Chapter 17. ROADS AND HIGHWAYS.

§1. In General.—Whenever in this chapter, or in any rule or regulation authorized by it, any of the words, terms or phrases defined in this article are used, they shall be taken and construed to have the meaning, application and effect ascribed to them in this article, unless otherwise specified or clearly intended.

§2. Commission; Road Commission; State Road Commission.—The words and terms “commission, ” “road commission,’’ or “state road commission,” shall refer to and mean “The State Road Commission of West Virginia.”(1921, c. 112, §5; Code 1923, c. 43, §5.)

§3. Road; Public Road; Highway.—The words or terms “road,” “public road,” or “highway,” shall be deemed to include the right of way, roadbed and all necessary culverts, sluices, drains, ditches, waterways, embankments, slopes, retaining walls, bridges, tunnels and viaducts necessary for the maintenance of travel, dispatch of freight and communication between individuals and communities; and such public road or highway shall be taken to include any road to which the public has access and which it is not denied the right to use, or any road or way leading from any other public road over the land of one or more persons to the land of another person, and which shall have been established pursuant to law. Any road shall be conclusively presumed to have been established when it has been used by the public for a period of ten years or more, and public moneys or labor have been expended thereon, whether there be any record of its conveyance, dedication or appropriation to public use or not. In the absence of any other mark or record, the center of the traveled way shall be taken as the center of the road, and the right of way shall be designated therefrom an equal distance on each side, but a road may be constructed on any part of the located right of way when it is deemed advisable so to do: Provided, That a proper record of such right of way for a county-district road, showing the exact location thereof, shall be entered by the county court of the county in which such road is to be constructed; and that such a record of the right of way for a state road shall be made and entered as provided by section eight, article four of this chapter.(1921, c. 112, §3; Code 1923, c. 43, §3.)

§4. Vehicle.—“Vehicle” shall mean and include any mechanical device for the conveyance, drawing or other transportation of persons or property upon the public roads and highways, whether operated on wheels or runners or by other means, except those propelled or drawn by human power or those used exclusively upon tracks.[1921, c. 112, §75(a); Code 1923, c. 43, §75(a); 1923, c. 6, §75(a); 1925, c. 17; §75(a).]

§5. Truck.—“Truck” shall mean and include any motor vehicle designed and used for carrying freight, or any regularly constructed passenger automobile regularly carrying freight, or any reconstructed motor vehicle used for such purpose.[1921, c. 112, §75(b); Code 1923, c. 43, §75(b); 1923, c 6, §75(b); 1925, c. 17, §75(b).]

§6. Motor Vehicle.—“Motor vehicle” shall mean and include any self-propelled vehicle not operated exclusively upon stationary tracks, except tractors.[1921, c. 112, §75(c); Code 1923, c. 43, §75(c); 1923, c. 6, §75(c); 1925, c. 17, §75(c).]

§7. Tractor.—“Tractor” shall mean and include any self-propelled vehicle designed or used as a traveling power plant or for drawing, other vehicles, but having no provisions for carrying loads independently.[1921, c. 112, §75 (d); Code 1923, c. 43, §75(d); 1923, c. 6, §75(d); 1925, c. 17, §75(d).]

§8. Trailer.—“Trailer” shall mean and include any vehicle without motive power designed for carrying property or passengers, wholly on its own structure, and for being drawn by a self-propelled vehicle, except those running exclusively on stationary tracks.[1921, c. 112, §75(e); Code 1923, c. 43, §75(e); 1923, c. 6, ; §75(e); 1925, c. 17, §75 (e).]

§9. Semi-Trailer.—“Semi-trailer” shall mean and include a vehicle of a trailer type so designed and used in conjunction with a self-propelled vehicle that a considerable part of its own weight or that of its load rests upon in and is carried by the towing vehicle.[1921, c. 112, §75(f); Code 1923, c. 43, §75(f); 1923, c. 6, §75 (f); 1925, c. 17, §75 (f).]

§10. Pneumatic Tires.—“Pneumatic tires” shall mean and include tires of rubber or other material inflated with air, and depending solely upon confined air for the support of the load, and tires of rubber or similar elastic material commonly known as “cushion” tires, when designated by the state road commission as pneumatic tires.[1921, c. 112, §75 (g); Code 1923, c. 43, §75(g); 1923, c. 6, §75(g); 1925, c. 17, §75(g).]

§11. Solid Tires.—“Solid tires” shall mean and include tires of rubber or similar elastic material that do not depend upon confined air for the support of the load, except cushion tires when otherwise designated by the commission.[1921, c. 112, §75 (h); Code 1923, c. 43, §75 (h); 1923, c. 6, §75(h); 1925, c. 17, §75 (h).]

§12. Solid Tired Vehicle.—“Solid tired vehicle” shall mean and include any vehicle equipped with two or more solid tires.[1921, c. 112, §75 (i); Code 1923, c. 43, §75 (i); 1923, c. 6, §75(i); 1925, c. 17, §75(i).]

§13. Manufacturer.—“Manufacturer” shall mean and include any person, firm or corporation actively engaged in the manufacture of motor vehicles who has an established place of business in this State.[1921, c. 112, §75(j); Code 1923, c. 43, §75(j); 1923, c. 6, §75(j); 1925, c. 17, §75 (j).]

§14. Dealer.—“Dealer” shall mean and include any person, firm or corporation actively engaged in the sale, purchase or exchange of motor vehicles who for such purpose has an established place of business in this State.[1921, c. 112, §75(j); Code 1923, c. 43, §75(j); 1923, c. 6, §75(j); 1925, c. 17, §75(j).]

§15. Owner.—“Owner” shall mean and include any person, firm, corporation or association holding title to a vehicle.[1921, c. 112, §75 (k); Code 1923, c. 43, §75 (k); 1923, c. 6, §75(k); 1925, c. 17, §75(k).]

§16. Operator.—“Operator” shall mean and include any person who drives or operates a motor vehicle or tractor, except for the transportation of persons or property, or both, for compensation.[1921, c. 112, §75(l); Code 1923, c. 43, §75(l); 1923, c. 6, §75(1); 1925, c. 17, §75(l).]

§17. Chauffeur.—“Chauffeur” shall mean and include any person who operates for hire, who receives pay directly or indirectly to operate, any motor vehicle or tractor, or who operates a motor vehicle for the transportation of persons or property, or both, for compensation, upon the public highways.[1921, c. 112, §75 (m); Code 1923, c. 43, §75 (m); 1923, c. 6, §75(m); 1925, c. 17, §75(m).]

§18. State.—“State” shall mean the State of West Virginia, unless by the context some other state or territory or federal district of the United States is meant or intended.[1921, c. 112, §75 (n); Code 1923, c. 43, §75 (n); 1923, c. 6, §75(n); 1925, c. 17, §75(n).]

§19. Political Subdivision.—“Political subdivision” shall mean and include any county, city, town, or other similar governmental unit of the State.[1921, c. 112, §75(o); Code 1923, c. 43, §75(o); 1923, c. 6, §75(o); 1925, c. 17, §75(o).]

§20. Local Authorities.—“Local authorities” shall mean and include representatives of political subdivisions of the State, duly elected or appointed to administer the laws and ordinances of the State.[1921, c. 112, §75(p); Code 1923, c. 43, §75(p); 1923, c. 6, §75(p).]

§21. Open Country Highway.—“Open country highway” shall mean a highway, or portion thereof, greater than one-fourth of a mile in length, along either side of which the buildings average more than three hundred feet apart.[1921, c. 112, §75(q); Code 1923, c. 43, §75(q); 1923, c. 6, §75(q); 1925, c. 17, §75(q).]

§22. Urban Street.—“Urban street” shall mean a public street, road or highway, or portion thereof, other than an open country highway or suburban street.[1921, c. 112, §75(r); Code 1923, c. 43, §75(r); 1923, c. 6, §75(r); 1925, c. 17, §75(r).]

§23. Suburban Street.—A “suburban street” shall mean a public street, road or highway, or portion thereof, not less than one-fourth of a mile in length, on either side of which the buildings average less than three hundred feet, but more than fifty feet, apart.[1921, c. 112, §75(r); Code 1923, c. 43, §75(r); 1923, c. 6, §75(r); 1925, c. 17, §75(r).]

§24. Stand.—“Stand” shall mean a fixed place of business in charge of a person and maintained by a person, firm or corporation operating motor vehicles for hire, where motor vehicles shall be parked when not out on calls.[1925, c. 17, §75 (s).]

§25. Secondhand Car.—“Secondhand car” shall mean a motor vehicle which has been sold, bargained, exchanged, given away or title transferred from the person who first took title to it from the manufacturer or importer, dealer or agent of the manufacturer or importer, and so used as to become what is commonly known as “secondhand” within the ordinary meaning thereof.[1925, c. 17, §75(t).]

§1. Appointment of Commission; Term of Office; Oath; Bond; Salary.—There shall be a commission known as “The State Road Commission of West Virginia,” which shall be a corporation, and, as such, may sue and be sued, contract and be contracted with, and shall have a common seal. The commission shall consist of three members of well known business qualifications, appointed by the governor, by and with the advice and consent of the senate, not more than two of whom shall at any one time belong to the same political party. The commissioners in office on the date this Code takes effect shall, unless sooner removed, continue to serve until their respective terms expire and until their successors have been appointed and have qualified. On or before the first day of June, nineteen hundred and thirty-one, and on or before the first day of June of each alternate year thereafter, the governor shall appoint a commissioner to serve for a term of six years, commencing on said first day of June, and any commissioner shall be eligible for reappointment. The governor shall designate one of the members chairman, who shall serve as such during his will.

The commissioners, before entering upon their duties, shall take and subscribe the oath prescribed by section five of article four of the Constitution, and each shall execute a bond, to be approved by the governor, in the penalty of ten thousand dollars, conditioned according to law, which oath and bond shall be filed with the secretary of state, and preserved and recorded in his office as other oaths and bonds required of state officials. Each commissioner shall devote his entire time to the duties of his office, and shall receive a salary at the rate of seven thousand five hundred dollars per annum, and necessary expenses incurred in the discharge of such duties, to be paid monthly.(1921, c. 112. §§5, 6; Code 1923, c. 43, §§5, 6.)

