ORDINANCE NO. l5



AN ORDINANCE PRESCRIBING TRAFFIC AND PARKING REGULATIONS AND PROVIDING

PENALTIES FOR THEIR VIOLATION.

     WHEREAS, the Supervisors of the Township of Washington, County 
of Westmoreland, State of Pennsylvania, find it desirable to regulate 
the operation of automobiles, traffic, and parking, in said Township:

     NOW, THEREFORE, it is hereby ordained and enacted by the 

authority of the same as follows:

     Section l.  Definitions and Interpretation.  Words and phrases, 
when in this ordinance, shall have the meanings ascribed to them 
in the Vehicle Code of Pennsylvania, as now in force, or as hereafter

amended, enacted or re-enacted, except in those instances where the

context clearly indicates a different meaning.  The singular shall

include the plural and the masculine shall include the feminine.

     Section 2.  Parking without lights authorized.  The boundary 
limits of the Township of Washington are hereby established as a

zone in which motor vehicles may remain standing without lights, 
and all streets and alleys within such boundary limits are hereby 
designated as streets where motor vehicles may remain standing

without lights.

     Section 3.  Vehicles to Park in Marked Spaces.  Wherever a space

shall be marked off on any street or alley for the parking of an

individual vehicle, every vehicle there parked shall be parked within 
the lines bounding such space.







      Section 4.  At any time it shall be lawful to permit any vehicle 
to stand in any of the following places, except when necessary to 
avoid conflict with other traffic or in compliance with the direction 
of a policeman or traffic control device:

      A.  In any intersection or in any crosswalk;

      B.  On the crest of any hill or on the berm at any curve where 
          such parking will reduce the usable width of the highway

          or impair the vision of any motorist:

      C.  Upon any bridge or viaduct or in any underpass or the

          approaches thereto;

      D.  Within thirty (30) feet of a traffic signal, beacon, or

          sign on the approaching side;

      E.  Within twenty (20) feet of any intersection or crosswalk;

      F.  At any place where the standing of a vehicle will reduce

          the usable width of the roadway for moving traffic to less

          than twenty (20) feet; however, where the street or highway

          has been paved, no vehicle shall be parked within six (6)

          feet of the paved portion;

      G.  Within fifteen (l5) feet of a fire hydrant;

      H.  Within fifty (50) feet of the nearest rail of a railroad

          grade crossing; and

      I.  At any place where official signs prohibit parking.


      SECTION 5.  It shall be unlawful to park any vehicle within 
the right of way of any street or road or State Highway within 

Washington Township for the purpose of displaying said vehicle for 
sale.

      SECTION 6.  No person shall park a vehicle within the right 
of way of an alley, street, road, or highway within Washington 

Township in such a manner or under such conditions in such a position

as to block the roadway or any driveway entrance to an abutting

property.

      SECTION 7.  It shall be unlawful to park or store a motor 

vehicle on or along or within the legal right of way of any highway, 
road, street or alley within Washington Township, that does not have

a current license or current inspection sticker or is not in running

condition.

      SECTION 8.  The police department and all members thereof, 
are hereby authorized to remove, tow away and impound or have removed, 
towed away and impounded by commercial towing service, any car or

other vehicle illegally parked in any place where such parked vehicle 
creates or constitutes a traffic hazard, blocks the use of a fire

hydrant, obstructs or may obstruct the movement of any emergency  
vehicle or snow removal equipment or is in violation of any of the  
provisions of this ordinance; provided, no vehicle shall be removed

or impounded except in strict adherence to the following provisions.

      A.  The Board of Supervisors shall select and approve the
          storage garage or garages.

      B.  Every such approved storage garage shall post a bond in
            the amount of $2,000.00 to be filed with the Secretary
          for the indemnifying of the owner of any such impounded
            vehicle against the loss thereof or damage thereto, while
            in the custody of said storage garage;

 








      C.  Vehicles so towed away and stored or impounded shall be
          restored to the owner or operator of such car on payment
            of the towing charges within 24 hours after the time such
          vehicle was removed, plus storage charges for each 
          additional 24 hours or fraction thereof.  The towing and
          storage charges shall be fixed by the Board of Supervisors
          of Washington Township.

