. If work is not commenced
within that time, the permit shall automatically terminate unless extended,
in writing, by the Township Committee.
C.
Possession of permit. A copy of the permit, together
with a copy of the plan endorsed with the approval of the Township Engineer,
shall be kept in possession of the person actually performing the work and
shall be exhibited on demand to any duly authorized employee of the Township
or police officer.
D.
Revocation of permit.
(1)
The Township Committee may revoke a permit for any of
the following reasons:
(a)
Violation of any provision of this article or any other
applicable rule, regulation, law or ordinance.
(b)
Violation of any condition of the permit issued.
(c)
Carrying on work under the permit in a manner which endangers
life or property or which creates any condition which is unhealthy or unsanitary
or declared by any provision of this revision to constitute a nuisance.
(2)
The procedure for revoking a permit shall be the same
as that set forth in this Code for the revocation of licenses, except that
the initial hearing shall be before the Township Committeeman in charge of
the Road Department with a right of appeal to the Township Committee; and
the Chairman may provide in his decision that the revocation shall not become
effective if the permittee corrects the violation within a specified period
of time.
E.
Modification of permit conditions. In a special case
the Township Committee may, by resolution, impose special conditions to which
the issuance of the permit may be subject or may decide that any provision
of this article shall not apply or shall be altered.
The Road Committee, in conjunction with the Township Engineer, may make
any rules and regulations considered necessary for the administration and
enforcement of this article, but no regulation shall be inconsistent with,
alter or amend any provision of this article or impose any requirement which
is in addition to those expressly or by implication imposed by this article.
No regulations shall be effective unless they are approved by resolution of
the Township Committee. Copies of all current regulations shall be furnished
each permittee at the time of the issuance of the permit.