§2. Qualifications of Commissioners, Appointees and Employees.—No person while in the employ of, or holding any official relation to, any person, firm or corporation selling or furnishing any materials entering into the construction, reconstruction, repair or maintenance of any road or highway of this State, or any part thereof, or who is pecuniarily interested therein, as a stockholder or otherwise, shall hold the office of commissioner; nor shall the commission appoint any person or persons as engineers, superintendents, or foremen who sustain such relation to such person, firm or corporation ; nor shall such engineers, superintendents, or foremen thereafter become in any way connected with or interested in any such person, firm or corporation while in the employ of the commission; nor shall any commissioner, or any engineer, superintendent or foreman appointed by the commission, be a candidate for or hold any public office, other than that of commissioner or of employment under the commission, or be a member of any political committee while acting as such commissioner or while employed by it. In case any commissioner, or any servant or employee of the commission, be a candidate for or hold any other public office, or be a member of any political committee, his office as a commissioner or position as employee, as the case may be, shall ipso facto be vacated.(1921, c. 112, §5; Code 1923, c. 43, §5.)

§3. Organization; Assistants and Employees Agreement With County Court for Their Services.—The commission shall make necessary rules and regulations for its own government, appoint a secretary, and may from time to time appoint and employ such other assistants, agents and employees as may be necessary in the performance of the duties imposed upon it by the provisions of this chapter, fix their compensation, and require of such of them as handle public funds bond with security to be approved by the commission in the penalty to be fixed by it, conditioned as bonds required by law of persons elected or appointed to office in this State. The total compensation paid to assistants, agents and employees of the commission shall not exceed in any one year the appropriation made by the legislature for that purpose: Provided, That any county court of the State may enter into an agreement with the commission for the services of any such assistant, agent or employee, in which case the court shall provide for and pay the necessary costs of such services. All such assistants, agents and employees shall be appointed, or employed, to serve as such during the will and pleasure of the commission.(1921, c. 112, §6; Code 1923, c. 43, §6.)

§4. Offices of Commission; Reports.—Th state road commission shall be provided by the State with suitable office rooms in the City of Charleston, and its offices shall be open at all reasonable times for the transaction of public business. The commission shall make a full report to the governor each year of its operations, showing the quantity of earth and stone removed and materials prepared and manufactured; the number of miles and location of roads under construction, and the number and location of roads completed, including such roads as have been taken over by the commission for maintenance or construction; the cost of such construction and maintenance, and the materials prepared and used therein; the condition and needed repairs of roads previously constructed and taken over by the commission, together with the result of its investigation respecting previously constructed roads and the materials used therein, and the cost of maintenance thereof; and detailed statements of its expenses. The report made to the governor shall be accompanied with a map or maps showing the location and improvement of all roads receiving federal aid up to the time of the completion of the report. For the purpose of obtaining all necessary and detailed information to be used in the preparation of the report, the commission may require the several county courts, or local road authorities, in whose counties work is done or contemplated, to furnish such monthly reports as may be prescribed by the commission. The commission shall make such other reports concerning the roads of the State, and particularly state roads and the progress of their improvements, as may be proper or required by the governor, and may make such recommendations or other reports as in its judgment are beneficial to the general public.(1921, c. 112, §7; Code 1923, c. 43, §7.)

§5. Attorney General and Prosecuting Attorneys to Act as Counsel.—It shall be the duty of the attorney general of this State and of his assistants, and of the prosecuting attorneys of the several counties, to render to the commission, without additional compensation, such legal services as it shall require of them in the discharge of its duties under the provisions of this chapter.(1921, c. 112, §8; Code 1923, c. 43, §8.)

§6. Aid to Commission by University; Schools of Good Roads; National Conferences.—At the request of the state road commission it shall be the duty of the dean of the college of engineering of West Virginia university, the director of the experiment station of said university, and the heads of the several departments of science of said institution, to render to the commission all necessary aid and assistance in the performance of its duties as the requirements of their respective offices and positions will permit, without extra charge or compensation for such service.

The state road commisson, in conjunction with the West Virginia university, may hold annually a school of good roads of not less than three days’ duration. All state and county road engineers, county supervisors, and presidents or members of the county courts, shall attend such school and receive instruction in road building and maintenance. The commission shall fix the times for holding such schools, and may conduct the same at the West Virginia university and other points in the State. The actual necessary expenses incurred by such county road engineers, supervisors, and presidents or members of county courts, shall be paid out of the county treasury.

To provide the ablest talent, and to bring to the State the latest improvements and methods in road construction and maintenance, the commission shall be members of and attend national road conventions and conferences of federal and state road officials, and shall do everything necessary to carry to every section of the State the most practical discoveries and economical methods of road construction and maintenance. The actual necessary expenses of the road commission, or of any of its engineers attending any road school or convention, shall be paid by the commission out of the proper appropriations.(1921, c. 112, §9; Code 1923, c. 43, §9.)

§7. Duties of Commission as to Road Plan Statistics, Standards, Information and Aid; Copies of Public Records at Richmond.—The commission shall cause to be made and kept for its department a general road or highway plan of the State, and shall compile, publish and disseminate statistics and collect information relative to the mileage, character and condition of the roads and highways in the counties and magisterial districts of the State. It shall investigate and determine upon the various methods of road construction best adapted to the various sections of the State, and shall establish standards for the construction and maintenance of roads and highways in various sections, taking into consideration the topography of the country, the natural conditions, the character and availability of road building material, and the ability of the counties and magisterial districts to build and maintain roads under the provisions of this chapter. It may at all reasonable times be consulted by any county, magisterial district, city or incorporated town officers, concerning county-district roads, highways, bridges and streets over which they have jurisdiction, respectively, and shall, when requested, advise and give information to such officers relative to the construction, repair, alteration and maintenance of such roads, highways and bridges. It shall, at all times, lend its aid in promoting road improvement throughout the State, shall prepare and compile all useful information relative to road building and maintenance, and shall disseminate such information by means of printed bulletins, or otherwise, issued at such times and in such numbers as it may deem best.

The commission is authorized to make, or have made, photostatic copies of any or all public records on file at the state capitol of Virginia, at Richmond, which the commission may deem necessary or proper in ascertaining the location of rights of way of public roads located or established in what is now the State of West Virginia, and a copy of any of such photostatic copies so made, when certified by the secretary of the commission, may be admitted as evidence in lieu of the original in any of the courts of this State.(1921, c. 112, §10; Code 1923, c. 43, §10; 1925, c. 17, §10.)

§8. Administration of Vehicle Laws; Records; Accounting; Commissioners May Administer Oaths.—The commission shall have charge of the administration of the vehicle laws of this State, including the collection of all license fees and charges, forfeitures, costs and all other fees and charges arising therefrom or incident thereto. It shall issue all licenses, permits, registration certificates, receipts and other official documents provided for by this chapter; shall issue all necessary notices, and keep all books, maps, documents and papers ordered filed by it; shall devise a system of accounting which shall show accurately and concisely the amounts of all moneys received and paid out by it, the sources from which received, the purposes for which paid out, upon what roads or bridges, whether for construction, reconstruction or maintenance, and in what county expended.

The commission shall keep a complete and accurate record of all its proceedings, shall record and file all bonds and contracts taken by or entered into with it, and shall be responsible for the custody and preservation of all papers and documents pertaining to its office. All its orders, rules and regulations shall be recorded in a book especially for that purpose, and any rule or regulation may be published at its discretion. It shall make and keep all other entries and records proper and necessary to show its acts, workings and official conduct. All such records shall be public and open for inspection during business hours.

Each member of the commission may administer oaths in all parts of the State so far as the exercise of such power is properly incidental to the performance of the duties of the commission.(1921, c. 112, §§73, 75; Code 1923, c. 43, §§73, 75; 1923, c. 6, §75; 1925, c. 17, §75.)

§9. Interstate Agreements as to Vehicles.—The state road commission is authorized and empowered to enter into such reciprocal contracts and agreements as it may deem proper or expedient with the proper authorities of other states, regulating the use, on the roads and highways of this State, of trucks, automobiles, and any other vehicles owned in such other states and duly licensed under the laws thereof. The commission is likewise authorized and empowered to confer and advise with the proper officers and legislative bodies of this and other states and federal districts of the United States, with a view to promoting and to promote reciprocal agreements under which the registration of vehicles owned in this State, and the licenses of operators and chauffeurs residing in this State, shall be recognized by such other states and federal districts.(1921, c. 112, §102; Code 1923, c. 43, §102.)

§10. Authority of Commission and Employees to Enforce Road Law; Bond of Special Officer.—The state road commission, and such of its employees and servants as are designated by it as special officers for that purpose, shall have authority to enforce all laws of this State relating to highways, and shall have the same authority as duly qualified constables to make arrests for violations of the provisions of this chapter, and violations of the regulations and orders of the state road commission in relation thereto, including offenses against all laws made for the protection of motor vehicles. Every such employee or servant shall, in exercising any such authority hereunder, wear and display a metallic shield or badge indicating that he is a special officer of the state road commission: Provided, however, That no contractor, his employee or servant, shall be permitted under this section to make any arrests by virtue of any authority conferred by this section: Provided further, That no person designated by the commission as such special officer shall exercise any authority under such designation until he shall first have executed a bond with security to be approved by the commission in the amount of not less than two thousand dollars conditioned as bonds required by law of persons elected or appointed to office in this State.(1921, c. 112, §71; Code 1923, c. 43, §71; 1923, c. 6, §71.)

§11. Sale of Surplus Equipment.—The commission may, at either public or private sale, as may seem to it most advantageous, dispose of any equipment purchased by it, when such equipment can no longer be used to advantage. The proceeds of such sale shall be paid to the state treasurer and credited by him to the state road fund.(1921, c. 112, §70; Code 1923, c. 43, §70.)

§12. Hearings and Proceedings Before Commission; Immunity of Witnesses.—In all hearings and proceedings before the road commission, the evidence of witnesses and the production of documentary evidence may be required at any designated place of hearing; and summons may be issued by the secretary or any member of the commission. In case of disobedience to a summons or other process so issued, the commission or any party to the proceedings before the commission may invoke the aid of any circuit court in requiring the evidence and testimony of witnesses and the production of papers, books and documents. And upon proper showing, such court shall issue an order requiring such persons to appear before the commission and produce all books and papers, and give evidence touching the matter in question. Any person failing to obey such order may be punished by such court as for contempt. A claim that any such testimony or evidence may tend to incriminate the person giving the same shall not excuse such witness from testifying; but such witness shall not be prosecuted for any offense concerning which he is compelled hereunder to testify.(1921, c. 112, §12; Code 1923, c. 43, §12; 1923, c. 6, §12.)

§13. Statements and Estimates of Expenditures of Road Commission in Counties.—At the end of every fiscal year, and before the respective county courts are required by law to lay their levies for the ensuing year, the commission shall prepare and file in the office of the clerk of each of the county courts in this State a statement showing the expenditures made by the commission in the county during the preceding year, upon what road or roads and for what purpose, and whether for construction or reconstruction, the character of the same, and, if for maintenance, the character of the road so maintained; and at the same time the commission shall likewise file in the office of each of such clerks an estimate of the expenditures to be made by the commission upon state roads in such county during the ensuing year, and upon what road or roads, and for what purposes, such expenditures are to be made.

