City of Hagerstown, MD Article IV Work Zones and Street Cutting Standards

[Amended 7-27-2004 by Ord. No. 2004-32; 6-20-2006 by Ord. No. O-06-15; 3-31-2015 by Ord. No. O-15-03]

§ 216-28 Purpose.

The purpose of this article is to establish standards for excavations in public rights-of-way and to regulate and improve the safe flow of traffic through work zones.

§ 216-29 Statutory authority.

This article is adopted pursuant to the Annotated Code of Maryland Article 23A, the Transportation Article, § 25-106, and the Charter of the City of Hagerstown, which provide that a local authority may require the placement of appropriate traffic control devices to carry out the Maryland Vehicle Law.

§ 216-30 Permits.

A. Pavement openings in existing streets, alleys or other public rights-of-way shall require a permit for street opening issued by the City Engineering Division. Work plans and traffic control plans shall be required and approved prior to issuance of the permit. Emergency street openings can be made without a permit by public utility companies. In such cases, a permit shall be obtained at the earliest possible time, but not more than 24 hours after the excavation is made. (In case an emergency occurs on a weekend or holiday, a permit should be obtained within the first eight working hours of the Engineering Division).

B. It is the intent of the City to charge a permit fee which approximates the actual cost of required inspection services, the loss of the useful life of the affected street or alley and the increased maintenance efforts by the City to attend to the street patch over the future years. A permit application fee of $25 will be charged in addition to a pavement degradation fee and marking damage fee in accordance with the following schedule:

	Type of Street	Individual Trenches [trench less than or equal to 25 linear feet (fee per each individual trench)]	Continuous Trenches [overall trench greater than 25 linear feet (fee charges per 100 linear feet or parts thereof)]
	Newly constructed streets (year 0 through 3) (only emergency digs allowed)	$1,000	$1,500
	Newly constructed streets (after year 3, prior to overlay)	$150	$250
	Overlay streets (year 0 to 3)	$400	$500
	Overlay streets (after year 3 to next overlay) or grass and sidewalk areas	$150	$225

(1) Where existing traffic lines or traffic markings exist and are destroyed by the permittee's work, a marking damage fee shall be levied to cover the cost of the City to replace or repaint these traffic lines and markings as follows, with a minimum charge of $5:

(a) Line paintings (four inches wide) at $3 per linear foot.

(b) Markings (greater than four inches wide) at $20 per square foot.

(2) Existing traffic signs shall be maintained in work zones by the permittee and shall only be removed with permission by a representative of the Engineering Division. Where existing traffic signs are misplaced or destroyed by the permittee's work, the permittee shall correct the situation within two working days. If the permittee fails to correct the situation, the City Department of Public Works shall correct the situation and the permittee shall reimburse the City for all costs.

C. In addition to the current permit fee required herein, a technology fee of $25 will be required in connection with the issuance of each permit.

D. Except in case of an emergency, open cutting of streets constructed or overlaid within the last three years is prohibited when other alternative construction methods are available. When open cuts are the only alternative, the size of the opening shall be minimized.

E. It shall be the responsibility of all utilities to complete all necessary main and lateral upgrades on all streets scheduled to be resurfaced prior to the start of the overlay. A fifty-percent reduction in permit fees shall be granted to utilities performing mainline replacements (in excess of 25 linear feet) within two years prior to a scheduled overlay.

F. Construction plans and specifications along with a traffic control plan shall be submitted to the City Engineer for approval prior to receipt of a permit. A copy of the permit shall be available for inspection at all times at the construction site while work is in progress.

G. Utilities shall assume full responsibility to the State Highway Administration for securing permits required for openings and their repair on U.S. Route 40.

§ 216-31 Performance surety.

A. Prior to the issuance of a permit for work and/or excavation within a City right-of-way, the City Engineer may require a performance surety. If required, the permittee shall file with his permit a performance surety. This shall be presented in a form acceptable to the City Attorney. The surety shall be in an amount not less than the estimated value of the restoration of the public right-of-way costs. Said surety shall be in full force and effect until after final inspection and acceptance by the Engineering Division of the restoration work.

B. For utilities that require frequent permits, the City Engineer may request an annual surety for work anticipated in the following calendar year. The amount of said surety, to be determined by the City Engineer during the first week in December of each year, will cover a one-year period beginning January 1.

§ 216-32 Period of validity of permits.

A. All permits shall be valid for a period of 45 days unless it is determined by the City Engineer that the nature and scope of the project justifies a longer period. This time exception shall be requested by the permittee and shall be identified on the permit.

