City of Oswego, NY Article III Administration and Enforcement

§ 257-4 Traffic Committee.

A. Establishment. There is hereby established a Traffic Committee which is to be appointed by the Mayor and directly responsible to him. Said Committee shall consist of five persons, one of whom shall be a member of the police force, one of whom shall be a member of the Traffic Section and one of whom shall be a member of the Common Council, and two shall be individuals representing the general public. The term of the office of each member of the Committee shall be two years and shall coincide with the term of the Common Council. The Chairman of the Committee shall be designated by the Mayor.

[Amended 3-12-2007]

B. Powers and duties.

(1) Pursuant to § 1603 of the Vehicle and Traffic Law, the Traffic Committee is hereby authorized to adopt regulations in accordance with and implementing the provisions of this chapter and the Vehicle and Traffic Law with respect to specific intersections, streets or parts thereof. Such regulations shall be made, and where pertinent, with reference to the appropriate schedule established by § 257-5 below. The Traffic Committee is also hereby authorized to act by regulation on any matter delegated to it by the Common Council in keeping with the provisions of this chapter and the Vehicle and Traffic Law.

(2) The Traffic Committee shall coordinate traffic activities, carry on educational activities in traffic matters, supervise the preparation and publication of traffic reports, receive complaints having to do with traffic matters, review proposals for the installation of traffic control devices and the establishment of traffic control measures and work with the Traffic Section and other city officials and agencies in developing ways and means for improving traffic conditions and the administration and enforcement of traffic regulations.

C. Attestation of regulations. All regulations of the Traffic Committee shall, prior to going into effect, be signed by the Mayor and attested to by the City Clerk. Copies of all such regulations, as signed, shall be kept on file in the office of the City Clerk.

§ 257-5 System of Schedules Book.

For the purpose of maintaining a record of all regulations adopted by the Traffic Committee or Common Council pursuant to this chapter, there is hereby established a System of Schedules Book, on file in the Traffic Section, in which shall be entered all such regulations upon their adoption. All regulations shall be adopted with reference to the appropriate schedule as indicated by various sections of this chapter.

§ 257-6 Traffic Section.

[Amended 11-8-2004 by Res. No. 424-2004]

There is hereby established and organized a Traffic Section in the Police Department of the City of Oswego effective January 1, 2005.

A. The Traffic Section shall install and maintain traffic control devices, when and as required under the provisions of this chapter, to make effective the provisions of this chapter and regulations adopted pursuant thereto and may install and maintain such additional traffic control devices as the Traffic Committee may deem necessary to regulate, warn or guide traffic under the Vehicle and Traffic Law of the State of New York, subject to the provisions of §§ 1682 and 1684 of that law.

B. The Traffic Section shall work closely with the Traffic Committee on matters of traffic policies, traffic studies and implementation of traffic plans and regulations.

C. The Traffic Section shall impound vehicles under Article X of this chapter and dispose of all unclaimed vehicles under the rules and regulations as set forth by the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles.

D. The head of the Traffic Section shall have the authority to order the installation and maintenance of traffic control devices when and as required to regulate, warn or guide traffic at construction sites in the City of Oswego.

E. The head of the Traffic Section shall have the authority to order the installation and maintenance of traffic control devices when and as required to regulate, warn or guide traffic around emergency situations for a period not to exceed 48 hours.

§ 257-7 Powers and duties of Police Department.

It shall be the duty of the Police Department to:

A. Enforce this chapter and regulations of the city and provisions of state law applicable to the use and operation of motor vehicles.

B. Cooperate with officers and agencies of the city in the administration of traffic laws and in developing ways and means to improve traffic conditions.

C. Investigate traffic accidents and make a full and complete report thereof and to arrest and to assist in the prosecution of those persons charged with violations of law causing or contributing to such accidents.

D. Maintain a suitable system of filing traffic accident reports.

(1) Accident reports or cards referring to them shall be filed in the Police Department. Such reports shall be available for the use and information of the Traffic Section and may be examined by any person having an interest therein or by such person's attorney or agent. The Police Department shall also, upon request, certify copies of reports of accidents for the fee prescribed in § 67-a of the Public Officers Law.