The statement shall be so devised as to be uniform throughout the State, and prepared and furnished upon loose-leaf forms, so that it may be bound in a book kept by the clerks for that purpose. When such statement is received by the clerk of any county court, it shall be filed, in loose-leaf form, in a book to be furnished by the county court for that purpose, and shall become a public record in his office.(1921, c. 112, §73; Code 1923, c. 43, §73.)

§14. Additional General Powers of Commission.—In addition to the powers of the state road commission specifically conferred by any article of this chapter, it shall possess such other powers as may be necessary or proper for the orderly conduct of its business and the effective discharge of its duties, and may invoke and have applied any appropriate legal or equitable remedy or procedure to accomplish that end.

§1. State Road Fund.—There shall be a state road fund, which shall consist of the proceeds of all state license taxes imposed upon automobiles or other motor or steam driven vehicles; the registration fees imposed upon all owners, chauffeurs, operators and dealers in automobiles or other motor driven vehicles; all sums of money which may be donated to such fund; all proceeds derived from the sale of state bonds issued pursuant to any resolution or act of the legislature carrying into effect the “Road Amendment” to the Constitution of this State, adopted in the month of November, nineteen hundred and twenty and the “Road Amendment” to the Constitution of this State, adopted in the month of November nineteen hundred and twenty-eight; all moneys and funds appropriated to it by the legislature; all moneys and funds allotted or appropriated by the federal government to this State for road construction and maintenance pursuant to any act of the congress of the United States; the proceeds of all taxes imposed upon and collected from any person, firm or corporation, and of all taxes or charges imposed upon and collected from any county, district or municipality, for the benefit of such fund the proceeds of all judgments, decrees or awards recovered and collected from any person, firm or corporation for damages done to, or sustained by, any of the state roads or parts thereof; all moneys recovered or received by reason of the violation of any con tract respecting the building, construction or maintenance of any state road; all penalties and forfeitures imposed, recovered or received by reason thereof; and any and all other moneys and funds appropriated to, imposed and collected for the benefit of such fund, or collected by virtue of any statute and payable to such fund.

When any money is collected from any of the sources aforesaid, it shall be paid into the state treasury by the officer whose duty it is to collect and account for the same, and credited to the state road fund, and. shall be used only for the purposes named in this chapter, that is to say: (a) to pay the principal and interest due on all state bonds issued for the benefit of said fund, and set aside and appropriated for that purpose; (b) to pay the expenses of the administration of the road commission; (c) to pay the expenses and costs of maintenance of all state roads; and (d) to pay the expenses and costs of all construction, reconstruction and improvement of state roads: Provided, That none of the funds derived from the sale of state bonds for road purposes shall be used or expended except for construction and reconstruction of state roads.(1921, c. 112, §15; Code 1923, c. 43, §15; 1923, c. 6, §15.)

§2. Cost of Construction, Reconstruction, Improvement and Maintenance of State Roads.—The cost and expense of the construction, reconstruction, improvement or maintenance of all state roads shall be paid out of any moneys received by or appropriated to the state road commission for that purpose.(1921, c. 112, §72; Code 1923, c. 43, §72.)

§3. Commission to Report Moneys Collected; Disposition Thereof.—The commission shall make a full and detailed semimonthly report in duplicate, on the first and third Tuesdays of each month, to the treasurer and to the auditor of the State, of all moneys collected by it from licenses or other fees, and all moneys and funds coming into its hands from any source whatsoever, except funds advanced to the commission pursuant to section five of this article, and shall at the same time pay to the treasurer all moneys so collected by it. The moneys so paid by the commission shall be deposited by the state treasurer to the credit of the state road fund: Provided, That the commission may pay to the treasurer at any time such funds as may have been received by it, and the treasurer shall deliver to the commission a receipt therefor, and the commission shall be duly credited for such payments in its semimonthly reports.(1921, c. 112, §100; Code 1923, c. 43, §100.)

§4. Method of Disbursing Road Fund.—The chairman and the secretary of the state road commission shall certify monthly to the state auditor the amount due to each member and each employee of the commission for services as such commissioners and employees, and the auditor shall issue his warrant therefor on the state treasurer, payable out of the state road fund appropriated for such purpose.

Any claim of a contractor or others, not otherwise provided, for, for labor done or for materials and supplies furnished to the state road commission, pursuant to the provisions of any article of this chapter, shall be audited by the commission, and, if found to be correct, the commission shall issue its requisition upon the auditor of the State therefor, showing the nature of such claim and whether it is for labor done or materials and supplies furnished for construction of state roads, or for other purposes, and the auditor shall issue his warrant upon the state treasurer therefor, and the treasurer shall pay the same to the person, firm or corporation entitled thereto, out of the funds in the treasury provided for that purpose.(1921, c. 112, §28; Code 1923, c. 43, §28.)

§5. Emergency Fund; How Advanced and Accounted for.—To provide a fund for the purpose of making prompt payments, refunds on license fees, and to secure cash discounts wherever possible, the state road commission may, from time to time, issue its requisition upon the state auditor for such sum as it deems necessary to pay such claims, and the said auditor shall issue his warrant upon the state treasurer for such amount, subject to the limitation imposed by this section, and the treasurer shall pay the same to the said commission out of the road fund or funds provided for that purpose. The commission shall immediately deposit such funds to its credit in some bank, or banks, designated pursuant to article one, chapter twelve of this Code, as a state depository or depositories. Such requisition upon the auditor shall be accompanied with a statement duly verified by a member of the commission, showing the amount of money in the hands of the commission to the credit of the fund at the time the requisition is presented to the auditor. The amount of such funds in the hands of the commission shall not exceed at any one time the sum of five thousand dollars. When the commission makes such requisition it shall at the same time file with the state auditor an itemized statement, showing what items and amounts have been paid by it out of such fund and for what purpose, and such statement shall be accompanied with a voucher for each item, duly signed by the party receiving payment, and showing the purpose for which made. The amounts so reported as paid by the commission, under its direction or authority, out of such fund, if found to be correct, shall be reported by the auditor to the treasurer and credited by him to the commission on account of the advances made to it pursuant to this section.(1921, c. 112, §28; Code 1923, c. 43, §28.)

§6. Apportionment of State Road Fund for Construction and Reconstruction Purposes; Reserve Fund.—On or before the first day of July of each year the state road commission shall ascertain, fix and determine the total amount of available funds for expenditure in the whole State for the construction and reconstruction of state roads and highways therein during such annual period. Of the amount so ascertained, fixed and determined, the commission may set aside as a “Reserve Fund’’ not to exceed twenty per cent thereof, to be used and expended by it in its discretion in making desirable connections or economizing in construction: Provided, That any moneys received from the federal government for road construction in this State shall not be apportioned among the counties as aforesaid, but shall be added to and become a part of the reserve fund so set aside; but the moneys so received from the federal government shall be expended for construction only on projects that have been or may hereafter be approved by the proper representative of the federal govern ment. If, at the end of any annual period, any money in such reserve fund remains unexpended or unappropriated, it shall be placed in the general funds for reserve and distribution during the next biennial period. The remaining eighty per cent, or, if such reserve fund is not so set aside, then all of the funds so fixed and determined shall be apportioned to the various counties of the State for the construction and reconstruction of the state roads and highways therein in the proportion that the mileage of Class A roads or routes in each county, as designated and approved under law prior to the twenty-first day of April, nineteen hundred and twenty-one, bears to the total Class A road mileage as theretofore designated and approved in the entire State.

When the apportionments aforesaid are made, work on construction and reconstruction in each county shall be commenced as soon thereafter as practicable, and prosecuted with all reasonable dispatch until apportioned funds are expended, or until the construction or reconstruction of such roads therein is completed. If, after the first day of July of any year, and during such annual period, additional funds become available, the same shall be apportioned, set aside and expended as aforesaid.

When all the state roads in any county shall have been constructed or reconstructed, and surfaced, then the allotment for that county shall cease, and the mileage of state roads and routes in such county or counties shall not there after be taken into consideration in future apportionments until the state roads in all the counties are constructed and surfaced, or until or further construction or reconstruction therein shall become necessary or advisable.(1921, c. 112, §23; Code 1923, c. 43, §23; 1925, c. 17, §23.)

§7. Federal Aid; Legislative Assent; Duties of Commission.—The legislature of the State of West Virginia hereby renews its assent to the provisions of the act of congress approved July eleventh, nineteen hundred and sixteen, entitled “An act to provide that the United States shall aid the states in the construction of rural post roads and for other purposes.” The state road commission is hereby authorized to enter into contracts and agreements with the United States government relating to the survey, construction and maintenance of roads under the provisions of said act of congress, to submit such scheme or program of construction and maintenance as may be required by the secretary of agriculture, or other authorized representative of the federal government, and to do all other things necessary to carry out the cooperation contemplated and provided for by said act. For the construction and maintenance of rural post roads, the good faith of the State is hereby pledged to the government of the United States to make available funds sufficient at least to equal the sums apportioned to this State by the United States government during the period for which federal funds are appropriated by section three of said act, and to maintain the roads constructed with the aid of funds so appropriated, and to make adequate provision for carrying out such maintenance.

The State of West Virginia hereby further assents to any similar provision or provisions that may be made by any subsequent act of congress making appropriation for the survey, construction and maintenance of rural post roads.(1921, c. 112, §2; Code 1923, c. 43, §2.)

§8. Issuance of Duplicate Road Bond When Registered Original is Lost or Destroyed.—Upon the filing with the state treasurer of proof, which in his judgment and discretion is full and satisfactory, of the loss or destruction of any registered West Virginia state road bond issued by virtue of the laws of this State, and a corporate surety bond in an amount equal to the face value of the lost bond, conditioned to indemnify the State of West Virginia and all persons against any loss in consequence of the issuance of a duplicate bond, the treasurer and auditor of the State shall be authorized to issue and deliver to the last registered holder of any such lost or destroyed bond, a duplicate thereof.

Each duplicate bond issued under the provisions of this section shall correspond with the original as to date, maturity, form and execution, except it may be given a number different from the original. It shall have printed or engraved on the face thereof the word “duplicate,” and on its back a certificate executed by the treasurer in the following form:

“The within duplicate bond is executed and issued under and by virtue of an act of the West Virginia legislature passed on the nineteenth day of February, 1929, in lieu of road bond number .... in the amount of $...., dated ...., 19.......and maturing................, 19.... ”

Any duplicate bond issued hereunder shall be taken and treated in all respects as the original, and the original shall be deemed cancelled.

The finder of any lost bond for which a duplicate has been issued shall forthwith transmit the same to the treasurer, who shall cancel it. Any person who shall retain possession of any such bond with knowledge that a duplicate has been issued therefor, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not exceeding one thousand dollars or confined in jail not exceeding one year.(1929, c. 50, §§1-4.)

