[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town of Nantucket as indicated in
article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
TOWN CODE REFERENCES
Poles and wires — See Ch. 113.
Streets and sidewalks — See Ch. 127.
Excavation and trench safety — See Ch. 128.
TOWN REGULATIONS REFERENCES
Subdivisions — See Ch. 358.
[Adopted by the Board of Selectmen (now Select Board) 8-15-2007[1]]
[1]
Editor's Note: The Select Board approved the codification
of its regulations, as revised, 4-13-2022.
A.
The purpose of this regulation is to protect the safety and general
welfare of the inhabitants of the Town of Nantucket by creating standards,
guidelines, specifications and administrative processes to govern
and regulate street openings.
B.
These regulations are adopted under the authority of MGL c. 82A,
§ 2 and the Home Rule Amendment to the Massachusetts Constitution.
A.
The following regulations shall apply to all excavators, including
but not limited to any person, contractor, developer, partnership,
corporation, limited-liability corporation, municipality, special
district, or other governmental entity, who or which for any reason
cuts, disturbs, or otherwise defaces any public right-of-way maintained
or not maintained. Excavators shall obtain a street opening excavator's
license from the Department of Public Works in accordance with these
requirements and a street opening permit for specific work projects
to be undertaken by each excavator licensed hereunder.
B.
The excavator acquiring a permit must be familiar with and at all
times shall observe and comply with all federal and state laws, local
bylaws and regulations pertaining to street openings.
As used in these regulations, the following words shall have
the following meanings, unless a different meaning is clearly apparent
from the language or context:
A natural gas pipeline company, petroleum or petroleum products
pipeline company, public utility company, cable television company,
and municipal utility company or department that supplies gas, electricity,
telephone, communication or cable television services or private water
companies within the Town.
Such description shall include the name of the Town street,
way, or route number where appropriate, the name of the streets at
the nearest intersection to the excavation, the number of the buildings
closest to the excavation or any other description, including landmarks,
utility pole numbers or other information which will accurately define
the location of the excavation.
A condition in which the safety of the public is in imminent
danger, such as a threat to life or health or where immediate correction
is required to maintain or restore essential public utility service.
An operation for the purpose of movement or removal of earth,
rock or the materials in the ground, including, but not limited to,
digging, blasting, augering, backfilling, test boring, drilling, pile
driving, grading, plowing in, hammering, pulling in, jacking in, trenching,
tunneling and demolition of structures, excluding excavation by tools
manipulated only by human power for gardening purposes and use of
blasting for quarrying purposes.
Any entity including, but not limited to, a person, partnership,
joint venture, trust, corporation, association, public utility, company
or state or local government body which performs excavation operations.
To delineate the general scope of the excavation or boring
on the paved surface of the ground using white paint, or stakes or
other suitable white markings on nonpaved surfaces. No premarking
shall be acceptable if such marks can reasonably interfere with traffic
or pedestrian control or are misleading to the general public. Premarking
shall not be required of any continuous excavation that is over 500
feet in length.
A department of the Town of Nantucket, Massachusetts.
The duly appointed head of the Public Works Department of
the Town of Nantucket, Massachusetts.
A zone designated on the surface by the use of standard color-coded
markings which contains the width of the facilities plus not more
than 18 inches on each side.
The duly elected members of the Select Board for the Town
of Nantucket, Massachusetts.
Red: electric power lines, cables, conduit or light cables.
Yellow: gas, oil, street petroleum, or other gaseous materials.
Orange: communications cables or conduit, alarm or signal lines.
Blue: water, irrigation and slurry lines.
Green: sewer and drain lines.
White: premark of proposed excavation.
A permit required by the Town of Nantucket for the opening
or cutting of any street, road, sidewalk or bicycle path of the Town
and County of Nantucket.
The underground plant damage prevention system as defined
in MGL c. 164, § 76D.
A.
Only properly licensed individuals, companies or corporations may apply for a street opening permit in accordance with Subsection B below.
B.
An excavator license may be issued to an individual, company or corporation
which can demonstrate to the Public Works Director possession of a
working knowledge of excavation construction; can access the construction
equipment necessary to professionally complete a street opening; possesses
the required insurance indemnifying the Town of Nantucket from any
and all liability which may arise from a street opening; has access
to safety equipment as required by the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control
Devices; has the ability to obtain the required performance bond;
and has paid the annual street opening excavator license fee as set
from time to time by the Select Board.
C.
