[HISTORY: Adopted City of Norwalk Common Council 5-10-1988. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
The Board of Police Commissioners shall be the traffic authority
of the city and shall have all the powers and perform all the duties
conferred upon or assigned to a traffic authority by the provisions
of the Connecticut General Statutes, as amended.
The Director shall provide technical assistance and recommendations
on matters before the traffic authority and may initiate matters for
the consideration of said traffic authority. No action shall be taken
by the traffic authority on matters referred to it prior to receipt
of a recommendation by the Director.
[Amended 2-8-2000]
The Director shall erect and maintain at designated places in
the city, in such manner as the traffic authority may direct, traffic
control devices and traffic calming measures for the direction, regulation
and calming of traffic and the parking of vehicles upon the streets
of the city.
Any police officer may orally direct traffic or prohibit the
parking of any vehicle on any street or public place in the city for
the purpose of preventing any obstruction or impediment to the safe
travel of vehicles thereon.
It shall be unlawful for any person to fail to comply with any
order, rule or regulation relating to traffic or parking made by or
under the authority of the traffic authority or the Director or for
any person to fail to comply with any direction by voice, hand or
sign of any member of the Police Department in connection therewith
or for any person to fail to comply with any traffic sign, marking
or control signal unless otherwise directed by a member of the Police
Department.
No vehicle shall be permitted to remain stationary upon the
traveled portion of any street or highway except upon the right-hand
side of such highway in the direction in which such vehicle is headed,
unless said highway is marked as a one-way street and parking is permitted
on the left side of said highway; and, if such highway is curbed,
such vehicle shall be so placed that its wheels, when stationary,
shall, when safety will permit, be within a distance of 12 inches
from the curb. No vehicle shall be permitted to remain stationary
upon any highway in such a manner as to occupy more than the parking
space for one vehicle as marked out upon said highway.
Notwithstanding the provisions of § 98-7, Parking at curb, no vehicle shall be permitted to remain stationary upon any public street or highway at any place contrary to signs posted on said highway at the direction of the traffic authority.
No person shall operate any motor vehicle upon nor shall any
motor vehicle be left parked, standing or stopped on or across any
public sidewalk or footpath except to cross such sidewalk or footpath
to enter or leave adjacent areas or to perform necessary sidewalk
or footpath construction, maintenance or snow removal.
No vehicle shall be permitted to remain stationary upon any
public street or highway within 25 feet of an intersection unless
parking spaces are otherwise marked, nor shall any vehicle be permitted
to remain stationary upon any highway within a marked crosswalk or
an area posted as a bus stop or within 25 feet of a stop sign posted
at the direction of the traffic authority.
A.
No vehicle, otherwise lawfully stationary, shall be left stationary
on any public street or highway without removing the key therefrom,
unless said vehicle continues to be occupied while stationary by a
person over 16 years of age.
B.
No vehicle, otherwise properly stationary, shall be left stationary
on any public street or highway with its motor running, unless it
continues to be occupied while stationary by a person over 16 years
of age.
No vehicle shall be permitted to remain stationary within 10
feet of any fire hydrant.
No vehicle shall be permitted to remain stationary upon a public
street or highway in front of or so as to obstruct or interfere with
the ingress to or egress from any private driveway or alleyway except
with the permission of the owner of such driveway or alleyway.
In the event that a vehicle is parked at a prohibited time or place in a designated towing zone but has not been removed by the city, the owner or driver shall pay a fine in an amount established in accordance with the provisions of § 90-4, Approval of rates and fees, for such illegal parking.
No vehicle shall be permitted to remain stationary within the
right-of-way of a public street or highway in such a manner as to
constitute a traffic hazard or obstruct the free movement of traffic
thereon, provided that a vehicle which has become disabled to such
an extent that it is impractical to remove it may be permitted to
so remain for a reasonable time for the purpose of making repairs
thereto or of obtaining sufficient assistance to remove it, unless
otherwise directed by a member of the Police Department.
No vehicle shall be permitted to remain stationary upon a public street or highway during winter snowstorms contrary to the directions of the traffic authority or the Director under Chapter 99 hereof.
A.
No vehicle shall be permitted to remain stationary upon the traveled
portion of any public street or highway to the left of and adjacent
to any vehicles parked on the right-hand portion of said highway in
the direction in which said vehicles are heading.
B.
If a highway is marked for one-way traffic and parking is permitted
on the left-hand side of said highway, no vehicle shall be permitted
to remain stationary upon the traveled portion of any public street
or highway to the right of and adjacent to any vehicles parked on
the left-hand portion of said highway in the direction in which said
vehicles are heading.
