[Adopted 8-8-1988 by L.L. No. 8-1988 and 3-12-1990 by L.L. No. 2-1990; amended in its entirety 7-12-2004 by L.L. No. 7-2004]
This article is adopted pursuant to the authority of § 1660 of the Vehicle and Traffic Law of the State of New York and § 10 of the Municipal Home Rule Law of the State of New York.
This article is adopted in order to minimize the adverse impact of traffic upon certain communities in the Town and certain of its streets and bridges, and in order to promote the health, safety and welfare of the community.
No through traffic of trucks, commercial vehicles, truck tractors, or tractor-trailer combinations, with a maximum registered gross vehicle weight in excess of five tons shall be permitted on:
A. 
McIntyre Place.
B. 
Forest Home Drive, between the western terminus of Plantation Road (also known as Arboretum Road) and Caldwell Road.
C. 
Judd Falls Road, between Forest Home Drive and the intersection with Plantation Road (also known as Arboretum Road).
D. 
Honness Lane.
For purposes of this article:
MAXIMUM REGISTERED GROSS VEHICLE WEIGHT
Shall mean the maximum gross vehicle weight for which the vehicle is registered with the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles. If the vehicle is registered in a jurisdiction other than the State of New York, the term shall mean the maximum gross vehicle weight for which the vehicle is registered with the applicable motor vehicle department or similar agency in the jurisdiction in which the vehicle is registered and which weight is shown on the registration for such vehicle. If the vehicle is registered in a governmental jurisdiction that does not indicate a maximum gross vehicle weight on registrations, the term shall mean the manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) as indicated on the vehicle safety certification label.
[Amended 4-11-2022 by L.L. No. 7-2022]
A. 
All provisions of New York State law generally and procedurally applicable to misdemeanors shall apply to any criminal proceeding brought under this article, and any misdemeanors shall be deemed unclassified misdemeanors. For purposes of this article the Town of Ithaca's Justice Court is hereby vested and imbued with jurisdiction to issue administrative and other warrants in compliance with the New York Criminal Procedure Law and administrative codes of the State of New York, as well as to hear and adjudicate allegations relating to the criminal violation of this article, and to thereafter, if appropriate, impose any fine, penalty, sentence, or sanction.
B. 
First offense. Any person or entity that violates, or fails to comply with, any of the provisions of this article shall be guilty of a criminal violation and subject to a fine of not less than $100 and not more than $300, or by imprisonment for not more than 15 days, or both such fine and imprisonment.
C. 
Second offense. Any person or entity that violates, or fails to comply with, any of the provisions of this article within 18 months of any prior judicial finding or conviction under this article shall be guilty of a second offense. Any person or entity that commits any second offense shall be guilty of a criminal violation and subject to a fine of not less than $200 and not more than $500, or by imprisonment for not more than 15 days, or both such fine and imprisonment.
D. 
Third offense. Any person or entity that violates, or fails to comply with, any of the provisions of this article within 18 months of any prior judicial finding or conviction under this article of a second offense, shall be guilty of a third offense. Any person or entity that commits any third offense shall be guilty of an unclassified misdemeanor and subject to a fine of not less than $500 and not more than $2,500, or by imprisonment for not more than 120 days, or both such fine and imprisonment.
E. 
The application or pursuit of any civil or criminal fine, sanction, or penalty shall not preclude the pursuit of any other lawful remedy by the Town of Ithaca, including, but not limited to, the right to seek equitable relief. Whenever the Town of Ithaca shall believe from evidence satisfactory to it that there is any violation of, or noncompliance with, this article, the Town of Ithaca may bring an action to enjoin and restrain the continuation of such violation. In any such action: a) preliminary relief may be granted under Article 63 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules; and b) the Town of Ithaca shall not be required to post any bond or undertaking, prove that there is or will likely be irreparable harm, or prove that the Town of Ithaca has no adequate remedy at law. In any such action, the court may also award any damages or other relief requested, including declaring the rights and interests of any parties and imposing restitution or damages. The remedies provided by this article shall not be in lieu of, and shall be in addition to, any other right or remedy available to the Town of Ithaca, whether sounding in law, equity, enforcement or otherwise.
[Amended 4-11-2022 by L.L. No. 7-2022]
This article shall not apply to:
A. 
Local deliveries and pickups to and from properties located on the aforementioned Town of Ithaca highways by vehicles otherwise prohibited from using said highways by the provisions of this article;
B. 
Vehicles associated with a farm operation [as defined by New York State Agriculture and Markets Law § 301(11)], when a vehicle weight limit applies within a New York State-certified agricultural district;
C. 
School buses, related educational transportation vehicles, and municipally owned or sponsored mass transit, including TCAT buses;
D. 
Law enforcement vehicles;
E. 
Ambulances and fire trucks, and vehicles owned and operated by municipalities or fire companies on emergency or official municipal or firefighting business;
F. 
Military vehicles;
G. 
Maintenance, repair, and service vehicles owned and operated by a utility company or public authority while on official business, but excluding any pipeline transportation companies and similar entities that are not engaged in providing services to nearby residential, business or institutional structures; and
H. 
Municipal and other governmental vehicles engaging in maintenance, repairs, or the provision or performance of any municipal service, together with those vehicles contracted for such services by any municipality or governmental unit.
This article shall be effective with respect to each named street upon the erection or posting of modified signs or markings giving notice of the restrictions contained herein and that the maximum weight is determined by maximum registered gross vehicle weight. Until such time the previous law which this article supersedes shall remain in effect.