§1. State Road System; Establishment; Construction and Maintenance.—The state road commission shall locate, relocate and establish a system of state roads and highways connecting at least the several county seats of this State, and with important roads of adjoining states, and shall, at the cost and expense of the State, construct, reconstruct, improve, repair and maintain the same, as in the various articles of this chapter is provided; and to this end the commission may purchase or lease all necessary machinery, equipment and materials, and may acquire all necessary grounds and buildings for storage of the same. All retaining walls for the protection of a state road or its right of way may, at the discretion of the commission, be included in construction, reconstruction, improvement, repair or maintenance.

In the location and establishment of such system, the commission shall give due consideration to the roads and routes designated and approved as Class A roads and routes as of the twenty-first day of April, nineteen hundred and twenty-one, and in so far as practicable, having regard to alignment, distance, important cities and towns, facilities of transportation, commercial centers and agricultural sections, it shall adopt or take over so much thereof as may be necessary or advisable for the completed system aforesaid, and when so located and established such system shall be designated and known as the “State Road System.”

Any portion or section of the state road system, prior to its being taken over by the commission, shall be known and designated as a “State Route.”(1921, c. 112, §§16, 21; Code 1923, c. 43, §§16, 21.)

§2. Closing Road During Work; Detours Temporary Roads and Bridges.—Whenever it shall become necessary to close any state road about to be constructed, reconstructed, improved or repaired, so as to permit proper execution of such work, the commission may direct a detour by proper signs and guides, or provide a new location by the construction of a temporary road to be used by the traveling public in lieu of the closed public road, and may erect temporary bridges when necessary.(1921, c. 112, §32; Code 1923, c. 43, §32.)

§3. Width of Bridges and Rights of Way.—No bridge hereafter constructed on any state road shall be less than eighteen feet wide. All state roads shall occupy a right of way not less than forty feet wide, exclusive of land necessary for slopes and for cuts and fills, unless the commission shall make an order for a different width, which order shall be recorded in the office of the commission, and a duly certified copy thereof shall be delivered by the commission to the clerk of the county court of the county in which such roads shall lie, and the same shall be recorded by the clerk in the road record book in his office.(1921, c. 112, §19; Code 1923, c. 43, §19.)

§4. Rights of Way for State Roads; How Obtained and Paid for.—It shall be the duty of the county court of the county in which any state road or part thereof is located to obtain by purchase, dedication or grant, in the name of and for the State, the right of way for the same, or the right of way necessary to widen, straighten, grade or alter any such road. The cost of acquiring such right of way shall be paid by such county court.

If any county court fails or refuses to obtain any right of way necessary for any of the purposes aforesaid within thirty days after being requested so to do by the state road commission, then the commission may secure such right of way in the manner provided by law and pay for the same out of the state road fund, which fund shall be reimbursed by the county court of the county in which such right of way is obtained. All claims for reimbursement for right of way expenditures incurred by the state road commission subsequent to April twenty-first, nineteen hundred and twenty-one, shall be filed by the commission with the clerk of the county court of the county where such expenditures are made, which claim shall be audited and paid as other claims against the county. Such claims shall be payable to the state road commission and returned by it to the state road fund.(1921, c. , 112, §31; Code 1923, c. 43, §31; 1923, c. 6, §31.)

§5. Streets of Municipal Corporation as Connecting Links of State Roads.—The state road commission shall have authority to desigsnate as a connecting part of a state road any street, or portion of street, in any incorporated city, town or village, and, if such municipality has a population of less than two thousand five hundred inhabitants, may construct, reconstruct, improve and maintain the same at the cost and expense of the State; but if such municipality has a population of over two thousand five hundred, and the street therein designated by the commission is not constructed or maintained on a standard equal to that of the state road of which it forms a connecting link, then the commission may notify such municipal corporation in writing, requiring it to construct, reconstruct and maintain that portion of the street forming such connection, according to such plans and specifications furnished to it by the commission as will conform to the standard aforesaid.

If the municipality shall fail or refuse to comply with such notice and requirement to construct, reconstruct, repair or maintain such street in conformity to the specifications given for the purpose aforesaid, within six months from the date thereof, then the commission may do such work, build, reconstruct, improve or repair the street and pay for the same out of its own funds, and the costs thereof shall be a charge against such municipality and may be presented and collected as any other legal claim or charge against it, and, when collected, shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the state road fund: Provided, however, That if the municipality is financially unable, with funds which are or can be made available, to construct, reconstruct, improve or repair any such street in conformity to the specifications of the state road commission aforesaid, then the commission may supplement any municipal fund for that purpose and agree with such municipality upon such terms as it may deem advisable for the work aforesaid, the cost of which to be borne by the commission and the municipality in such proportions as may be provided in such agreement

Municipal authorities shall not make or enforce any ordinance, order, rule or regulation decreasing or increasing the size and weight limits of vehicles upon the streets so designated as a connecting part of any state road contrary to general law: Provided, however, That any incorporated city or town shall have the power to regulate or forbid the parking of vehicles upon any such designated streets within its limits, and to regulate the progress of traffic at street intersections in congested districts thereof. The commission shall have authority to apply to any court having jurisdiction for a mandamus to compel any municipality to perform its duties under this section.(1923, c. 6, §17.)

§6. Conditions Precedent to State Work on City Highways.—The state road commission shall not construct, reconstruct, improve or repair any section of a state road or highway within any city or incorporated town, until such city or incorporated town shall have been given notice and a reasonable opportunity to lay all necessary pipes and make all necessary connections for sewerage, water, gas, heating, lighting and any other purpose whatsoever, where the duty to lay such pipes and make such connections is imposed by law upon such city or town. The city or town council shall, by ordinance duly passed by it, compel all public service companies and abutting property owners to lay all necessary pipes and to make all necessary connections for sewerage, water, gas, heating, lighting or any other purposes whatsoever, along and in the line of such section of state road or highway before the work of construction, reconstruction or improvement of the same is started; but in the event that such city or town, after it shall have been served with notice in writing by the commission of its intention to improve such street or highway, and shall have been requested to lay all necessary pipes and make all necessary connections, as aforesaid, and to compel all public service companies and abutting property owners to lay all necessary pipes and make all necessary connections for the purposes aforesaid, shall fail to comply with such request, within sixty days after service of such notice, the commission may thereupon lay such pipes and make such connections, and the necessary cost and expense thereof shall be chargeable by the commission against such city or town; and upon the neglect or refusal of such city, town or public service company to pay such costs and expenses within sixty days after the completion of the laying of such pipes and making such connections, the commission may collect the same by proper action in any court having jurisdiction thereof: Provided, That such costs and expenses shall not be chargeable against any such city or town to the extent that the same would impose an indebtedness against such city or town in excess of the amount allowed by existing law.(1921, c. 112, §33; Code 1923, c. 43, §33.)

§7. Taking Over Roads for Construction, Reconstruction and Maintenance.—When funds are available for that purpose, the state road commission shall, by an order entered of record, take over and assume charge of the further construction, reconstruction and maintenance of all roads, or sections of roads, on the state routes in the several counties which have been improved with a hard surface, and which, in the opinion of the commission, shall have been constructed and maintained in accordance with methods approved by the road commission, or in accordance with recognized standard plans and specifications, and the commission shall also, in like manner, take over and assume charge of the further maintenance of all graded earth roads on state routes which have been constructed with the aid of state or federal moneys, or have been constructed in accordance with the standards for state or federal aid work. All other roads constituting parts of the state road system, as designated and established by the commission, not yet constructed, shall be taken over in part from time to time, as the commission shall be prepared to proceed with construction work thereon, until the whole of such roads shall have been taken over by the commission: Provided, That no roads or streets lying within any incorporated town or city having a population of more than two thousand five hundred persons, except the National or Cumberland road through the city of Wheeling, in Ohio county, shall be so taken over by the commission. The certified copies of the order required herein to be entered by the commission shall be delivered by it to the clerks of the county courts of the several counties in which the roads to be taken over as provided by this section shall lie; and each of such clerks shall record in the road record book in his office the copy so delivered to him. The state road commission may construct, expend money on, or take over, bridges lying within municipalities of over twenty-five hundred inhabitants in the manner provided in section nine of this article.(1921, c. 112, §§20, 22; Code 1923, c. 43, §§20, 22; 1923, c. 6, §20.)

§8. Maps Showing State Roads and Routes in the Several Counties; How Filed and Recorded.—The commission, as soon as practicable after it has located and established a system of state roads and designated the routes thereof, as provided in the preceding sections of this article, shall furnish to the clerks of the county courts of the several counties road maps of their respective counties, showing the state roads and routes designated by the commission therein as constituting a part of the state road system. As sections of such routes are taken over by the commission for maintenance or construction, it shall, as soon as practicable, deliver to the clerk of the county court of each county in which such roads so taken over shall lie, a complete record plan of such roads, together with accurate descriptions by metes and bounds of the rights of way thereof, and such clerk shall file in his office such plans and record such descriptions of rights of way in the road record book in his office.(1921, c. 120, §17; Code 1923, c. 43, §17; 1923, c. 6, §17.)

§9. Authority of Commission Over Bridges and Streets Connecting State Roads.—The state road commission shall have the power to build bridges and acquire by purchase, condemnation or otherwise (and to maintain when so acquired), any existing bridge along, in the line of, or connecting any state road or highway with another state road, or other road or highway, together with all lands, roads, approaches, rights, franchises and easements belonging to any person, firm or corporation and necessarily convenient for the purposes aforesaid. The commission may likewise purchase or construct and maintain any bridge within a municipality on any street designated as a connecting link of any state road, and may aid any municipality within the State in the purchase, construction or maintenance of any bridge already constructed or in the process of construction, or which may hereafter be constructed by such municipality on such connecting street, or it may take over any such bridge when requested so to do by the authorities of such municipality and thereafter maintain the same. In case any bridge within the municipality is wholly maintained by the road commission, the municipality shall, while such bridge is so maintained, be relieved from all liability in connection therewith.(1921, c. 112, §56; Code 1923, c. 43, §56; 1923, c. 6, §56.)

§10. Inspection and Repair of State Bridges.—The commission shall cause an inspection to be made of any bridge upon any state road or highway which is reported by any of its agents, servants or employees, to be unsafe for public use and travel. If such bridge is found to be unsafe for public use and travel, the commission shall condemn such bridge and promptly close it, so as to exclude travel therefrom, and shall promptly reconstruct or repair the same.(1921, c. 112, §60; Code 1923, c. 43, §60.)