A.
No person or vehicle shall violate the terms of Section 14-253a of
the Connecticut General Statutes or any other applicable law or regulation
or park in any parking site designated as a "handicapped parking space,"
unless said vehicle bears a special identification card or license
plate issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles to a handicapped
person or disabled veteran.
B.
The owner, operator, lessee or tenant of any parking site marked
by a designated handicapped parking sign shall affix an additional
sign, in letters a minimum of two inches in height, which states "Violators
Will Be Towed," at the owner's expense. Within 30 days of the enactment
of this subsection, if said additional lettering is not affixed thereto,
the city may proceed to affix the same and impose the cost thereof
against the owner, operator, lessee or tenant of such parking site.
Any person, firm or corporation violating or failing to comply with the terms of this chapter or of any rules and regulations relating to traffic and parking adopted by the traffic authority or the Director shall be subject to a fine for each such violation. If the motor vehicle is registered in the name of a partnership, firm, corporation or other business entity, then it shall be presumed that the operator was acting within the scope of his authority as the agent, servant or employee of said partnership, firm, corporation or other business entity. The amount of the fine shall be established in accordance with the provisions of § 90-4, Approval of rates and fees.
The Director shall erect and maintain at such places in the
city and in such manner as the traffic authority may designate meters
for the regulation of parking of vehicles upon the streets and within
off-street parking facilities and signs for the regulation of parking
in nonmetered public spaces.
A.
Rate. The rate which shall be charged for parking at parking meters shall be established in accordance with the provisions of § 90-4, Approval of rates and fees.
B.
Maximum parking time. Wherever the Director has posted a sign or
placed a parking meter designating a maximum time limit for parking
a vehicle, no person shall cause any vehicle to remain parked in said
area for a period of time in excess of that established by said meter
or sign. No person shall be allowed to continue depositing coins in
a meter or remain parked in such area beyond the established time
period.
C.
Use of metered space for trade or business. In addition to any other
permits or licenses which may be required, no person shall carry on
any trade or business for profit, including the sale or distribution
of any merchandise, from a metered space or any parking area under
the jurisdiction of the Director, unless written authorization is
obtained from the Director with the approval of the Common Council.
The Director shall have the authority to issue permits for parking at various public off-street parking facilities at a fee established in accordance with the provisions of § 90-4, Approval of rates and fees.
Original parking violation fines will become delinquent after 15 calendar days, and the original amount of the fine shall escalate if not paid within said fifteen-day period. If any fine is not paid within 30 calendar days of the original violation, the fine will again escalate. The Director shall have the authority to establish a schedule which shall be utilized to calculate all fines for delinquent parking violations. The schedule shall be based on the original amount of the fine and the duration of delinquency. All such fines shall be established in accordance with the provisions of § 90-4, Approval of rates and fees.
The Director, with the approval of the traffic authority, is
hereby authorized to temporarily suspend any of these provisions or
any other rules and regulations relating to traffic and parking when
emergencies or other conditions warrant their suspension. No such
suspension shall continue for a period in excess of 30 days without
the approval of the Common Council. Notice of such temporary suspension
shall be posted at the site, if appropriate, and in the offices of
the Department of Public Works and the Police Department.
Any provisions of the Code of the City of Norwalk inconsistent
with the provisions of this chapter are hereby repealed to the extent
of such inconsistency.
Nothing in §§ 98-6 through 98-18 shall be construed to apply to emergency vehicles and to public maintenance vehicles displaying flashing lights or to prohibit a vehicle from stopping or being held stationary by any police officer in an emergency to avoid accident or to give a right-of-way to any vehicle or pedestrian, as may be required by law.
[Amended 4-26-2016]
A.
No person
shall park, cause to be parked or permit to be parked any of the following
vehicles upon any public street or highway or other public place within
the City in excess of the time limit prescribed:
B.
No person
shall park, cause to be parked or permit to be parked at one time
in any residential district or upon any street adjacent thereto, two
or more commercial vehicles or commercial trucks.
A.
The traffic authority is authorized to designate approved garages
within the city as official towing stations to which vehicles may
be removed for storage by the Police Department or special constable
in the manner set forth in this chapter. Any garage owned by the city
or by any public agency or privately owned may be designated as an
official towing station by the traffic authority.
B.
The designated towing stations shall file with the traffic authority
a schedule of reasonable fees for the cost of towing or removing vehicles,
the same as that filed with the State Motor Vehicle Department. Such
schedule shall be posted at the offices of the Police Department.
