§1011. Closing and restricting use of highway; penalty
Any individual, partnership, association, corporation, municipal corporation or state or any of its political subdivisions engaged in or preparing to engage in the manufacture, transportation or storage of any product to be used in the preparation of the United States or any of the states for defense or for war, or in the prosecution of war by the United States, or with preparations and plans for emergency management, or with the execution of those preparations and plans under chapter 13, or in the manufacture, transportation, distribution or storage of gas, oil, coal, electricity or water, or any individual, partnership, association, corporation, municipal corporation or state or any of its political subdivisions operating a public utility, who has property so used that the person or it believes will be endangered if public use and travel is not restricted or prohibited on one or more highways or parts of a highway or highways upon which the property abuts, may petition the highway commissioners of any city, town or county to close one or more of those highways or parts of a highway or highways to public use and travel or to restrict by order the use and travel upon one or more of the highways or parts of a highway or highways.
[PL 2001, c. 614, §29 (AMD).]
Upon receipt of the petition, the highway commissioners shall set a day for a hearing and publish notice of the hearing in a newspaper having general circulation in the city, town or county in which the property is located. The notice must be published at least 7 days prior to the date set for the hearing. If, after the hearing, the highway commissioners determine that the public safety and the safety of the property of the petitioner require, they shall, by suitable order, close to public use and travel, or reasonably restrict the use of and travel upon one or more of those highways or parts of one or more of those highways. The highway commissioners may issue written permits for travel over the closed or restricted highways to responsible and reputable persons for such term, under such conditions and in such form as they may prescribe. Appropriate notices in letters at least 3 inches high must be posted conspicuously at each end of any highway closed or restricted by the order. The highway commissioners may at any time revoke or modify the order.
[PL 2001, c. 614, §29 (AMD).]
Whoever violates any order made under this section is guilty of a Class E crime.
[PL 1983, c. 460, §3 (NEW).]
SECTION HISTORY
PL 1983, c. 460, §3 (NEW). PL 2001, c. 614, §29 (AMD).