When used in this chapter, the following words and phrases shall
have the respective meanings ascribed to them:
Alley.
A street that is not used primarily for through traffic and
provides access to rear entrances of buildings or lots along a street.
Commercial motor vehicle.
Any motor vehicle, other than a motorcycle, designed or used
for the transportation of property, including every vehicle used for
delivery purposes.
Motor vehicle.
Every vehicle, as herein defined, which is self-propelled.
Semi-trailer.
Every vehicle of the trailer type so designed or used in
conjunction with a motor vehicle that some part of its own weight
and that of its own load rests upon or is carried by another motor
vehicle.
Stoplight.
A traffic-control signal displaying different colored lights
or colored lighted arrows successively or in a combination, and may
display only green, yellow, or red, and applies to operators of vehicles
as provided by the Texas Transportation Code.
Street.
Every street, road and alley within the town, exclusive of
state highways within the town.
Trailer.
Every vehicle without motor power designed or used for carrying
property or passengers wholly on its own structure and to be drawn
by a motor vehicle.
Truck-tractor.
Every motor vehicle designed or used primarily for drawing
other vehicles, and not so constructed as to carry a load other than
a part of the weight of the vehicle and load so drawn, except that
[the term includes a motor vehicle that is otherwise a truck-tractor,
that] is engaged with a semi-trailer in the transportation of automobiles,
and that transports motor vehicles on part of the truck-tractor.
Vehicle.
Every mechanical device in, upon or by which any person or
property is or may be transported or drawn upon a public highway,
including motor vehicles, commercial motor vehicles, truck-tractors,
trailers, and semi-trailers, severally, as herein defined, but excepting
devices moved by human power or used exclusively upon stationary rails
or tracks.
(Ordinance 2004-09, sec. II, adopted 2/16/04; Ordinance 2005-26, sec. II, adopted 10/3/05; 2006
Code, ch. 10, sec. 2.01)
It shall be unlawful for any person to violate any provision
of this article, and any person violating or failing to comply with
any provision of this article shall be fined, upon conviction, not
less than one dollar ($1.00) nor more than two thousand dollars ($2,000.00),
and a separate offense shall be deemed committed upon each day during
or on which a violation occurs or continues.
(Ordinance 2005-26, sec. XI, adopted 10/3/05; Ordinance 2006-23, sec. 2.03, adopted 7/24/06; Ordinance 2008-31, sec. 2.01, adopted 10/6/08; 2006 Code, ch. 10, sec. 2.08)
(a) Prohibition.
No object or combination of objects, including
but not limited to any structure, fence, wall, screen, hedge, tree,
bush, shrub, billboard or mound of earth, terrace, bank or barrier,
shall be erected, placed, planted or maintained on any corner lot
in such a manner as to create a traffic hazard by obstructing the
view of the drivers of motor vehicles using the streets adjacent thereto.
(b) Exceptions.
Natural existing terrain which cannot be removed by reasonable landscaping techniques, including retaining walls constructed below or at the same grade line of such natural existing terrain, shall be excluded from the objects otherwise prohibited as stated within subsection
(a) of this section.
(c) Presumption.
An object, or combination of objects, erected,
placed, planted or maintained on a corner lot or parkway adjacent
thereto so as to interfere with the visual line of sight at an elevation
between two and one-half feet (2-1/2') above the top of the adjacent
roadway curb and eight feet (8') above the top of the adjacent street
curb, or if there is no curb then from the average street grade, within
a triangular area formed by the intersection of the adjacent street
curb lines and a point on each such right-of-way line thirty-five
feet (35') from the intersection, shall be prima facie evidence that
said object, or combination of objects, so erected, placed, planted
or maintained is an obstruction constituting a traffic hazard.
(d) Removal.
Any object, or combination of objects, placed,
erected, planted or maintained in violation of this section shall
be removed within ten (10) days of receipt of written notice by certified
mail from the chief of police or his representative to the owner,
agent or occupant of the premises where such obstruction has been
erected, placed, planted or maintained.
