[Amended 6-11-2003]
No person shall place snow and ice on any portion
of a public traveled road or sidewalk within the Town of Bethel, in
such a manner as to obstruct the normal flow of traffic either by
foot or vehicle, with the intent to leave said snow or ice thereon.
[Amended 6-12-2024 ATM
by Art. 12]
Whoever violates this article shall forfeit
not less than $25 for each offense, the same to be recovered on complaint
before any court, and the same shall at once be paid to the Treasurer
of the Town of Bethel for the use of said Town.
[Amended 6-13-2007]
This article shall be known and may be cited
as the "Town of Bethel, Maine, Street Excavation and Driveway Ordinance."
This article is adopted pursuant to 23 M.R.S.A.
§§ 3351 to 3360A.
[Amended 6-13-2007]
This article is designed to permit necessary
digging and excavation in Bethel streets, and establishes an application
and procedure providing for measures to protect underground facilities
and restore the surface of the street to a durable, as-new condition.
Additionally, this article specifies the design of private driveways
located on local public roads.
[Amended 6-11-2003; 6-13-2007]
It is necessary from time to time for owners, corporations, persons, firms or the Water District to excavate Bethel streets to install or repair underground facilities and construct driveways. Such excavations and driveways shall be built to the standards necessary to eliminate the later development of unsafe and offensive bumps or sags in the road surface and drainage facilities, protecting the value and safety of the road network. This article establishes excavation and driveway permit procedures and is in conjunction with Chapter
125, Road Design and Construction, Article
I.
The following words and phrases when used in
this article will, for the purpose of this article, have the meanings
respectively ascribed to them in this section. Whenever any words
and phrases used in this article are not defined herein but are defined
in the laws of Maine regarding excavations under public streets, then
such definition shall be deemed to apply to such words and phrases
used herein.
BUSINESS DAY
Any day other than Saturday, Sunday or a legal holiday.
DRIVEWAY
A way giving access from a local public road to an abutting
parcel or parcels. Driveways are commonly characterized by being owned
by the person, persons or entities being served.
[Added 6-13-2007]
EMERGENCY EXCAVATION
Immediate excavation necessary to prevent injury, death or
loss of an existing vital service.
EXCAVATION
Any operation in which earth, rock or other material on or
below the ground is moved or otherwise displaced by means of power
tools, power equipment or explosives, and including grading, trenching,
digging, ditching, drilling, auguring, tunneling, scraping and cable
or pipe driving, except tilling of soil and gardening or agricultural
purposes.
PERSON
An individual, partnership, municipality, state, county,
political subdivision, utility, joint venture or corporation, and
includes the employer of an individual.
STREET
Any public road, sidewalk, highway or traveled way within
the boundaries of a deeded Town right-of-way.
UNDERGROUND FACILITY
Any item of personal property buried or placed belowground
for use in connection with the storage or conveyance of water, sewage,
electronic, telephonic or telegraphic communications, electric energy,
oil, gas or other substances, and including but not limited to pipes,
sewers, conduits, cables, valves, lines, wires, manholes, attachments,
appurtenances and those parts of poles belowground.
The party performing the street opening work,
by virtue of having acquired a permit, agrees to perform the work
in accordance with the following:
A. The street and/or sidewalk surface shall be clean
cut in a straight line prior to excavation. The cut portion of the
surface of the street and/or sidewalk shall be cut back an additional
12 inches on each side beyond the sides of the actual opening necessary
to perform the work.
B. On all streets where a permanent pavement has been
built, a period of two months shall elapse after a trench has been
backfilled before the permanent surface is replaced, and during this
two-month period a temporary surface of premixed bituminous material
shall be used. On all other streets, the trench shall be patched with
premixed bituminous material as soon as the backfilling has been completed.
C. Excavated material will be allowed for use as backfill as long as it contains no rocks or pavement chunks larger than six inches in diameter and can be compacted to meet the requirements of Chapter
125, Road Design and Construction, Article
I. Pipes carrying heated substances will be thoroughly insulated.
D. The last 18 inches of backfill shall be a bank-run
or screened gravel having a maximum partial diameter of four inches;
fine sand is unacceptable.
E. The backfill shall be placed in nine-inch lifts and
compacted by power tampers of an approved type with a minimum energy
of 250 foot-pounds per square foot of tampers. (Backfilling a trench
and compacting with a backhoe or truck is not acceptable except in
special instances allowed by the Road Commissioner or his designated
representative.)
F. The contractor or individual obtaining the permit
shall assume full responsibility for performing this work in accordance
with the following regulations, subject to final approval by the Road
Commissioner or his representative.
[Added 6-14-2006]
This article may be amended by vote of a Town Meeting as provided in Chapter
5, Administration, Article
VII.