      D.  Within l2 hours from the time of the removal of any
          vehicle under authority granted by this Article, notice
            shall be sent by the Police Chief of the Township to the
          owner of record of such vehicle.  Such notice shall  
          designate the place from which said vehicle was removed,
          the reason for its removal and impounding and the place
          in which it shall have been impounded.

      E.  The police chief shall keep a record of all vehicles
          impounded and shall be able to furnish at all times the
          owner or agents of the owners thereof with information
            as to the place of storage of such vehicles.

      F.  The payment of towing and storage charges shall not operate
          to relieve the owner or operator of any vehicle from 
          liability for any fine or penalty

      G.  No vehicle shall be removed under the authority of this
          article if at the time of the intended removal thereof
          the owner or person for the time being in charge of
          such vehicle is present and expresses a willingness and
          intention to remove such vehicle immediately.

      SECTION 9.  Special Powers of the Chairman of the Board.  The

Chairman of the Board shall have the following powers to regulate

traffic and parking temporarily and in times of emergency.

      A.  In the case of fire, flood, snowfall, snowstorm, storm

          or other emergency, to establish temporary traffic and

          parking regulations.












      B.  In the case of emergency or to facilitate public works
            
          or in the case of the conduct of the processions and

          public events, to restrict or prohibit parking or traffic

          in limited areas for periods of not more than twenty-four

          (24) hours.

      


Such temporary and emergency regulations shall be enforced by the 
Police Chief and the Police of the Township in the same manner as

permanent regulations.  Any person who shall operate a vehicle in 
violation of any such temporary regulations shall be liable to the

penalty set forth in the law for such violation, and in case of any

violation for which no specific penalty is set forth in the law,

to a fine of not more than fifty dollars ($50.00), and, in default

of payment of such fine and costs of prosecution, to imprisonment

in the county jail for not more than ten (l0) days.

      SECTION l0.  The Police Chief shall have the power and authority

to establish, change and abolish, and to designate by appropriate

markings or signs, crosswalks, traffic lanes and parking spaces.

      SECTION ll.  Authority of Police Officers.  The Police Officers

of the Township are hereby given authority to direct traffic on the

highways of the Township, and at intersections thereof.











      SECTION l2.  Penalty for Violation.  Any person who shall 

violate any of the provisions of this Ordinance for which a penalty

has not been set, shall, upon conviction thereof, be sentenced to

pay a fine of not less than two dollars (2.00) or more than ten

dollars ($10.00) and costs of prosecution, and, in default of payment

of such fine and costs, to imprisonment in the county jail for not

more than five (5) days.

      SECTION l3. Severability.  The provisions of this ordinance

shall be severable, and if any of its provisions shall be held to

be unconstitutional or illegal, such decision shall not affect the

validity of any of the remaining provisions of this ordinance.

It is hereby declared as a legislative intent that this ordinance

would have been adopted had such unconstitutional or illegal provision 
not been included herein.

      SECTION l4.  Provisions to be Continuation of Existing 

Regulations.  The provisions of this ordinance, so far as they are 
the same as those of ordinances and regulations in force immediately 
prior to the enactment of this ordinance, are intended as a 

continuation of such ordinances and regulations and not as new 

enactments.

      SECTION l5.  Ordinance No. 9, an ordinance enacted by the

Board of Supervisors on May 6, l967, said ordinance regulating some 
of the areas covered in this ordinance, is hereby repealed.

       SECTION l6.  This ordinance shall become effective five days

after its adoption.






       ORDAINED and ENACTED by a unanimous vote of the Board of

Supervisors of Washington Township on is 5th day of November, l970.


                                       Robert T. Kline

                                       Arthur R. Smail

                                       H. Rugh Joyner


Attest:

H. J. Coulter
Secretary