Delaware County, PA Vehicles and Traffic

Except as provided in § 224-2 of this article, it shall be unlawful for any person to operate any motor vehicle, commercial vehicle, or other tractor, trailer or tractor-trailer combination having a gross weight in excess of that herein respectively prescribed upon any of the bridges or portions thereof described below.

Bridge	Gross Weight (tons)	Location
Addingham	12	Rosemont Avenue over Darby Creek, Springfield and Upper Darby Townships
Bonemill	10	Station Road over East Branch of Chester Creek, Thornbury Township
Buttonwood	12	Ninth Street over Darby Creek, Darby and Collingdale Boroughs
Glenolden	12	Grant Avenue over Muckinipates Creek, Glenolden and Folcroft Boroughs
Hanser	12	Crum Creek Road over Crum Creek, Marple and Upper Providence Townships
Lindbergh	3	Bridge Street over Darby Creek, Clifton Heights Borough and Upper Darby Township
Michigan	12	Michigan Avenue over Little Crum Creek, Ridley Township
Mount Alverno	12	Mount Alverno Road over Chester Creek, Aston and Middletown Townships
Myers	10	Old Forge Road over Rocky Run, Middletown Township
Rocky Run	10	Valley Road over Rocky Run, Middletown Township
Twenty-Fifth Street	10	Twenty-Fifth Street over Ridley Creek, Nether Providence Township and City of Chester
West Fifth Street	12	West Fifth Street over Chester Creek, City of Chester
West Seventh Street	12	West Seventh Street over Chester Creek, City of Chester

§ 224-2 Emergency vehicle exception.

The prohibitions and penalties of this article shall not apply to emergency vehicles when such emergency vehicles are actually responding to an emergency but shall apply when such emergency vehicles are returning from an emergency call or are engaged in routine driving, maintenance, or parade exercises. An "emergency vehicle" shall consist of any vehicle as so defined in Section 102 of the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code, 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 102, and shall also include any vehicle under the jurisdiction of the Civil Defense Director of the County of Delaware. An "emergency" shall consist of any threat or danger or reported threat or danger to the life, property, health, or safety of any person.

§ 224-3 Violations and penalties.

Penalties for violation of this article shall be as set forth in Section 4902(g)(1) of the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code, 75 Pa.C.S.A § 4902(g)(1), as amended, or as shall be set forth in any amendment thereto or successor legislation enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

§ 224-4 Collection of fines, penalties and forfeitures.

All fines, penalties, and forfeitures imposed and collected under this article shall be disposed of by the collecting authority in the manner prescribed by the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania; provided, however, that in any case in which a prosecution under this article is the result of local police action, the collecting authority shall transmit to the municipality employing such police officer or officers 50% of any fine, penalty and/or forfeiture collected, and shall transmit to the Treasurer of the County of Delaware the balance of any such fine, penalty and/or forfeiture.

§ 224-5 Posting and maintenance of signs.

The Director of Public Works of the County of Delaware shall erect or cause or be erected and shall maintain or cause to be maintained such restriction signs, including, if necessary, any advance informational signs, as shall be required to effectuate the enforcement of this article under applicable provisions of the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code and any other laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

§ 224-6 Authority to establish and modify gross weight limits.

The Director of Public Works of the County of Delaware is hereby declared to be the "public official authorized to act," pursuant to the provisions of Section 6109(b)(2) of the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code, 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 6109(b)(2), on the following specified matters:

(1)

He shall have the authority to increase or to decrease the gross weight limits set forth in § 224-1 of this article, as to any bridge enumerated in § 224-1 of this article.

(2)

He shall have the authority to establish and, once established, to increase or to decrease the gross weight limits for any bridge which may now or hereafter be owned by or be under the jurisdiction of the County of Delaware, notwithstanding that such bridge is not enumerated in § 224-1 of this article.

In exercising his powers and duties under this section, the Director of Public Works of the County of Delaware shall rely upon his own professional expertise and shall obtain the advice and recommendations of such consulting engineers, if any, as he shall deem appropriate; he shall file a written statement with the County Clerk of the County of Delaware setting forth any new or modified gross weight limits; and he shall cause such new or modified gross weight limits to be posted as set forth in § 224-5 of this article.

§ 224-7 Severability; effect of invalidity.

In the event that § 224-6 of this article shall be found by any court of competent jurisdiction to constitute a delegation of power and authority by the County Council of the County of Delaware which is in excess of that authorized by the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code or other applicable provisions of state law or of the Delaware County Home Rule Charter, the remainder of this article shall not be held to be invalid and the said § 224-6 shall be considered to be severable, it being expressly declared that the County Council of the County of Delaware would have adopted the remaining provisions of this article notwithstanding any possible invalidity of § 224-6 hereof.

In the event that the Director of Public Works of the County of Delaware shall have exercised his authority under § 224-6A of this article to decrease any gross weight limit set forth in § 224-1 of this article, and § 224-6 of this article shall be found by any court of competent jurisdiction to constitute a delegation of authority in excess of that authorized by the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code or other applicable provisions of state law or of the Delaware County Home Rule Charter, the gross weight limit for any such bridge enumerated in § 224-1 of this article, the gross weight limit of which the Director of Public Works of the County of Delaware shall have decreased, shall be the gross weight limit as so set forth in § 224-1 of this article; and, in such case, any defendant shall remain liable for prosecution to the extent that the gross weight of his vehicle shall have exceeded such gross weight limit as so set forth in § 224-1 of this article.

§ 224-8 Permits for vehicles in excess of weight restrictions; security.

Pursuant to the applicable provisions of the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code, as now set forth in 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 4902(c), the Director of Public Works of the County of Delaware shall have the authority to issue permits for the movement of vehicles of weight in excess of the restrictions provided for by this article for bridges now or hereafter owned by the County of Delaware. No such permit shall be issued unless and until the applicant for such permit provides such security as the Director deems necessary to cover the cost of repairs and restoration necessitated by the permitted movement of such vehicles over the said bridges; in addition to such security the applicant for such permit shall also agree to indemnify and save harmless the County against any and all claims which may be asserted against the County for any personal injury or property damage claims which may arise out of the movement of such vehicles over the said bridges.

Article II Local Use Fee

[Adopted 2-19-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-1]

§ 224-9 Fee for local use.

Pursuant to 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 1935, an annual fee of $5 shall be imposed on each nonexempt vehicle registered to an address in the County of Delaware to be collected by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Department of Transportation at the time such a vehicle is registered.

Funds received by County of Delaware on account of the fee imposed pursuant to this section shall be used for transportation purposes or shall be allocated in accordance with 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 9010(c).