It shall be unlawful for any utility corporation to make an
excavation in or tear up the surface of any Town road without a permit
in writing from the Town Superintendent of Highways. A separate permit
shall be required for each and every road opening.
A.
To obtain a permit, an application must be made in writing on the
form provided, signed by the proper officers. In lieu of such execution,
the corporation may, by resolution, a certified copy of which shall
be filed with the Town Superintendent of Highways, designate an agent
or officer to execute applications for permits.
B.
There will be a fee for the permit application in an amount as shall
be established by resolution of the Town Board and set forth in an
appendix to this chapter.[1]
[Added 8-20-2001 by L.L. No. 5-2001; amended 12-13-2011 by L.L. No.
8-2011]
[1]
Editor's Note: Fees and Other Charges Relating to Road Excavations, Driveways and Heavy Hauling is included at the end of this chapter.
Wherever the word TOWN is used in these regulations, it shall
also mean the Town of Orangetown, Highway Department and/or the Town
Superintendent of Highways, or his representatives.
The Town will furnish and charge for an inspector for each day
from the time the road is to be opened until the backfilling with
approved material and temporary restoration of pavement has been completed.
The applicant shall specify on the application the date the excavation
is to be made. If the permittee fails to open the road on the date
specified, unless the Town office is notified the day before inspection,
fees will be charged for every day he fails to do so. However, no
openings shall be made on Saturdays, Sundays or holidays unless an
emergency exists, such as a water or gas leak or sewer stoppage.
In making the excavation, the permittee shall preserve the roadway
from needless destruction and shall cause the excavation, installation
or repair of utility facilities and backfilling to be one continuous
operation.
The permittee shall maintain safe crossings along the line of
opening and keep the same property guarded by, suitable barricades
and warning signs during the day, and by barricades and lights at
night.
If the excavation extends the full width of the road, only one-half
of the road shall be opened, and this is to be backfilled before the
other half is opened, so as to permit the free flow of traffic. In
some cases it may be possible to open on each side of the road and
jack or drive a pipe from one opening to the other.
Tunneling or mechanical methods of boring under the road for
service installations may be permitted only on written approval of
the Town.
Backfilling must be done with a pervious material such as stone
screening, second-grade crushed stone, sand, run-of-bank gravel or
other pervious material acceptable to the Town. Soils containing a
high percentage of clay, loam or silt shall not be used. The backfill
material shall be moistened and mechanically tamped until thoroughly
compacted. All excess material shall be removed from the roadway.
The Town may grant permission in writing to the permittee to
restore permanently, with its own employees or contractor approved
by the Town, the pavement in a manner satisfactory to the Town. In
such cases temporary restoration of pavement is to be made immediately
after the trench has been properly backfilled and compacted, and the
permanent restoration of pavement shall be made within three months,
weather permitting, from the date the temporary pavement was installed,
and such permanent restoration shall, as nearly as possible, duplicate
the original pavement in type, material, color and texture of the
surface, except where penetration pavement existed, in which case
it will be necessary for the permittee to replace the surface with
Type "B" material consisting of five inches of crushed stone base
surfaced with 2 1/2 inches of compacted bituminous concrete.
The term "pavement" as used in these regulations shall include the
foundation for the surface of the roadway.
Shoulder trenches shall be replaced with a pervious material
to within six inches of the surface. The final six inches shall consist
of second-grade crushed stone thoroughly rolled to the contour of
the road.
In the event the permittee has been granted permission to make
temporary and permanent restoration of pavement, the permittee agrees
to assume all responsibility for any damage which may occur as a result
of the opening from the time the opening is made until permanent restoration
has been made and approved, at which time the Town assumes responsibility
therefor. Under Item "A," Concrete or Concrete Base Pavements, since
the cost of replacement is difficult to estimate, it is recommended
that the permittee make the complete restoration or hire a competent
contractor to do it for him.
In the event the Town is to make temporary and permanent restoration
of pavement, permittee assumes all responsibility for the opening
and is required to backfill and continue to backfill said opening
as many times as is necessary to keep it safe for traffic until the
Town makes the temporary repair. Said temporary repair is to be made
by the Town not later than seven days after the opening has been backfilled.
[Amended 10-16-1996 by L.L. No. 24-1995; 8-20-2001 by L.L. No.
5-2001]
If the work of opening and/or restoration is to be performed
by a contractor, the contractor must first file with the Superintendent
of Highways and the Town Clerk adequate and satisfactory evidence,
in the form of a certificate of insurance, that he is covered by public
liability insurance in the amounts of $1,000,000 to $2,000,000 and
$500,000 for property damage, and that under this coverage, or by
separate policies in the above amounts, the Town of Orangetown is
named and fully indemnified. The contractor must also file with the
Superintendent of Highways and the Town Clerk adequate and satisfactory
evidence that he is fully covered for workers' compensation insurance.
Said certificates of insurance shall be reviewed and approved by the
Town Attorney.
A.
No opening permits will be issued between November 15th and March
15th unless an emergency exists. In the event an emergency exists
and permits are necessary, the fees will be increased for such permits
during this period, due to the fact that proper pavement repairs cannot
be made during the winter and the following rules and regulations
will pertain during this period.
B.
The backfill of all trenches during the winter period shall only
be made with screenings, second-grade crushed stone or approved run-of-bank
gravel, and if the opening is in shoulder, the last nine inches shall
be made with second-grade crushed stone thoroughly rolled to contour
of road. If the opening is in pavement, there shall be placed in the
trench eight inches of 1 1/2 inch crushed stone, dust bound,
and surfaced with 2 1/2 inches of compacted bituminous concrete.
No rocks larger than five inches in any direction or frozen dirt shall
be placed in the trench.
C.
Notwithstanding anything which may appear to the contrary in this
permit application and regulations, the applicant by accepting this
permit assumes all responsibility for the safe maintenance of said
opening from November 15th to April 1st and further assumes all liability
for damages resulting from or in any way connected therewith during
this period.
[Amended 10-16-1995 by L.L. No. 24-1995; 12-13-2011 by L.L. No.
8-2011]
The charge to be made by the Town for inspection of any openings,
pavement restoration and maintenance shall be in an amount as shall
be established by resolution of the Town Board and set forth in an
appendix to this chapter.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Fees and Other Charges Relating to Road Excavations, Driveways and Heavy Hauling is included at the end of this chapter.
The charges set forth above are to be made by the Town immediately
after the opening has been completed and upon certification by the
inspector of its size. Such measurements shall be at least six inches
larger than the length and width of the opening. When any openings
are made by a utility in connection with the construction, reconstruction,
paving or repaving of a road, no charge shall be made for the restoration
of the pavement or the maintenance thereof. Nor shall these charges
apply when a contractor is laying sewers under a contract directly
with the Town, provided that a maintenance bond shall be furnished
running for a period of two years with the provision that at any time
during this period the contractor shall, when directed by the Superintendent
of Highways, immediately make repairs to the pavement as required
by these regulations.
The permittee agrees, in accepting a permit to open a road,
to save harmless the Town of Orangetown, its officers and servants
from and against any injury, loss, damage or legal action resulting
from any negligence or fault of the permittee, its agents or servants
in connection with the work covered by the permit.