§11. Interstate Bridges.—The state road commission is hereby authorized and empowered to enter into a contract or contracts with the proper authorities of any adjoining state, and pursuant thereto to purchase or erect and to maintain any bridge or bridges across any stream or streams separating this State from such adjoining state or states, in conjunction with the parties so contracted with, when the same shall be deemed by it necessary and proper to connect a state highway of this State with a public high way of such adjoining state: Provided, That such contract or contracts shall not be entered into by the commission, except upon the approval of the governor, after the commission shall have filed with the governor a report in writing, with necessary maps, plans and specifications of the bridge or bridges desired to be purchased or constructed, showing the estimated cost thereof, and all other facts that it may deem necessary, or that may be required by the governor.(1921, c. 112, §61; Code 1923, c. 43, §61.)

§12. Supervision by Commission of Construction of Bridges, Culverts and Other Improvements on State Routes.—All improvements hereafter made on state routes, including the construction of culverts and bridges, shall be under the direction and supervision of the state road commission, and all culverts and bridges thereon shall be constructed in accordance with plans prepared or approved by the commission: Provided, That nothing herein contained shall be so construed as to prevent any county, district or corporation from providing funds to be used in the construction or improvement of such roads.(1921, c. 112, §62; Code 1923, c. 43, §62.)

§13. Plants for Manufacture of Road Materials.—For the purpose of obtaining materials to be used in the construction and maintenance of state roads and highways, the state road commission is hereby authorized and empowered, on behalf of the State, to establish stone quarries, stone crushing plants, brick kilns, cement plants, and other plants deemed by it needful or necessary in the prosecution of its work, and to acquire lands and appurtenances requisite thereto. The commission shall also have the power to rent, purchase, condemn, or acquire by any other lawful method, stone quarries, gravel, clay, sand, and other deposits, with rights of way thereto, and wharves, landings, switches and storage places for shipping or receiving materials; hire or purchase all means of transportation for the same; remove such materials from such lands and other places; prepare such materials for use; manufacture such materials into road making products; purchase all necessary machinery, tools and other equipment; make such contracts and employ such labor as may be needful or necessary to establish and operate such plants; acquire, prepare, manufacture and transport such materials for use, and to do all other things needful or necessary in connection with the purchase, production, accumulation and distribution of such materials for the uses aforesaid. All costs and expenses incidental thereto shall be paid out of the state road fund. The commission may sell the surplus of such materials, products or equipment to any county or municipality of the State, or to any person, firm or corporation, at not less than actual cost, when the same are to be used exclusively in the building of roads, streets and alleys in this State. The commission shall pay to the state treasurer the funds received therefor, to be credited to the state road fund.

The commission is empowered to enter into contracts with the proper authorities of other states to establish, jointly, plants for the preparation and manufacture of cement, brick, stone, and other materials to be used in the construction of roads as provided herein, and to jointly operate such plants, acquire all materials and do all other things necessary for such operation, and the disposition of the products thereof, for the more economic prosecution of the work of building and maintaining public roads.(1921, c. 112, §29; Code 1923, c. 43, §29.)

§14. Testing and Approval of Materials.—All materials of every kind used upon state roads shall be carefully tested, or caused to be tested, by the commission, when by it deemed necessary, and no such materials shall be used in the construction or maintenance of any such road until approved in writing by the commission. The county courts of the several counties may make arrangements with the commission for the testing of materials in the construction of county-district roads.(1921, c. 112, §30; Code 1923, c. 43, §30.)

§15. Bids and Contracts for State Roads.—All work of construction and reconstruction of state roads and bridges, and the furnishing of all materials and supplies therefor, and for the repair thereof, unless manufactured or assembled by the commission, shall be done and furnished pursuant to contract, except that the commission shall not be required to award any contract for work or for materials or supplies for an amount less than three thousand dollars. When the commission is about to construct, reconstruct or improve any road or highway, it shall file with the clerk of the county court, or of the municipality, as the case may be, in which such road lies, a certified copy of the plans and specifications therefor, and a notice that the commission is about to enter upon and proceed with the work in question. If the work is to be done, or the materials therefor are to be furnished, by contract, the commission shall thereupon advertise once each week for at least two successive weeks in two newspapers of opposite politics, if there be such, but if not, then in one newspaper published in each county or municipality in which the road lies, and once in at least one daily newspaper published in the city of Charleston, and in such other journals or magazines as may to the commission seem advisable, for sealed proposals for the construction or other improvement of such road, and for the furnishing of materials required therefor, accurately describing the same, and stating the time and place for opening such proposals, and reserving the right to reject any and all proposals. To all such proposals there shall be attached the certified cheek of the bidder, or bidder’s bond acceptable to the commission, in such amount as the commission shall specify in the advertisement, but not to exceed five per cent of the aggregate amount of the bid: Provided, That such amount shall never be less than five hundred dollars. Such proposals shall be publicly opened and read at the time and place specified in the advertisement, and the contract for such work, or for the supplies or materials required therefor, shall, if let, be awarded by the commission to the lowest responsible bidder for the type of construction selected. In case the commission shall reject all bids, it may thereafter do the work with its own forces or with prison labor, or it may readvertise in the same manner as before and let a contract for such work pursuant thereto. But nothing in this section shall be so construed as to prevent the commission from building, constructing, reconstructing or repairing a road to any extent with prison labor without first advertising and rejecting bids therefor.(1921, c. 112, §25; Code 1923, c. 43, §25; 1923, c. 6, §25.)

§16. Contract and Bond of Bidder.—In any case where a contract for work and materials shall be let as a result of competitive bidding, the successful bidder shall promptly and within twenty days after notice of award execute a formal contract to be approved as to its form, terms and conditions by the commission, and shall also execute and deliver to the commission a good and sufficient surety or collateral bond, payable to the State of West Virginia, to be approved by the commission, in such amount as the commission shall require, but not to exceed the contract price, conditioned that such contractor will well and truly perform his contract and shall pay in full to the persons entitled thereto for all material, machinery, equipment and labor used by him in and about the performance of such contract, and an action may be maintained upon h such bond for a breach thereof by any person for whose benefit the same was executed or by his assignee. The bidder who has the contract awarded to him and who fails within twenty days after notice of award to execute the required contract and bond shall forfeit such check or bond, and the check or bond shall be taken and considered as liquidated damages and not as a penalty for failure of such bidder to execute such contract and bond. Upon the execution of such contract and bond by the successful bidder, his check or bond shall be returned to him. The checks or bonds of the unsuccessful bidders shall be returned to them promptly after the bids are opened and the contract awarded to the successful bidder. A duplicate copy of such contract and bond shall be furnished by the state road commission, in loose-leaf form, to the clerk of the county court of the county in which such contract is to be performed, and it shall be the duty of the clerk to bind and preserve the same in his office, and index the same in the name of the commission and of the contractor.(1921, c. 112, §25; Code 1923, c. 43, §25; 1923, c. 6, §25.)

§17. Form of State Road Contracts.—Every contract made by the State road commission shall be made in the name of the State and shall be signed by the state road commission and by the contractor, and shall be approved as to form and regularity by the attorney general of the State or by other competent counsel.(1921, c. 112, §27; Code 1923, c. 43, §27.)

§18. Uniform Sign System; Name or Number to be Given State Roads.—The state road commission shall devise a uniform road sign system designating directions and distances to given points, applicable to state and county-district roads. It shall likewise devise a system of signs or markers for all such roads, designating or calling attention to sharp turns, curves, crossings, steep descents, school zones or other points deemed dangerous to travel by the commission on state roads, and by the several county courts on county-district roads, and may adopt rules to be observed in relation thereto. The commission shall keep a record of the system so devised, giving a description of the signs and markers adopted, and what each indicates and the rules to be observed relative thereto. It shall give due notice to the several county courts of the system devised, and of the signs and markers adopted, and rules to be observed, and which shall be recorded by the clerk of the several county courts in the road record book of his county.

It shall be the duty of the commission to mark all state roads, and designate the curves, steep descents, crossings and other points deemed dangerous by it in keeping with the system of signs and designations adopted by it as aforesaid, and to maintain the same.

The commission shall give suitable names or numbers to the state roads or highways, and may change the name or number of any road which becomes a part of the state road system. It may establish and maintain watering troughs upon state roads.(1921, c. 112, §66; Code 1923, c. 43, §66.)

§1. Constitution of State Convict Road Force.—All convicts confined in the penitentiary of this State and delivered to the state road commission upon its requisition, as herein provided, shall, when so delivered, constitute the “state convict road force.”(1921, c. 112, §34; Code 1923, c. 43, §34.)

§2. On What Work Such Force Employed.—The state convict road force, as now or hereafter constituted, shall, as far as practicable, except as herein otherwise provided, be employed in the construction and maintenance of the state road system, and to this end may also be employed by the commission in or about any stone quarries, gravel pits, sand banks, crushers, brick kilns and other plants and places, in the acquisition and manufacture of materials to be used in the construction, maintenance or repair of state roads, under the same rules and regulations as are provided herein for working such force on the state roads or highways.

The commission may, with such convict road force, construct, reconstruct, improve or repair any state road to any extent without first offering to contract the same.(1921, c. 112, §35; Code 1923, c. 43, §35.)

§3. Where and How Employed.—Convict may be employed by the commission at any place within the State under the regulations herein prescribed. The board of control, with the advice and assistance of the warden of the penitentiary, shall determine what prisoners therein confined may, with safety and convenience, be assigned to such work, selecting preferably such prisoners as are believed to be most trustworthy. Whenever the commission shall desire to use such prison labor for the construction, maintenance, improvement or repair of any state road or highway in this State, or any part thereof, or for the preparation or manufacture of road materials for road construction and maintenance, it shall make requisition upon the state board of control to send convicts to the place or places where they are desired to be worked upon such road. Such requisition shall be in form prescribed by the board of control, and shall state the number of convicts desired, which shall not be less than ten, and the length of time for which the commission desires to contract. The board of control shall grant all such requisitions, and furnish prisoners sufficient to meet the requirements of the commission. If at any time there shall not be a sufficient number of prisoners to meet the requirements of the commission, the board of control shall file the requisitions, and supply the prisoners required as soon as they may be available. The board of control may, for good cause, refuse to honor any or all such requisitions, in which event the cause of such refusal shall be specified in writing to the commission.(1921, c. 112, §36; Code 1923, c. 43, §36.)

§4. Contract for Employment.—Whenever any such application shall be granted by the board of control, a contract in writing based thereon shall be entered into between the board of control and the commission.(1921, c. 112, §37; Code 1923, c. 43, §37.)