Prior to the issuance of a street opening excavator license, an applicant
shall provide the Town of Nantucket with a $10,000 annual performance
bond. Should the licensee fail to meet performance standards, the
bond will be used by the Town to correct any deficiency(ies). The
license and the performance bond shall run concurrently. The license
is issued annually.
D.
Failure by the permittee to comply with conditions of the street
opening permit or street opening excavator license may result in revocation
of the permit by the Director of Public Works or designee.
E.
The Select Board may hear any appeal of a decision of the Director
of Public Works to revoke or not issue a street opening license or
permit.
F.
The Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) shall be used
as the standard in establishing a work zone to provide for public
safety, including but not limited to proper signage, barricades, and
third-party detail(s).
G.
The permittee must provide written notice to the Department of Public
Works, Police and Fire Departments, Town Administration and the Nantucket
Regional Transit Authority a minimum of five days in advance of the
proposed excavation.
H.
A copy of the permit shall be kept at the work site and shall be
available to designated Town officials upon request.
I.
Streets shall not be unnecessarily obstructed, and must be made safe
and convenient for use by pedestrians, bicyclists and motor vehicles
during excavation. No street shall be closed, nor detour established,
without the approval of the Department of Public Works, the Police
Department and the Fire Department.
J.
All surplus and/or unacceptable excavated materials shall be removed
from the job site by the excavator to an approved disposal site immediately
following completion of the work. The excavation site shall be maintained
in a clean and safe condition at all times. Sidewalks and streets
shall be cleaned and opened to traffic at the end of each working
day, unless otherwise authorized by the Department of Public Works.
Access to properties adjacent to, or in the immediate area of, the
excavation site is to be maintained during the excavation work. The
removal and disposal of materials, including pavement, is the responsibility
of the permittee. This shall be achieved in such a manner as to minimize
interference with pedestrian and vehicular traffic.
A.
Compaction. All open trenches must be backfilled with dry, clean
fill. Backfilling of the trench will be done in two-foot lifts and
compacted to a level within 16 inches of the roadway surface. In the
last 16 inches of the backfill process the excavator shall place a
six-inch lift of 3/4-inch processed gravel, followed by compaction.
A second six-inch lift of 3/4-inch processed gravel shall be placed
and compacted. The final four-inch lift shall be comprised of cold-mixed
asphalt rolled or compacted to form a smooth transition from the undisturbed
roadway surface onto and off the patch. This constitutes the temporary
asphalt patch. Prior to installation of the temporary patch the excavator
shall sawcut the asphalt edges of the street opening, providing a
clean vertical face, free from surface deformation.
B.
The DPW may, under certain conditions or in specific locations, require
the use of flowable fill to assure proper compaction of trenches.
C.
A permanent full-depth Type I asphalt patch shall be placed within
30 days of the installation of the temporary patch. At a minimum,
the permanent patch will be comprised of two two-inch lifts compacted
separately. The patch shall provide a smooth transition, with no noticeable
depression or rise above or below the existing road surface. The permittee
shall be responsible for maintaining the permanent patch for a period
of one year from the date of the installation of the patch. Should
the patch fail at any time within the one-year period, the permittee
shall remove and replace the patch. During winter months, Type I asphalt
may not be available; in such cases the permittee shall place a cold-mix
asphalt patch and maintain the patch as required, or directed, until
such time as the permanent patch may be placed.
Cuts in bicycle paths are to be avoided. Boring beneath the bicycle path surface is to be used for the installation of all utilities whenever possible. If not possible, as may be determined by the DPW Director, or designee, the opening shall be corrected in the manner described in § 354-5.
A.
If the specified work will disrupt traffic flow, it is the responsibility
of the permittee to provide a third-party detail, signage and/or traffic
control devices as required by the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control
Devices (MUTCD), as approved by the Chief of Police or designee.
B.
Every attempt shall be made by the permittee to keep at least one
lane of the street open for vehicular traffic during the work activity.
In cases where this is not possible, the permittee must obtain a Town
of Nantucket street closing permit at least 24 hours in advance of
such closure and provide signs designating detour routes as approved
by the Director of Public Works or designee.
A.
Street openings are only allowed between April 15 and November 15,
with the exception of emergency work as defined herein. Construction
may not begin before 7:30 a.m. on any day.
B.
Street opening permits shall not be issued for any street within
three years of its having been resurfaced. Justified emergency work,
as determined by the Director of Public Works or designee, may be
exempted, provided that the permanent patch shall be placed using
infrared paving technology.