No garage, other than a garage operated by the city or by any
public agency, shall be designated as an official towing station unless
the owner, lessee or operator has supplied security to the traffic
authority in an amount and form specified by the traffic authority
to protect the city against liability for any claim for damages arising
out of the towing or storage of any impounded vehicles and to insure
faithful performance and discharge of its duties as an official towing
station, as bailee of impounded vehicles, and to indemnify owners
of vehicles against loss, injury or damage while such vehicles are
in the custody of such official towing station.
The traffic authority shall designate towing zones within the
city in no-parking areas and unloading zones, which shall be clearly
designated by appropriate signs.
A.
Whenever any vehicle is found parked in a towing zone, it shall be
removed by or under the direction of a member of the Police Department
or a special constable, by means of towing or otherwise, to an official
towing station. The removal of any vehicle parked in a towing zone
shall be deemed to abate a public nuisance and shall therefore be
carried out at the risk of the owner or person entitled to the possession
of such vehicle. Having been so removed, such vehicle shall continue
to be impounded until the fees and charges provided in this chapter
shall be paid by the owner or the person entitled to possession thereof.
B.
The police officer or special constable directing the removal of
any such vehicle shall make a prompt report to Police Headquarters,
and notice thereof shall be sent by the Police Department to the owner
of record of such vehicle within 12 hours from the time of such removal,
indicating the place to which such vehicle has been removed and the
reason for its removal and impounding.
A.
No person shall be permitted to remove from any official towing station
any vehicle impounded under the provisions of this chapter unless
such person:
(1)
Reports to Police Headquarters and furnishes satisfactory evidence
of his identity and ownership of the vehicle or agency on behalf of
the owner or other right to immediate possession.
(2)
Pays a fee for the parking violation in a towing zone to the Police Department, who shall collect the same pursuant to the Connecticut General Statutes, as amended. The fee shall be established in accordance with the provisions of § 90-4, Approval of rates and fees.
(3)
Goes to the official towing station, exhibits a receipt and authorization from the Police Department and pays a fee according to such reasonable fee schedule as provided in § 90-4 to cover the costs of towing or removing the vehicle, and further pays for the storage of the vehicle at the rate established in accordance with the provisions of § 90-4, Approval of rates and fees, for each day or any fraction thereof, which storage and towing charges may be retained by the official towing station.
B.
The removing, towing and storage charges provided in this section
shall be a lien upon such impounded vehicle, and the payment thereof
shall not release or relieve the owner or his agent from prosecution
for any violation of law which may have been involved from the circumstances
which resulted in the impounding of such vehicle.
C.
Unless the payments required by this section are made under protest,
they shall be final and conclusive and shall consist of a waiver of
any rights to recover money so paid. If payment is made under protest,
the owner or his agent shall be entitled to a hearing under the provisions
of the Connecticut General Statutes, as amended, upon the furnishing
of a bond in an amount set by the Police Department, where such bond
shall be posted. Upon posting of such bond, the impounded vehicle
shall be surrendered to the claimant, and it shall thereupon be the
duty of the police officer having knowledge of the facts forthwith
to institute the proper proceedings for such hearing, charging the
owner or operator of such vehicle with a violation of the provision
of this Code or other ordinance for which such vehicle was impounded.
D.
When any impounded vehicle is returned to its owner or any person
on behalf of the owner, such person shall sign a receipt for the vehicle.
The Police Department shall keep a record of the motor vehicles
impounded, which shall contain the following information:
A.
The names and addresses of the owners and operators of vehicles impounded.
B.
The names of persons claiming such vehicles.
C.
The license plate numbers and such other information as may identify
such motor vehicle.
D.
Where the vehicle has been towed.
E.
The nature and circumstances of the impounding of the vehicle, including
the violation for which the same was impounded.
F.
The amount of fees and charges paid as a result of such towing and
impoundment.
G.
The final disposition of each case.
Nothing in this chapter is intended to prohibit the institution
of legal proceedings charging the owner or driver of any vehicle with
the violation of any other law or ordinance.
A.
The Director shall erect and maintain the city, in such manner as
directed by the traffic authority, speed limit signs for the regulation
of traffic and the protection of the public.
B.
No person shall operate any motor vehicle on any public street, highway
or bridge within the municipal limits of the City of Norwalk at a
rate of speed greater than the posted speed limit or, where there
is no posted speed limit, greater than 25 miles per hour.
C.
