Senate Bill No. 518
(By Senators Plymale, Wagner, Dittmar, and Yoder)
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[Originating in the Committee on Transportation;
reported February 25, 1994.]
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A BILL to amend chapter seventeen-c of the code of West Virginia,
one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, by adding
thereto a new article, designated article seventeen-a,
relating to the West Virginia transportation safety act;
legislative findings; definitions; creating the West
Virginia transportation safety council; creation of policy;
powers and duties of the council; reporting to the
Legislature; and termination of council.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That chapter seventeen-c of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended by
adding thereto a new article, designated article seventeen-a, to
read as follows:
ARTICLE 17A. WEST VIRGINIA TRANSPORTATION SAFETY ACT.
§17C-17A-1. Short title.
This article shall be known and may be cited as the "West
Virginia Transportation Safety Act".
§17C-17A-2. Legislative findings.
The Legislature finds that the transportation of goods andmaterials composes an important segment of the state's economy.
Current weight limits on the state's public highways and bridges
have been in existence for some time and may not, in all
instances, be appropriate in light of improved motor vehicular
engineering technology and highway construction technology. In
some instances, the existing weight limits are being exceeded by
transporters. An independent body is needed to examine all laws
relating to the transportation of goods and materials and the
enforcement of these laws.
The Legislature hereby declares that the safety of the
public and the integrity of the state's highway system must be
balanced with the economic transportation of said goods and
materials and the state's economy as a whole and that the state
needs to adopt an overall transportation policy reflecting a
balance of these interests. To achieve this balance, an
independent council comprised of members who can make findings
and conclusions of a technical nature relating to highway
engineering, motor vehicle engineering, highway safety and the
costs of transporting goods and materials is hereby created.
This council is empowered with the appropriate authority to
examine matters relating to the transportation of goods and
materials and transportation laws, and recommend appropriate
changes to existing laws, including creating a West Virginia
industrial road system and determining what highways and bridges
should be included therein.
§17C-17A-3. Definitions.
For purposes of this article, the following definitions
apply:
(a) "Council" means the West Virginia transportation safety
council.
(b) "Goods and materials" means water, dirt, sand, gravel,
stone, coal, oil, natural gas, timber, salt, crops, paper, steel
or any other mineral or material directly obtained, mined, cut or
otherwise derived from the land and transported in its natural
form; or materials derived from a natural resource without
substantial refinement, including, but not limited to, ready-
mixed concrete, asphalt, block, coke, ash, stone and limestone
aggregates or other items specifically designated by the safety
council.
(c) "The system" means the West Virginia industrial road
system and includes all public highways, or any portion thereof,
or bridges existing in this state, which the council recommends
as appropriate for inclusion.
§17C-17A-4. West Virginia transportation safety council.
(a) There is hereby created a "West Virginia Transportation
Safety Council" composed as follows: The commissioner of the
division of highways, who shall be the chairperson of the
council; the chief engineer of development for the division of
highways; the superintendent of the division of public safety;
the director of the division of transportation of the public
service commission; and the director of the West Virginia
economic council. These five persons shall be known as the
governmental appointees.
The seven nongovernmental persons shall be appointed by the
governor on or before the first day of July, one thousand nine
hundred ninety-four, and shall have the following qualifications:
(1) One shall be an engineer from the private sector;
(2) Two shall have experience in public policy or public
service, with one being selected from a list of three persons
submitted by the president of the Senate and one being selected
from a list of three persons submitted by the speaker of the
House of Delegates;
(3) Two shall have experience in the transportation
industry, with one having expertise in the manufacturing of
traditional haulage equipment and one from the railroad industry;
and
(4) Two shall have managerial and transportation experience
in the natural resources industry, one of whom shall come from
the timber industry.
(b) The council shall hold meetings at the direction of the
chairperson. The chairperson shall call a meeting whenever three
members request the chairperson to do so. The exact date and
time of each meeting shall be determined by the chairperson.
A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum for the
conduct of council business. All issues shall be resolved by a
majority of those present at the meeting.
§17C-17A-5. Duties of council.
(a) The council is authorized to study and make
recommendations to the Legislature, examine issues relating to
transportation of goods and materials, create a West Virginia
industrial road system and create and adopt a policy relating to
such transportation.
Prior to recommending any policy, the council shall hold
public hearings in order to elicit public participation andcomment on the formation of the policy. The council shall give
notice by publication of the date, time and place of all
meetings, pursuant to the open meeting law.
(b) The council shall consider weight limits, fees schedules
and other criteria for classifying highways and bridges.
The policy shall be based upon relevant facts relating to:
(1) Public safety; (2) the integrity of the state's highway
system; (3) the economic costs involved in transportation of
goods and materials and the state's economy; and (4) additional
considerations reasonably associated with the transportation of
goods and materials along the state's highway system.
The policy shall also provide that highways and bridges may
be upgraded prior to inclusion in the system and that certain
upgrading costs may be shared by the state and private entities
by entering into cooperative agreements.
(c) The council shall adopt the policy required by this
article no later than the first day of December, one thousand
nine hundred ninety-four.
§17C-17A-6. Powers of council.
To fulfill its duties under this article, the council has
the following powers:
(a) To gather information and data relating to the
transportation of goods and materials;
(b) To recommend whether the weight limits of particular
public highways, or portions thereof, and public bridges existing
in this state should be adjusted. Such recommendations shall be
based on sound engineering and safety principles for the purpose
of transporting goods and materials on the system in aneconomically practical and feasible manner;
(c) To hold public hearings to discuss issues relating to
the transportation of goods and materials;
(d) To recommend policies and general guidelines for the
inclusion of certain highways and bridges in the system based
upon recommended tonnage limits for specific axle configurations
and total tonnage limits each highway or bridge can adequately
support; and
(e) To recommend weight limits, fees for any increased
weight permits, cost-sharing procedures to be used to upgrade
highways and bridges included in the system and enforcement
procedures with associated penalty schedules.
§17C-17A-7. Report to legislature and termination of council.
On or before the second day of January, one thousand nine
hundred ninety-five, the council shall submit to the Legislature
the policy and a written report listing its recommendations.
The council shall be terminated on the first day of June,
one thousand nine hundred ninety-five.