The DPW Director or designee may reject defective or inferior
materials, defective or poor workmanship and may suspend work until
such time as the excavator shall correct the situation in question,
the corrective work being subject to approval by the DPW Director
or designee.
Nothing in this regulation shall be construed to prevent such
excavations as may be necessary for the preservation of life or property;
or for the location of disruption in conduit or pipe; or for making
repairs, provided that the person making such excavation shall apply
to the Town for such a permit on the first working day after such
work is commenced. Before any excavation work is started, the person
or utility excavating must contact all agencies as identified herein.
A.
A permittee shall, at all times during the work, indemnify and hold
harmless the Town and County of Nantucket and its agents and employees
from all actions, claims, demands, liabilities, losses, or damages
by reason of or in connection with the work of the permittee or excavator.
B.
Before making any excavation on a public way, the applicant shall
give notice to the public utility companies in accordance with MGL
c. 82, § 40 as amended. In addition, at least 72 hours before
commencing work, the following agencies must be notified: Department
of Public Works, Fire Department, Police Department, Wannacomet Water,
School Department, Dig Safe, NRTA (in season), the electric, telephone
and cable utilities.
A.
It shall be the duty of the Department of Public Works and the Police
Department to enforce the provisions of these regulations.
B.
Any police officer of the Town may utilize, without limitation, the noncriminal disposition procedure as specified in MGL c. 40, § 21D; Chapter 1, Article II, of the Code of the Town of Nantucket, and Chapter 127, Streets and Sidewalks, § 127-2.1, of the Code of the Town of Nantucket to enforce these regulations.
C.
The penalties for violation of the regulations shall be $300 per
violation. Each violation shall be a separate charge. The penalty
shall be in addition to any other penalty that may apply, including
revocation of permit if one has been obtained.
A.
A permit issued pursuant to these regulations shall include the following
provisions:
(1)
A trench shall not be excavated unless the requirements of MGL c.
82, § 40 to § 40D, inclusive, and any accompanying
regulations, have been met; and this permit is invalid unless the
requirements have been complied with by the excavator applying for
the permit, including, but not limited to, the establishment of a
valid excavation number with the underground plant damage prevention
system as provided in MGL c. 164, § 76D.
(2)
Trenches may pose a significant health and safety hazard. Pursuant
to MGL c. 82, § 1, an excavator shall not leave any open
trench unattended without first making reasonable efforts to eliminate
any recognized safety hazard that may exist as a result of leaving
the open trench unattended. Excavators should consult regulations
promulgated by the Department of Public Safety in order to familiarize
themselves with the recognized safety hazards associated with excavations
and open trenches and the procedures required or recommended by the
Department to eliminate safety hazards, which may include covering,
barricading or otherwise protecting open trenches from accidental
entry.
(3)
Persons engaging in any trenching operation shall familiarize themselves
with the federal safety standards promulgated by the Occupational
Safety and Health Administration on excavations: 29 CFR 1926.650 et
seq., entitled Subpart P, Excavations.
(4)
Excavators engaging in any trenching operation who utilize hoisting
or other mechanical equipment subject to MGL c. 146 shall only employ
individuals licensed to operate said equipment by the Department of
Public Safety pursuant to said Chapter 146, and this permit shall
be presented to the licensed operator before excavation is commenced.
(5)
By applying for, accepting and signing this permit, the applicant
hereby attests to the following:
(a)
That the applicant has read and understands the regulations
promulgated by the Department of Public Safety with regard to construction-related
excavations and trench safety;
(b)
That the applicant has read and understands the federal safety
standards promulgated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration
on excavations: 29 CFR 1926.650 et seq., entitled Subpart P, Excavations;
and
(c)
That the applicant is aware of and has, with regard to the proposed
trench excavation on private property or proposed excavation of a
Town public way that forms the basis of the permit application, complied
with the requirements of MGL c. 82, § 40 to § 40D,
inclusive, and with the requirements set forth in these regulations.
(6)
This permit shall be posted in plain view on the site of the trench.
B.
Nothing in these regulations shall be construed or applied to contravene
the provisions of MGL c. 164, c. 165, c. 166 and c. 166A concerning
excavation of a lane, highway or way by a public utility.
If any provisions or any portion thereof contained in these
regulations is held to be unconstitutional, invalid or unenforceable,
the remainder of the regulations or portions thereof shall be deemed
severable, and shall not be affected and shall remain in full force
and effect.
This regulation shall take effect September 1, 2007.
