The Town Board of the Town of Riverhead does hereby find that there exists a threat to public safety any time that snow, freezing rain, sleet, or ice is permitted to accumulate on Town highways and roadways. The parking or abandonment of vehicles along the highways and roadways during snow and other winter-weather-related events prohibits and/or restricts the Town's ability to remediate the hazardous conditions on the highways and impedes the ability of fire, police, and ambulance vehicles and personnel to provide necessary services to Town residents. For the above reasons, the Town Board of the Town of Riverhead finds it necessary to enact legislation prohibiting parking and standing of vehicles on Town highways and roadways in anticipation of and during major snow or winter weather events and such other restrictions related to highway safety during snow and other related winter weather events, including travel ban for nonemergency vehicles and/or temporary closure of highways/roads. Pursuant to and consistent with Executive Law § 24, a snow or winter storm emergency declaration and local emergency proclamations shall be made by the Supervisor or his/her designee. Such declaration shall be made at the discretion of the Supervisor when weather conditions are forecasted or exist such that the accumulation of snow, freezing rain, sleet, or ice on any roadway will imperil the public safety, render vehicle travel potentially hazardous and necessitate snow removal operation or such other remediation efforts to address a winter storm by the Town.
No parking is permitted on either side of any roadway during a
snow or winter storm emergency declaration pursuant to §
289-46 of this article.
The declaration of a snow or winter storm or local emergency orders may designate and declare certain highways and roads closed such that vehicular travel is prohibited during the snow or winter storm emergency or for such other period of time recited in the declaration of snow or winter emergency or local emergency orders. The only vehicles allowed on the highways and roads declared closed are emergency vehicles (police and designated police tow vehicles, fire, ambulance), highway department vehicles and other essential public service vehicles.
It is prohibited to shovel, plow or otherwise deposit snow onto any roadway in the Town of Riverhead.