§5. Guards and Regulations.—The state convict road force shall be guarded when working on the roads of the State and in making road materials, and when being transported to and from the penitentiary, by guards detailed by the warden of the penitentiary, who shall designate one guard as the superior, and the other or others as assistants, and such superior may, by agreement with the commission, act as and be the foreman in charge of such works. The state guard and assistants shall obey the rules prescribed for the maintenance of prison camps. Any guard or assistants not obeying such rules shall, on the recommendation of the engineer in charge of the work, be immediately recalled, and some other person detailed in his stead. The wages of each guard, superior and assistant shall be fixed by agreement between the commission and the board of control. The warden, his assistants or guards, at the request of the state road commission, may, as far as practicable, make trusties of the state convict road force employed under this chapter. All guards and prisoners shall be under the direction of the state road commission, or its engineer in charge, and shall work not to exceed sixty hours per week, and each prisoner shall be paid for such time in excess of nine hours per day at the contract rate paid by the commission for such prisoner’s labor. The state board of health, state board of control and state road commission shall promptly formulate rules and regulations governing such camps, and the state board of control shall allow such good time and other allowances as may be deemed wise for the government of state prisoners and prison camps, in addition to that allowed by law.(1921, c. 112, §38; Code 1923, c. 43, §38.)

§6. Medical Treatment.—Whenever any prisoner working on such roads shall become sick, or shall be disabled by accident or otherwise, he shall be attended by the physician employed by the county court to take care of the poor in the county, or by the jail physician in such county wherein such prisoner is being employed, and the fees of such physician shall, be paid by the commission in such sum as may be agreed upon by the commission with such physician. In any case of emergency the physician who can be most conveniently reached shall attend such prisoner until the physician for the poor or the jail physician can attend, and the reasonable fees of the physician first called shall be paid by the commission.(1921, c. 112, §42; Code 1923, c. 43, §42.)

§7. Equipment and Materials.—When the commission desires to obtain and employ convict labor on state roads under the provisions of this article, it shall supply all such equipment, materials, tools and teams as may be necessary in the prosecution of such work.(1921, c. 112, §43; Code 1923, c. 43, §43.)

§8. Employment on County-District Roads or Other Work.—Only such contracts shall be renewed, or new contracts made, between the State and individuals for the employment of convicts confined in the state penitentiary, as may be necessary to employ all convicts not otherwise employed under the provisions of this article: Provided, That when convicts from the penitentiary are not required by the commission for labor in the construction and maintenance of state roads, or for the preparation or manufacture of materials therefor, the board of control may, with the consent in writing of the state road commission, grant an application by any of the county courts of this State for the use of such convicts, in the construction and maintenance of county-district roads, as may not be needed or required by the commission, and all such prisoners shall be employed by the county courts as aforesaid only upon the same conditions, and under the same laws, rules and regulations, as are required by this article governing their use by the state road commission.(1921, c. 112, §44; Code 1923, c. 43, §44.)

§9. Transportation, Quarters and Supplies.—All penitentiary convicts employed on state or county-district roads under contract with the state road commission or county court, as the case may be, shall be transported from and to the penitentiary under the direction of the warden thereof. Such prisoners may be transported anywhere in the State for road work. The state road commission or county court, as the case may be, shall provide suitable quarters for such convict road force, to be constructed, when practicable, with convict labor. It shall supply such force with all necessary food, cooking utensils, beds and bedding, and provide means of transportation for such convicts and camp equipment, when necessary, from place to place or to and from the work of such convicts. The contract between the state board of control and the state road commission or county court for convict road work may provide for payment out of the state or county road fund, as the case may be, of the expenses of the transportation and wages of prisoners engaged in road work and for their maintenance, clothing, food, quarters, guards and supplies.(1921, c. 112, §§39, 40; Code 1923, c. 43, §§39, 40; 1925, cc. 12, 17, §40.)

§10. Escape of Convict From State Road Force.—If any convict escapes from the state road force, he shall be punished as now prescribed by law for the punishment of convicts escaped from the penitentiary.(1921, c. 112, §45; Code 1923, c. 43, §45.)

§11. Discharge of Convict From State Road Force on Expiration of Sentence; Deduction for Good Behavior.—The warden of the penitentiary shall have power to discharge any prisoner working on the state convict road force, wherever he may be in the State, when the term of such prisoner shall have expired, and section twenty-seven, article five, chapter twenty-eight of this Code shall apply to all convicts working on said state road force.(1921, c. 112, §46; Code 1923, c. 43, §46.)

§12. Medical Inspection of Convict Camps.—It shall be the duty of the state road commission to designate some competent physician or physicians to make inspection of all camps where a convict road force is employed. It shall be the duty of such physician to make thorough investigations of the sanitary conditions of such camps monthly and report every inspection to the governor together with such recommendations as he may deem necessary; and he shall furnish copies thereof to the warden of the penitentiary, the state public health council and the local board of health of the county in which such camp is located. A reasonable compensation to the physician rendering such services shall be paid by the commission.(1921, c. 112, §47; Code 1923, c. 43, §47.)

§1. License for Motor Vehicle Required; Application.—No motor vehicle shall be driven upon the public roads, or upon any road or street within any incorporated city, town or village within the State, until the owner first shall have obtained from the state road commission, as herein provided, a license or certificate of registration therefor. An applicant desiring such license or certificate may obtain the same by filing with the commission, by mail or other wise, a statement setting forth the character of the motor vehicle to be licensed, including the name of the manufacturer, the style, color of body, motor number, type and factory number of such vehicle, the character of the motor power, the name, age, residence and business address of the owner of such vehicle, and the name of the county in which he resides, and shall state whether such vehicle is or is not to be used in the public transportation of passengers or property, or both, for compensation, and, if so used or to be used, the applicant shall so certify, and shall, as a condition precedent to the securing of such license or certificate of registration, obtain a certificate of convenience from the state road commission in the manner hereinafter provided.(1921, c. 112, §76; Code 1923, c. 43, §76; 1923, c.6, §76; 1925, c. 17, §76.)

§2. Form of Application; Certificate of Registration; Plates; Offenses; Scope of Section.—Every owner of one or more vehicles, not expressly exempted by this article, shall make a separate application in writing, properly verified, for each vehicle, on a form provided by the commission, for permission to operate the same on the public roads of this State. In the application for registration the applicant shall furnish such information as the commission may require. Upon receipt of such application, together with the fees hereafter provided for, the commission shall file the application and give to the same a distinguishing mark and number, and shall issue to the owner of the vehicle a certificate of registration, which shall contain the number or mark assigned such vehicle, the name and place of residence of the owner and his post-office address, if the same shall be different from his place of residence. Such certificate shall be of convenient size and form, and shall at all times be carried upon such vehicle, and shall be subject to examination upon demand by any proper officer, as herein provided. In addition to the certificate of registration the commission shall, without additional charge, deliver to the owner metal plates bearing the abbreviation of the name of this State, the year for which issued, and the distinguishing mark or number assigned to such vehicle. Such plates shall be known as registration plates. Each year there shall be chosen a color, or combination of colors, for such registration plates, which shall be as different as practicable from the color, or colors, used on the plates of the preceding year, and the numerals and letters on such plates shall be of such color as to be shown in marked contrast with the remainder of the plate. The plates shall be of such size and character as the commission may prescribe so as to properly accommodate the numerals and other marks. An automobile shall be required to carry two, and any other licensed motor vehicle one, of such license plates.

No motor vehicle shall be driven upon any of the highways of this State without the proper registration plates fastened thereon. Registration plates issued prior to the first of the year for which they are to be effective may be placed on the vehicle for which issued, not more than ten days prior to the first day of such year, and used without additional registration fee.

Any person, firm or corporation failing to carry the certificate of registration, or who drives a motor vehicle without the proper registration plates affixed thereto, or who changes the name, number, or other identification information on the certificate of registration, or registration plates, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction, shall be fined not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars: Provided, That in the case of a person to whom a certificate has been issued, but who at the time of arrest has not the same with him, the minimum fine shall be one dollar.

The provisions of this section shall apply both to the operator, or chauffeur, and to the owner who causes or knowingly permits his vehicle to be operated without a certificate of registration as herein provided.(1921, c. 112, §§77, 81; Code 1923, c. 43, §§77, 81; 1925, c. 17, §§77, 81.)

§3. Certificate of Convenience; When Required; When Permitted as to Interstate Commerce.—No motor vehicle shall be operated over any public road or highway or over any street or alley within an incorporated city or town in this State for transportation of passengers or property, or both, for compensation, until the owner or operator of such vehicle shall first have made application to, and secured from, the state road commission a permit or certificate of convenience to operate such vehicle. Such classification shall include public livery vehicles, cars for hire or for rent, taxicabs, bus lines, truck lines, and any other transportation of passengers or property for compensation, without regard to whether such operation is between fixed termini or over regular routes or otherwise.

The state road commission may also grant certificates of convenience and necessity for the transportation of persons or property, or both, for compensation, in interstate commerce, and regulate such interstate commerce under the authority of and in accordance with the provisions of any statute that has been or hereafter may be enacted by the congress of the United States, vesting in or delegating to the state road commission of West Virginia the authority, as an agency of the United States government, so to grant such certificates and so to regulate such commerce. If the legislature shall by statute transfer from the state road commision to any other commission, board or officer the authority to grant certificates of convenience and to regulate intrastate transportation of persons or property, or both, for compensation, then the authority herein granted shall vest in such other commission, board or officer. The state road commission, or such other commission, board or officer, as the case may be, is hereby authorized to notify the proper department of the federal government of its or his assent to conform to the requirements, conditions and obligations of said statute of the congress in regard to interstate commerce by motor vehicles.(1921, c. 112, §82, Class I; Code 1923, c. 43, §82, Class I; 1923, c. 6, §82, Class H; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class H; 1927, c. 49.)

§4. Application for Certificate of Convenience; Action of Commission Thereon; Operation Under Certificate.—The application for such permit or certificate shall be in writing and shall contain full information concerning the financial condition and physical property of the applicant, and shall state the capacity of such vehicle or vehicles and the purpose for which they are to be used. If the service proposed is to be over a regular route or between fixed termini, then such route or termini, the rates proposed to be charged, and the proposed schedule or time cards shall be designated. If the service proposed to be rendered is not over a regular route or between fixed termini, then such other matters as the state road commission shall from time to time prescribe shall be designated.

All vehicles operating under the provisions of Class J, section nineteen of this article, shall operate from a stand or stands, and the road commission shall have power to grant a certificate to any applicant who operates from a stand or stands and who does not propose to operate upon a regular schedule, but who is privately employed for a specific trip and who will not solicit or receive patronage along a route for which a certificate of convenience has been granted by the state road commission for the operation of vehicles over a regular route or between fixed termini: Provided, however, That vehicles operating undet Class J may receive passengers along routes for which a certificate of convenience has been granted, but not at or within two hundred feet of any building owned or maintained as a designated stop: Provided further, That the charge made by such persons operating under Class J for such service, when rendered over a route for which a certificate of convenience has been granted, shall not be greater than the rate charged by the holder of such certificate of convenience.