(Ordinance 2004-09, sec. V, adopted 2/16/04; Ordinance 2005-26, sec. V, adopted 10/3/05; 2006
Code, ch. 10, sec. 2.04)
All state laws and town ordinances and rules regulating traffic
on public streets within the town, both those existing on the date
of the adoption of this section and those subsequently enacted, shall
apply to the private streets specified below. Such private roads are
deemed to be public highways or streets for the purposes of the application
and enforcement of the traffic regulations imposed under this section:
(Ordinance 2006-23, sec. 2.02, adopted 7/24/06; 2006 Code, ch. 10, sec. 2.07)
(a) Definitions.
For purposes of this section, the terms
below shall be defined as follows:
Commercial passenger transportation.
A mode of transportation provided by a bus or motor coach
designed to accommodate more than 10 passengers (including the operator)
for compensation and that is powered by a primary propulsion engine,
but specifically excluding the modes of railroad, light rail, or taxicabs.
Idle.
The operation of an engine in the operating mode where:
(1)
The engine is not engaged in gear;
(2)
The engine operates at a speed at the revolutions per minute
specified by the engine or vehicle manufacturer for when the accelerator
is fully released; and
(3)
There is no load on the engine.
Mechanical operations.
The use of electrical tools or equipment in construction,
maintenance, or repair of facilities.
Passenger transit operations.
A regional mode of public transportation that is funded through
a portion of sales tax for the region being served.
Primary propulsion engine.
A gasoline or diesel-fueled internal combustion engine that:
(1)
Is attached to a motor vehicle; and
(2)
Provides the power to propel the motor vehicle into motion and
maintain motion.
(b) Idling prohibited.
A person commits an offense if, at
any time from April 1 through September 30 of any calendar year, he
causes, suffers, allows, or permits the primary propulsion engine
of a motor vehicle to idle for more than five (5) consecutive minutes
unless the motor vehicle is in motion. The owner of a vehicle subject
to this section may be charged with a violation of this section, if
that violation is committed by the owner's employee.
(c) Exception.
It is an exception to prosecution under this
section that:
(1) The motor vehicle has a gross vehicle weight rating of 14,000 pounds
or less;
(2) The motor vehicle was forced to remain motionless because of traffic
conditions over which the operator had no control;
(3) The motor vehicle was being used:
(A) By the United States military, national guard, or reserve forces;
or
(B) As an emergency or law enforcement motor vehicle;
(4) The primary propulsion engine of the motor vehicle was providing
a power source necessary for a mechanical operation of the vehicle,
other than:
(B) Passenger compartment heating or air conditioning;
(5) The primary propulsion engine of the motor vehicle was being operated
for maintenance or diagnostic purposes;
(6) The primary propulsion engine of the motor vehicle was being operated
solely to defrost a windshield;
(7) The primary propulsion engine of the motor vehicle was being used
to supply heat or air conditioning necessary for passenger comfort
or safety, if the vehicle:
(A) Was a school bus or was intended for commercial passenger transportation
or passenger transit operations; and
(B) Did not idle more than thirty (30) consecutive minutes;
(8) The primary propulsion engine of the motor vehicle was being used
to provide air conditioning or heating necessary for employee health
or safety while the employee was using the vehicle to perform an essential
job function related to roadway construction or maintenance;
(9) The person charged with the offense was the owner of a motor vehicle
subject to this section that had been rented or leased to a third
party operating the vehicle at the time of the offense, if the third
party vehicle operator was not employed by the vehicle owner.
(Ordinance 2008-31, sec. 2.02, adopted 10/6/08)
The driver of an authorized emergency vehicle that is used for
law enforcement purposes may operate without using the emergency warning
devices required by state law only when the driver is responding to
an emergency call or when he or she is in pursuit of a suspected violator
of the law and he or she has probable cause to believe that:
(1) Knowledge of his or her presence will cause the suspect to destroy
or lose evidence of a suspected felony;
(2) Knowledge of his or her presence will cause the suspect to cease
a suspected continuing felony before the driver has acquired sufficient
evidence to establish grounds for arrests;
(3) Knowledge of his or her presence will cause the suspect to evade
apprehension or identification of the suspect or of his or her vehicle;
or
(4) Traffic conditions on a multi-laned roadway are such that movements
of motorists in response to the emergency warning devices may increase
the potential for a collision or may unreasonably extend the duration
of the pursuit.
(Ordinance 92-15, sec. I, adopted 5/19/92; 2006 Code, ch. 10, sec. 7.1(B))