No person shall make any excavation in, open or tear up the surface of any road or street in the Township without having obtained a written permit from the supervisor of roads.
[Amended 11-23-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-23]
A.
Any person desiring to tear up, open or make an excavation in any road shall submit an application for a permit, together with detailed plans indicating and describing the work to be performed, the estimated length of time required to perform the same and the estimated cost.
A.
Applications shall be accompanied by a deposit sufficient to cover fees for the opening, which fees shall be established by the Township Council and set forth in a schedule to be maintained in the office of the Township Clerk and the Road Supervisor.
B.
The Township Council or Road Supervisor may accept, in lieu of the deposit required for a permit, a bond or a written guaranty or contract from the person making application for the permit agreeing to make prompt and satisfactory restoration and repair of the road or street opened or excavated.
Permits for excavations in roads or streets shall be granted only upon the following conditions:
A.
All excavations shall be properly guarded by the permittee by erecting a suitable barrier, notices of the excavation by day, sufficient and suitable lights at night and such other reasonable structure notice as the Road Supervisor prescribes.
B.
If any excavation extends the full width of the road, only 1/2 of the road shall be excavated at one time and that half shall be backfilled before the remaining is excavated in order that public travel over the road may remain open at all times.
C.
All excavation and backfilling shall be made within the time prescribed in the permit.
D.
A permittee shall restore the pavement of surface of any road or street in which an excavation has occurred to the same condition and in the same manner as existed prior to the excavation.
E.
The money deposited by a permittee for the restoration of the pavement will be returned upon satisfactory completion of the repair and restoration of the pavement excavated. If a permittee fails to restore the pavement in a satisfactory manner and within the time specified in the permit, the Township Council or Road Supervisor shall arrange to restore the pavement and charge the cost against the deposit made by the permittee. If the deposit is not sufficient to pay the cost of restoration and repair, the permittee shall immediately pay the difference upon demand. Failure of the permittee to restore the pavement in a satisfactory manner within the time specified in the permit shall be a violation of this section and shall subject the permittee to appropriate penalties in addition to any other remedy available to the Township.
F.
When it becomes necessary to open the paved section of any road, the opening shall not be less than two feet wide nor more than three feet at the top, nor shall any opening be less than three feet square and the sides of the opening shall be perpendicular at the top and converge toward the bottom so that the width at the bottom shall be less but not greater than the width at the surface of the pavement.
G.
Tunneling shall not be permitted under any circumstances and shall be an unlawful exercise of the privilege under any permit and a violation of the terms thereof.
H.
Whenever possible the permittee shall make the necessary excavation on either side of the pavement in order to make his or her connection rather than to excavate the pavement proper. In order to reach a main on the opposite side, he or she shall drive a pipe from one excavation to the other so as not to disturb the pavement.
I.
The permittee shall backfill the excavation within the time specified in the permit and if not done within that time, no extension having been obtained, he or she shall be in violation of this section. The material for backfill shall be bank run gravel or earth and crushed stone or crushed gravel in even quantities. No stone larger than six inches in diameter and no shale rock shall be used. No more than six inches of material shall be backfilled at one time and the same shall be moistened and tamped until thoroughly compacted. All excess material shall be removed from the roadway.
J.
Whenever an opening discloses the fact that there is not sufficient covering to prevent the freezing of the water, gas or sewer pipe, they shall be lowered to not less than four feet from the surface of the pavement at the expense of the owner.
K.
All work to be done in any excavation or opening of any road or street shall be subject to supervision by the Township Road Supervisor or his or her duly authorized representative.
L.
All expenses of excavating or opening any road or street or backfilling the same or any portion thereof shall be at the sole expense and liability of the permittee and neither the Township nor any of its officers, agents or employees shall in any manner or to any extent be responsible or liable for any part thereof.
M.
Any opening or excavation in, on or under any road or street for which a permit is granted by the Township shall be performed on the sole liability of the permittee and the Township shall not be liable to any person or party injured or damaged as a result. The permittee shall indemnify and hold harmless the Township from any cost or expense incurred as a result of any claim for damage or injury suffered by any person as a result of any excavation or opening in any road or street and forming the subject matter of any permit. No permit shall be issued unless and until the permittee submits evidence of insurance coverage sufficient to cover any such liability, which insurance shall reasonably extend to the Township. This provision may be waived in the case of a self-insurer.
Any excavation or opening made in any road or street shall be subject at all times to all laws of the United States, to the State of New Jersey and any other appropriate regulation adopted by the Township or any other governmental body having lawful jurisdiction to impose any such law or regulation governing the use of streets or roads.
If a permittee violates the conditions of its permit or otherwise fails to restore any road or street in the manner required by this section, the Township shall be required to make the restoration at its own cost and expense. A certificate of the reasonable cost and expense of effecting the restoration shall be prepared, either by the Supervisor of Roads or the Township Council, and upon being certified to by either, the certificate of cost shall be final and conclusive as to the amount, and the amount shall thereafter be immediately due and payable by the permittee upon presentation of the certificate.
A permittee shall promptly notify the Supervisor of Roads or the Township Council, or any agent or representative duly authorized by either, upon the completion of restoration of the road or street following any opening or excavation. Upon the approval or certification in writing by the Supervisor or Township Council, the permittee shall be entitled to the refund of any unused deposit or to the cancellation of any bond or guaranty posted by him or her.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Original Section 11-4, Standards for Street or Road Design and Construction, which immediately followed this section, was deleted 7-18-2000 by Ord. No. 2000-14.