The state road commission shall have the power to issue to any applicant a certificate of convenience, or to refuse to issue the same, or to issue it for the partial exercise only of the privileges sought, and may attach to the exercise of the rights given by such certificate such terms and conditions as in its judgment the public convenience and necessity may require. No such certificate of convenience shall be issued by the commission until it shall be established to the satisfaction of the commission, after a proper investigation, that the privilege so sought by the applicant is necessary or convenient for the public, and that the service so proposed to be rendered by the applicant is not being adequately performed at the time of such application by any other person, partnership or corporation. If a certificate of convenience be granted for service over a regular route or between fixed termini, the state road commission shall prescribe the route, territory, schedule, fare or tariff in connection with such service, and in all cases may make such other rules and regulations relative to the operation of such vehicle or vehicles as public justice may demand. When such certificate of convenience is issued for service over a regular route or between fixed termini, no change shall be made in the route, schedule, fares or tariffs of such vehicle or vehicles without the express permission of the state road commission.(1921, c. 112, §82, Class I; Code 1923, c. 43, §82, Class I; 1923, c. 6, §82, Class H; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class H.)

§5. Term of Certificate of Convenience; Renewal; Sale or Transfer; Reports by Owner or Operator.—The state road commission shall have the power to issue any certificate of convenience for such length of time, not in excess of five years, as in its judgment the service proposed and the capital to be invested in such proposed service may justify: Provided, however, That motor vehicles operated for transportation of passengers or property, or both, for compensation, and not running over a regular route or between fixed termini, or having a regular time schedule, shall be granted such certificate only until the first day of January next following. Such certificates of convenience may be renewed at their expiration, unless for some good cause the commission shall refuse to reissue the same. Any certificate held, owned or obtained by any person may be sold, assigned, leased, transferred or inherited as other property only upon authorization by the commission. The owner of or operator under any certificate of convenience shall make such report and furnish such detailed information with respect to the service rendered as the commission shall from time to time direct.(1921, c. 112, §82, Class I; Code 1923, c. 43, §82, Class I; 1923, c. 6, §82, Class H; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class H.)

§6. Bond or Liability Insurance Required; Penalties.—No certificate, except for vehicles operated under Class K, section twenty of this article, shall be issued by the state road commission to any applicant until and after such applicant shall have filed with the state road commission a bond with surety approved by the commission or liability insurance satisfactory to the commission, and in such sums as to injury to persons and as to loss of or damage of property, respectively, as the commission may deem necessary to adequately protect the interests of the public, with due regard to the number of persons and the amount of property involved, which bond shall bind the obligors thereunder to make compensation for injury to persons and loss of or damage to property resulting from the operation of such motor vehicles. Upon failure of such bond or policy, by cancellation or otherwise, the permit or certificate shall become null and void, and the registration plates and registration card and permit shall be returned to the commission for cancellation: Provided, That such permit or certificate shall not become null and void if the grantee thereof shall file with the commission a new policy or bond, satisfactory to the commission, before the failure of such first policy or bond. The insurance policy or bond so required to be filed shall be kept on file with the state road commission during the time such permit or certificate shall be in effect. In case such new policy or bond be not filed, if the grantee of such permit or certificate operates his vehicle after the date of failure of such policy or bond, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than one hundred nor more than one thousand dollars, or imprisoned not less than thirty days nor more than one year, or both fined and imprisoned, such penalty to apply to both owner and operator.(1921, c. 112, §82, Class I; Code 1923, c. 43, §82, Class I; 1923, c. 6, §82, Class H; 1925, c. 17, §82; Class H.)

§7. Permit From Municipality; Rules and Regulations by State Road Commission.—If any applicant for a certificate of convenience shall desire to exercise the privilege sought wholly within any incorporated city or town, such applicant shall, before making application to the state road commission as herein prescribed, apply for and obtain from the city or town council, or other proper authority of such city or town, a permit authorizing such applicant to make application to the state road commission, and such permit may prescribe such reasonable rules and regulations as the proper authorities of such city or town may direct with respect to the privilege sought, in so far as the same may pertain to the stopping and parking of vehicles, zoning, use of one-way streets, kind and character of traffic on certain streets and other like matters affected by local conditions. If the state road commission shall then issue a certificate of convenience to such applicant, the rules and regulations as prescribed by such town or city shall be a part of such certificate of convenience. The state road commission shall in no case issue a certificate to an applicant proposing to render a public service wholly within any incorporated city or town until and after such permit shall have been first obtained by such applicant from the proper authority of such city or town.

The state road commission shall adopt and furnish such rules and regulations as may be found necessary to carry out the provisions of this section and of sections three, four, five and six of this article.(1923, c. 6, §82, Class H; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class H.)

§8. Offenses Relating to Certificates of Convenience; Penalty; Revocation of Certificate.—Any person violating any of the provisions of sections three to seven, inclusive, of this article for which no other penalty is provided, or the rules and regulations regularly adopted by the state road commission, as authorized therein, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than five nor more than two hundred dollars, and in addition thereto such certificate of convenience may be suspended or revoked by the state road commission upon the complaint to it of any person interested, or by the commission on its own motion, after hearing duly had upon at least five days’ notice to all parties interested. Immediately upon such suspension or revocation the registration plates and registration card and permit shall be forwarded to the state road commission for cancellation. Notice in writing sent by registered mail to the address given in the application for such permit or certificate shall be sufficient notice of such hearing.(1921, c. 112, §82, Class I; Code 1923, c. 43, §82, Class I; 1923, c. 6, §82, Class H; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class H.)

§9. Fees for Motor Vehicles in General.—The following fees prescribed in Classes A to G, inclusive, shall be paid annually to the commission for certificates of registration and corresponding registration plates issued by it in accordance with the provisions of this article. The holder of any permit or certificate of convenience obtained in the manner hereinbefore prescribed shall pay annually to the commission the fees prescribed in Classes H to K, inclusive, for such permit or certificate, which shall be in lieu of all fees for certificates of registration and corresponding registration plates.(1921, c. 112, §82; Code 1923, c. 43, §82; 1923, c. 6, §82; 1925, c. 17, §82.)

§10. Class A. Fee for Motor Vehicles Equipped With Pneumatic Tires, Other Than Trucks and Those Used in Transportation for Compensation.—The registration fee for all motor vehicles equipped with pneumatic tires, other than trucks or motor vehicles used in transportation of passengers or property, or both, for compensation, shall be thirteen dollars for a vehicle of a weight of two thousand pounds or less, and for all motor vehicles having a weight of on over two thousand pounds, sixty cents additional for each one hundred pounds of weight in excess of two thousand pounds, and for the purpose of determining the weight, except of those used in transportation of passengers or property, or both, for compensation, the actual weight of the vehicle shall be taken.(1921, c. 112, §82, Class A; Code 1923, c. 43, §82, Class A; 1923, c. 6, §82, Class A; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class A.)

§11. Class B. Fee for Motor Vehicles With Solid Rubber or Pneumatic Tires, Used for Transportation of Merchandise, Etc., and for Purposes Other Than Transportation for Compensation.—The registration fee for motor vehicles equipped with solid rubber tires and used for the transportation of merchandise, supplies, and for any purpose other than transportation of passengers or property, or both, for compensation, shall be twenty-five dollars yearly for motor vehicles of one ton or less capacity; fifty dollars yearly for a vehicle of more than one ton and not more than two tons capacity; seventy-five dollars yearly for a vehicle of more than two tons and not more than three tons capacity; one hundred dollars yearly for a vehicle of more than three tons and not more than four tons capacity; and one hundred and fifty dollars yearly for a vehicle of more than four tons capacity: Provided, That the manufacturer’s rated capacity for the chassis shall be used in determining the capacity of any vehicle licensed under this class. The registration fee for vehicles of the kind enumerated under this class but equipped with pneumatic tires shall be three-fourths of the amount of the fee charged when equipped with solid tires: Provided, That all passenger vehicles converted so as to carry freight and the transportation of property, and having a carrying capacity of less than one ton and equipped with pneumatic tires, shall pay a yearly fee of fifteen dollars.(1921, c. 112, §82, Class B; Code 1923, c. 43, §82, Class B; 1923, c. 6, §82, Class B; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class B.)

§12. Class C. Fee for Vehicles Trailed or Propelled by Motor Vehicle or Tractor.—The registration fee for vehicles trailed or propelled by any motor vehicle or tractor required to be registered, other than any motor vehicle used in transportation of passengers or property, or both, for compensation, shall be five dollars for a vehicle of one ton or less capacity, equipped with tires of solid rubber or steel, and seven dollars and fifty cents for each additional ton capacity, or fraction thereof: Provided, That the registration fee for vehicles trailed or propelled by any motor vehicle used in transportation of passengers or property, or both, for compensation, equipped with tires of solid rubber or steel, shall be two times the fee above stated: Provided further, That the fee in the case of a vehicle equipped only with pneumatic tires shall be one-half that shown for solid rubber or metallic tires.(1921, c. 112, §82, Class C; Code 1923, c. 43, §82, Class C; 1923, c. 6, §82, Class C; 1925, c. 17. §82, Class C.)

§13. Class D. Fee for Dealers in Motor Vehicles, Except Motorcycles; Dealer’s License Plates; Special Permits; Penalties.—Each dealer in motor vehicles, except motorcycles, shall pay a fee of thirty dollars yearly, in consideration of which he shall receive one set of special registration plates to be used only on vehicles operated upon the highways, and such plates may be used on any vehicle owned by such dealer that is for sale or is used for demonstration purposes: Provided, That in case of sale or exchange of a vehicle, the dealer may give permission in writing to the new owner of the vehicle to use such dealer’s license plates for a period not to exceed ten days, and the new owner shall not use such dealer’s plates for a period in excess of ten days. Five additional sets of plates shall be issued to any dealer licensed in accordance with this chapter, upon application and payment of a fee of fifteen dollars. Additional sets of such plates shall be issued to any dealer licensed in accordance with this chapter, upon application and payment of a fee of two dollars for each additional set: Provided, That dealer’s plates shall not be used on motor vehicles used in transportation of persons or property, or both, for compensation.

The commission shall have power to grant, in its discretion, special permits to a dealer for use on motor vehicles driven under their own power from the factory or distributing place of a manufacturer, or other dealer, to the place of business of such dealer, and the commission shall charge a fee of one dollar for each such permit. Each special permit shall be good only for one trip and for the specific vehicle upon which used, and such permit shall not be used by such dealer in lieu of any registration certificate or plate required by this chapter. No dealer shall use the dealer’s plates upon any vehicle used for the transportation of freight, or for passenger service, pleasure or hire.