B. At the expiration date of the permit, the repairs shall be complete and ready for inspection. If the permit expiration date is between May 1 and October 31, the work done under these permits shall be permanently repaired in accordance with the Public Ways Construction Standards. Failure to comply with this section shall be considered a municipal infraction and subject to a daily penalty set forth in § 216-35.

C. Work done under permits expiring between November 1 and April 30 can be temporarily repaired in accordance with § 216-33. The permanent repair shall be done during the following months of April through May 30. It shall be the permittee's responsibility to maintain all temporary repairs until the permanent work is completed. Failure to comply with this section shall be considered a municipal infraction and subject to the daily penalty set forth in § 216-35.

§ 216-33 General regulation for street openings.

The City Engineer shall require all work to be accomplished at such times or on such days as may be required to minimize traffic interference in accordance with rules and regulations established by the State Highway Administration and incorporated in § 216-34 herein. Restoration of the right-of-way structures and surfaces shall be done by the permittee. All costs shall be borne by the permittee. General requirements for street openings are as follows:

A. A contractor, corporation, public utility or franchise utility shall maintain one lane of traffic, utilizing traffic control standards referenced in § 216-34.

B. No more than 250 linear feet measured longitudinally shall be opened in any street at any one time unless special permission is granted, in writing, by the City Engineer.

C. Any existing utility encountered or affected shall be protected from damage. It shall be the permittee's responsibility to notify any affected utilities involved. Damage caused by the contractor's work shall be repaired at the contractor's expense to the satisfaction of the respective utility or owner. Any damage to public street, curb, sidewalk, utilities, storm drain, etc., caused by the permittee or his agents shall be repaired to the satisfaction of the City by the permittee.

D. Work interfering with the established drainage system shall be accomplished with provisions made for temporary drainage facilities.

E. Trench excavation, backfill, construction procedures and pavement restoration shall be followed by the permittee throughout the progress of the work and shall conform to City of Hagerstown Public Ways Construction Standards and shall comply with federal safety regulations, as required by law.

F. Access to private driveways shall be provided except when actual construction operations prohibit provision of such access. Free access must be provided at all times to all fire hydrants, except those under repair or otherwise deactivated. When a fire hydrant is to be deactivated or temporarily put out of service, the permittee shall notify the Fire Chief 48 hours in advance.

G. Pedestrian movements shall be maintained. Temporary walkways are required, when possible, for projects with a duration of more than three working days. When sidewalks must be closed, closure and temporary signage must comply with standard details available from the Engineering Division.

H. The construction site shall be thoroughly cleaned of all excavated materials, tools, equipment, barricades or litter upon completion of the work. While work is in progress, the site shall be left in a neat and clean condition at the end of each working day with traffic control in place and operational. Excavated materials shall be placed so as to cause a minimum of inconvenience to public travel.

I. Individuals, City departments, corporations, etc., making pavement cuts, permanent street repairs, or excavation in the public right-of-way shall be responsible for any work performed for a period of one year after the expiration date of the permit, or one year after final inspection and acceptance by the City inspector if such acceptance occurs before the expiration date of the permit. If the repair becomes defective in any way within the one-year warranty period, the permittee shall replace or repair to City Standards and a new one-year warranty period begins.

J. It shall be the responsibility of the utility to notify the City Engineer prior to and after the completion of work when any traffic lane will be temporarily blocked or there are any deviations from the approved traffic control plans. Refer to § 216-34.

K. When the utility is notified that the City is planning a street construction or reconstruction project, the utility may be required to provide the City, within 90 days of said notice, an engineering report on the utility system in the project area. Said report shall include, but not be limited to the following:

(1) System description (size, location, depth, age, materials, etc.).

(2) Adequacy to serve projected needs (20 years minimum).

(3) Statement of condition.

(4) Proposed improvements to system, time schedule, etc.

L. All underground utilities marked with the rights-of-way of the City of Hagerstown shall comply with the following color code set forth by Maryland State Law:

	Utility	Color	Symbol
	Electric	Red	-E-
	Gas/oil	Yellow	-G-/-O-
	Communications	Orange	-Tel-/-Tv-
	Water	Blue	-W-
	Sewer	Green	-S-
	Proposed excavation	White

NOTE: Anyone intending to excavate shall contact Miss Utility at 1-800-257-7777 a minimum of two working days before the excavation is planned.

M. General safety requirements to be followed by the permittee throughout the progress of the work shall conform to Maryland Occupational Safety Standards.