Nothing in this section shall apply to persons operating Police Department,
Fire Department or other emergency vehicles in the performance of
official business.
The city hereby adopts the provisions of Public Act 81-438,
as amended, allowing the Mayor to appoint a hearing officer to conduct
hearings on parking violation tickets, and said hearing officer shall
exercise such powers as allowed by said statute, as amended.
Whenever there is found any motor vehicle parked legally or
illegally upon the streets or upon the public grounds of the city
which has received notice of 10 or more parking violations which remain
delinquent, unpaid or otherwise unsettled and uncontested, such vehicle
may be removed by towing or otherwise by or under the direction of
a police officer or special constable to an official towing station
or such vehicle may be immobilized in such manner as to prevent its
removal or operation except by such persons as shall be authorized
to do so by the Police Department.
It shall be the duty of any police officer or special constable
removing or immobilizing a vehicle or under whose direction such a
vehicle is removed or immobilized to inform, as soon as practicable
within 12 hours, the owner of record of the removed or immobilized
vehicle of the nature and circumstances of the prior unsettled parking
violation notices for which or on account of which such vehicle was
removed or immobilized. In any case involving immobilization of a
vehicle pursuant to this section, there shall be placed on such vehicle,
in a conspicuous manner, a notice warning that such vehicle has been
immobilized and that any attempt to move such vehicle might result
in damage thereto.
The owner of an immobilized vehicle or other duly authorized
person shall be allowed at least 24 hours from the time of immobilization
to repossess or secure the release of the vehicle, following which
such vehicle may be removed to a storage area for safekeeping under
the direction of a police officer or special constable.
A.
Before the owner or person in charge of any vehicle removed or immobilized
as above provided shall be allowed to repossess or to secure the release
of said vehicle, he or his agent shall report to Police Headquarters
and pay the following: the cost of towing and the cost of storage
for each day or portion of a day that such a vehicle is so stored
in excess of the first 24 hours; plus all sums legally due for any
city parking citations issued and outstanding against such vehicle;
or, in lieu of the above, a bond with a surety company authorized
to do business in this state in an amount sufficient to cover the
above charges and adequately protect the city. The amount and form
of such bond shall be established by the traffic authority.
B.
No such vehicle shall be released until the owner or his agent has
established his identity and right to possession and has signed a
proper receipt therefor.
Any person who, after having had his vehicle removed or immobilized, shall move or repossess such vehicle without complying with § 98-39, Conditions for repossession, shall, in addition to the charges provided for in said section, be liable for any damage done to the immobilization device or mechanism and be subject to a fine in an amount established in accordance with the provisions of § 90-4, Approval of rates and fees.
Prior to scheduling any vehicle on a list for impoundment or immobilization, the Director shall cause to be mailed to the registered owner a list of all delinquent parking citations and a statement warning that such vehicle shall be impounded if found parked on the public street or grounds of the city and giving notice of appeal rights pursuant to § 98-35, Authority to appoint hearing officer, and Public Act 81-438, as amended. No vehicle shall be placed on a list for impoundment or immobilization sooner than 15 days after the mailing of such notice.
The Police Department shall keep a record of motor vehicles impounded or immobilized under these provisions in the same manner as set forth in § 98-32, Records of impounded vehicles.
[Added 3-22-2016]
A.
No operator of a motor vehicle, other than a tractor-trailer unit, as defined in Connecticut General Statutes Sec. 14-1, shall proceed into an intersection that has been designated, posted and marked by the City in accordance with Subsection B of this section, except when making a turn, unless there is sufficient space on the opposite side of the intersection to accommodate such motor vehicle without obstructing the passage of other vehicles or pedestrians, notwithstanding the indication of a traffic control signal that would permit such operator to proceed into the intersection.
B.
The City
shall
(1)
Post
signs at each such designated intersection indicating that blocking
the intersection is prohibited and that violators are subject to a
fine; and
(2)
Mark,
in white paint, the boundary of such intersection with a line not
less than one foot in width and the area within such boundary line
with parallel diagonal lines not less than one foot in width.
C.
Any person who violates the provisions of Subsection A of this section shall have committed an infraction and shall be issued a fine of $100.
D.
This section
shall apply to the following intersections within the City:
[Amended 3-22-2022]
|
Intersection
| |
|---|---|
|
East Avenue and Interstate 95 Exit 16 northbound off ramp
| |
|
East Avenue, northbound, and Olmstead Place
|
[Added 4-26-2016]
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Any vehicle used in commerce; whether for hauling goods,
equipment, or transporting passengers for a fare.