(2) The Police Department shall receive and properly file all accident reports made to it under state law or under any ordinance of this city.

E. Work with the Traffic Section in conducting studies of accidents and determine remedial measures to be recommended to the Traffic Committee whenever the accidents at any particular location become numerous.

F. Maintain drivers files.

(1) The Police Department shall maintain a suitable record of all traffic accidents, warnings, arrests, convictions and complaints reported for each driver, which shall be filed alphabetically under the name of the driver concerned.

(2) Said Department shall study the cases of all the drivers charged with frequent or serious violations of the traffic laws or involved in frequent traffic accidents or any serious accident and shall attempt to discover the reasons therefor and shall take whatever steps are lawful and reasonable to prevent such occurrences in the future.

(3) Annually prepare a traffic report, which shall be filed with the Mayor. Such report shall contain information on traffic matters in this city as follows:

(a) The number of traffic accidents, the number of persons killed, the number of persons injured and other pertinent data on traffic accidents.

(b) The number of traffic accidents investigated and other pertinent data on the safety activities of the police.

§ 257-8 Issuance of notice of traffic infractions.

A. Whenever any person is found, by a police officer, committing any traffic infraction, other than speeding, contrary to the provisions of this chapter, such officer shall take the name, address and operator’s license number of such person and the registration number of the motor vehicle involved and issue him, on a uniform traffic ticket, with notice to answer to the charge against him at a specified time and day, within 15 days, in City Court.

[Amended 11-8-2004 by Res. No. 424-2004]

B. Whenever any person is found, by a police officer, committing the traffic infraction of speeding, causing or contributing to an accident resulting in injury or in violation of the provisions of the Vehicle and Traffic Law of the State of New York or some other ordinance of the city pertaining to traffic, which is expressly declared by such law or ordinance to be a misdemeanor, such officer shall issue a notice to answer the charge to such person for his appearance in City Court at a designated time and day within fifteen days or shall arrest such person, as the exigencies of the case may require.

[Amended 11-8-2004 by Res. No. 424-2004]

C. Whenever any vehicle without an operator is found, by a police officer or parking attendant, stopped, standing in such a manner as to constitute a traffic infraction, such officer or parking attendant shall take any information displayed on the vehicle which may tend to identify its user and, if a motor vehicle or motorcycle, the registration number thereon and affix conspicuously to such vehicle a notice, in writing, for the driver to answer the charge to such person for his appearance in City Court at a designated time and day within 15 days to answer the charge(s) against him or to pay such fines within the specified time to the Traffic Violations Bureau.

[Amended 3-28-1994; 11-8-2004 by Res. No. 424-2004]

D. Whenever any officer or parking attendant shall have issued or affixed any notice of traffic infraction as above provided, such officer or parking attendant shall, within a reasonable time or upon completion of his tour of duty, deposit such stubs or copies required with the Traffic Violations Bureau and the required copies and signed information for the City Court with the desk officer on duty at that time in the Police Station.

[Amended 3-28-1994]

§ 257-9 Direction of traffic.

A. Officers of the Police Department are hereby authorized to direct all traffic by voice, hand or signal in conformance with traffic laws; provided, however, that in the event of a fire or other emergency or to expedite traffic or to safeguard pedestrians, officers of the Police Department may direct traffic as conditions may require notwithstanding the provisions of the traffic laws.

B. Officers of the Fire Department, when at the scene of a fire, may direct or assist the police in directing traffic thereat or in the immediate vicinity.

§ 257-10 Emergency regulations.

[Amended 11-8-2004 by Res. No. 424-2004]

The Mayor may, in his discretion, during times of major disaster or other special conditions and in the interest of public safety, order the Police Department to temporarily direct, control, divert, exclude and regulate traffic on the streets and prohibit and regulate parking through the Police Department by means of posting temporary signs or signals or through the use of local television and radio stations and local newspapers. Temporary regulations shall not remain in effect for more than 10 days without the approval of the Traffic Committee.