N. Temporary traffic control signs, channelization devices and barricades shall have suitable reflectorized portions to be effective at night and shall be in conformance with the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices.

O. At the end of each working day, excavations shall be plated, backfilled and temporarily restored with bituminous material or shall be adequately protected by barricades and devices per the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices. Plates shall be securely anchored to the road surface, shall be ramped with bituminous asphalt and advance warning signs installed. Patches shall be permanently restored prior to the expiration date of the permit as outlined in § 216-32.

§ 216-34 Traffic control in utility work areas.

A. Any person, firm, business, corporation or utility company, including employees of the City, who has obtained permission to excavate any of the streets, lanes or alleys of the City is required to take all proper measures to ensure the safety of passing vehicles and pedestrians from loss of life or injury to person or property. All temporary traffic control measures shall comply with current Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) regulations and the Maryland State Highway Administration's Book of Standard Traffic Control Plans. These MDSHA traffic control plans may be modified with approval of the City Engineer or his designee, when appropriate for conditions within the City.

B. The Engineering Division shall review and approve all traffic control plans. Special requirements may be placed on the permittee based on traffic patterns, and additional restrictions may apply in the morning and evening peak traffic volume periods.

C. Emergency operations, at a minimum, shall use advance warning sign(s), flashing lights on the vehicle and channelizing devices. For extensive emergency operations it is expected that additional traffic control devices will be placed as soon as possible to present an array of devices which are consistent with the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) regulations and the Maryland State Highway Administration's Book of Standard Traffic Control Plans. These MDSHA traffic control plans may be modified with approval of the City Engineer or his designee, when appropriate for conditions within the City.

D. For nonexcavation activities that are mobile, short-term or of short duration (as defined in the MUTCD), traffic control shall still be provided in accordance with the Maryland State Highway Administration's Standard Traffic Control Plans and the MUTCD. Typically, mobile operation shall utilize warning lights in front and rear of the vehicle, and also a rotating and/or yellow flashing light on top of the vehicle. However, there will be situations where additional traffic control devices, such as signs, strobe lights, flags and/or channelizing devices, should be used.

(1) Additional traffic control devices should be placed in advance on a hill or curve which obstructs the approaching traffic's view of a stopped mobile operation. A vehicle should not occupy or be stopped in a lane beyond a horizontal curve or vertical curve (hill). Vehicles stopping are to be pulled as far off the road as possible or be otherwise parked in a manner as to inhibit the movement of traffic as little as necessary.

(2) Mobile operations that encroach on a travel lane reducing the effective lane width to less than nine feet may not take place during the aforesaid peak hours.

E. Prior to beginning any work operations, any person, firm, business, corporation, utility company or governmental body which in the course of its work operations will impede or impair the normal flow of traffic must submit a traffic control plan to the City Engineer for approval. The City Engineer or designee shall review the traffic control plan for its adherence to the applicable traffic control standard drawings and/or the MUTCD before granting a permit. The traffic control plan in utility work areas will be kept on file at the Engineering Division along with any subsequent additions or amendments thereto. An exception to this will only be considered for emergencies and short-term (less than one day) operations.

§ 216-35 Violations and penalties.

A. When the City Engineer or his representative determines that a violation of a City-issued permit or an approved construction plan has occurred, the inspector shall notify the on-site personnel or the permittee in writing of the violation, describing the required corrective action and the time period in which to have the violation corrected.

B. If the violation persists after the date specified for corrective action in the notice of violation, the City Engineer or his representative shall determine the extent to which work shall be stopped, which may include all work on the site except that work necessary to correct the violation, and issue citation. Except when specifically defined otherwise herein, any violation of this article shall be considered a municipal infraction. The penalty shall be $200 for each day the violation occurs.

C. If a person is working without a permit, the City Engineer or his representative shall stop work on the site immediately, except activity necessary to provide health and safety, until a permit is obtained. Fees shall be doubled for said permit.

§ 216-36 Enforcement and abatement.

Whenever the City Engineer or his duly authorized representative finds that work areas under a permit fail to conform to the approved traffic control plan, to these rules and regulations or to the City standards for pavement and street openings, he may, by written order, suspend work until direct conformance has been achieved or he may direct that such other measures be performed that he deems necessary under the circumstances. In cases where the permittee is unable or refuses to perform, the City Engineer may order the appropriate City department or agent of the City to correct the problem and charge the permittee for the cost of all labor, material and equipment, plus 15% for administration and billing.