Any person or persons violating any of the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than fifty nor more than one hundred dollars for the first offense, and for the second or subsequent offense shall be fined not less than one hundred nor more than five hundred dollars, and in addition thereto his license shall be revoked for the balance of the calendar year.(1921, c. 112, §82, Class G; Code 1923, c. 43, §82, Class G; 1923, c. 5, §82, Class G; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class G.)

§14. Class E. Fee for Tractors, Traction Engines and Similar Vehicles; Exceptions.—The registration fee for all tractors, traction engines and similar vehicles used to propel, support, transport, or draw a trailer or trailers, or semi-trailer or semi-trailers, upon the roads of this State, except as herein provided, shall be as follows:

For such vehicle having a weight of two tons or less, twenty dollars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than two tons but not more than two and one-half tons, twenty-five dollars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than two and one-half tons but not more than three tons, thirty dollars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than three tons but not more than three and one-half tons, thirty-five dollars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than three and one-half tons but not more than four tons, forty dollars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than four tons but not more than four and one-half tons, forty-five dollars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than four and one-half tons but not more than five tons, fifty dollars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than five tons but not more than five and one-half tons, sixty dollars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than five and one-half tons but not more than six tons, seventy dollars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than six tons but not more than six and one-half tons, eighty dollars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than six and one-half tons but not more than seven tons, ninety dollars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than seven tons but not more than seven and one-half tons, one hundred dol lars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than seven and one-half tons but not more than eight tons, one hundred and ten dollars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than eight tons but not more than eight and one-half tons, one hundred and twenty dollars; for such ve hicle having a weight of more than eight and one-half tons but not more than nine tons, one hundred and thirty dollars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than nine tons but not more than nine and one-half tons, one hundred and forty dollars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than nine and one-half tons but not more than ten tons, one hundred and sixty dollars; for such vehicle having a weight of more than ten tons, one hundred and eighty dollars. This charge shall not be made in the case of tractors used exclusively for agricultural purposes: Provided, That such rims or other sufficient devices shall be used on the wheels of such tractors as will protect the roads or highways traveled by them from any unusual damages thereto, and the owners of such tractors shall be liable for any damages done by them to public roads in excess of that done by ordinary travel thereon: Provided further, That this charge shall not be made for traction engines and rollers used in road construction or maintenance.(1921, c. 112, §82, Class F; Code 1923, c. 43, §82, Class F; 1923, c. 6, §82, Class E; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class E.)

§15. Class F. Fee for Dealers in Motorcycles.—Each dealer in motorcycles shall pay a fee of ten dollars yearly, in consideration of which he shall receive two sets of registration plates for dealers, and for each additional set of plates such dealer shall pay five dollars. The conditions for use of motor vehicles set forth under Class D shall apply also to motorcycles and dealers in the same.(1921, c. 112, §82, Class H; Code 1923, c. 43, §82, Class H; 1923, c. 6, §82, Class F; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class F.)

§16. Class G. Fee for Motorcycles.—The registration fee for each motorcycle shall be five dollars yearly, and for each side car attached to a motorcycle an additional two dollars and fifty cents yearly.(1921, c. 112, §82, Class E; Code 1923, c. 43, §82, Class E; 1923, c. 6, §82, Class D; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class D.)

§17. Class H. Fee for Motor Vehicles Operated for Transportation of Passengers Between Fixed Termini or Over Regular Routes.—Motor vehicles operated for transportation of passengers between fixed termini or over regular routes shall each be charged and pay one-fifteenth of a cent for each passenger seat multiplied by the total number of miles that such applicant shall show will be traveled over any public roads or highways, or over any streets or alleys within any incorporated city or town, in this State, by such motor vehicles during the year for which the permit or certificate of convenience is issued: Provided, That the minimum fee to be paid for a vehicle operated under this class shall not be less than the fee that would be required to be paid for such vehicle if operated under Class J, unless such permit or certificate is for part of a route extending into this State from an adjoining state, in which latter event the permit or certificate may be granted or renewed at the discretion of the commission for a lesser fee.(1923, c. 6, §82, Class H-1; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class H-1.)

§18. Class I. Fee for Motor Vehicles Operated for Transportation of Property Between Fixed Termini or Over Regular Routes.—Motor vehicles operated for transportation of property between fixed termini or over regular routes, if of three tons or less carrying capacity, shall each be charged and pay one-fourth of a cent per each ton mile multiplied by the total number of miles that such application shall show will be traveled by such motor vehicles over any public roads or highways, or over any streets or alleys within any incorporated city or town, in this State, during the year for which the permit or certificate of convenience is issued. If such motor vehicle be over three tons carrying capacity, each shall be charged and pay one-third of a cent per each ton mile multiplied by the total number of miles that such application shall show will be traveled by such motor vehicle over public roads or highways, or over any streets or alleys within any incorporated city or town, in the State, during the year for which such certificate is issued: Provided, That the minimum fee to be paid for a vehicle operated under this class shall not be less than the fee that would be required to be paid for such vehicle if operated under Class K, unless such permit or certificate is for part of a route extending into this State from an adjoining state, in which latter event the permit or certificate may be granted or renewed at the discretion of the commission for a lesser fee.(1923, c. 6, §82, Class H-2; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class H-2.)

§19. Class J. Fee for Motor Vehicles Operated for Transportation of Passengers, Not Running Over a Regular Route or Between Fixed Termini.—Motor vehicles operated for transportation of passengers, not running over a regular route or between fixed termini, shall each be charged and pay seventy-five dollars yearly. Ambulances and hearses used exclusively in their work shall be exempted from the above special fee.(1923, c. 6, §82, Class H-3; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class H-3.)

§20. Class K. Fee for Motor Vehicles Operated for Transportation of Property, Not Running Over a Regular Route or Between Fixed Termini.—Motor vehicles operated for transportation of property, not running over a regular route or between fixed termini, shall each be charged and pay a fee of double that of trucks not used commercially.(1923, c. 6, §82, Class H-4; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class H-4.)

§21. Municipalities and Other Political Subdivisions Not to Levy or Charge License Tax on Motor Vehicles.—No license tax shall be levied or charged by any municipality or other political subdivision of the State with respect to motor vehicles and their operation; but this prohibition shall not prevent municipalities or other political subdivisions of the State from assessing and collecting the regular property tax on such motor vehicle.(1923, c. 6, §82, Class H-4; 1925, c. 17, §82, Class H-4.)

§22. Government Exemption From Registration Fee; Exemption of Ambulances.—The United States government, the State, or any political subdivision thereof, shall be exempted from the payment of any fee on account of registration of any vehicle owned or operated by the United States government, the State, or any political subdivision thereof, as the case may be: Provided, That the proper representative of the federal government, the State, or any such political subdivision thereof, shall make, or cause to be made, on the form provided for that purpose, an application for registration of such vehicle so owned and operated, and that the registration plate or plates issued for such vehicle shall be displayed or caused to be displayed as provided in this article: Provided further, That fire apparatus owned by the United States government, the State, or any political subdivision thereof, shall be exempt from all the provisions of this article, except such provisions as relate to the qualifications and licensing of drivers: And provided further, That any ambulance used exclusively for charitable purposes, for which use there is no charge, shall be exempt from all the provisions of this article, except such provisions as relate to the qualifications and licensing of drivers.(1921, c. 112, §80; Code 1923, c. 43, §80; 1925, c. 17, §80; 1929, c. 70.)

§23. License Period; Loss of Plates; Destruction or Removal of Vehicle From State; Transfer of Ownership; Offenses; Penalties.—The license or registration fees herein prescribed shall be for the entire calendar year: Provided, That where application for such license and registration is made between the first day of April and the thirtieth day of June, inclusive, in any year, the charge therefor shall be three-fourths of the sum charged for such yearly license; and where such application is made between the first day of July and the thirtieth day of September, inclusive, of any year, the sum charged therefor shall be one-half of the sum charged for a yearly license; and where such application is made after the thirtieth of September in any year, one-fourth of such yearly license shall be charged; and in all cases where a license is issued after the thirtieth day of September in any year there shall be paid, in addition to the license herein provided for, the additional sum of one dollar.

The registration certificates and the right to use the corresponding registration plates shall expire at midnight of December thirty-first of the year for which issued.

In the event of the loss or inadvertent destruction of any plate issued under the provisions of this article, the commission shall investigate the circumstances of alleged loss or destruction, and, if satisfied that the loss or destruction has occurred as alleged, shall issue a duplicate, or duplicates, or may in its discretion issue a new set of plates with appropriate certificate of registration, at a cost not to exceed one dollar.

In the event of the loss or inadvertent destruction of any certificate of registration issued under the provisions of this article, the commission may issue a duplicate upon receipt of affidavit of such loss at a cost not to exceed one dollar. Upon the destruction or permanent removal from the State of any registered motor vehicle, its certificate of registration and the right to use the registration plates thereon shall expire; but the commission shall permit the person to whom such certificate and plates or markers were originally issued to surrender the same, and shall allow to him a refund of the amount paid for registration plates and certificate for the quarterly periods remaining wholly unexpired: Provided, That the provision for refund shall not apply to vehicles operated under a permit or certificate of convenience.

Upon the transfer of ownership of any motor vehicle, its certificate of registration and the right to use the registration plates shall expire, and it shall be the duty of the original owner to immediately notify the commission of the name and address of the new owner, and to deliver to the purchaser the license certificate and plates belonging thereto. It shall be the duty of the purchaser immediately to file with the commission an application for a transfer of such registration accompanied with such certificate, for which the commission shall issue a transfer certificate and charge a fee of one dollar. If such license certificate be not filed, the purchaser shall be charged a fee of two dollars for such license transfer certificates. Certificates of registration and corresponding registration plates of vehicles operating under a permit or certificate of convenience may be transferred only under the provisions of, and when provided by, the rules and regulations of the state road commission.

Any owner or operator who shall obtain a registration certificate, or registration plates, or other licenses provided for in this article, by misrepresentation or by any other method not authorized by law, or who shall violate any of the other provisions of this section, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than ten nor more than fifty dollars, and may thereafter be refused a license or certificate of registration.(1921, c. 112, §83; Code 1923, c. 43, §83; 1923, c. 6, §83; 1925, c. 17, §83.)

§24. Display of Registration Plates.—Unless otherwise provided for herein, every duly registered vehicle shall at all times have displayed entirely unobscured and kept reasonably clean, and so fastened with the numbers in a vertical position as not to swing, the registration plate, or plates, issued by the commission. In the case of motor vehicles and tractors, one plate shall be displayed on the front and the other on the rear of such vehicle, and in the case of trailers, semi-trailers, and motorcycles, one plate shall be used and displayed at the rear thereof.(1921, c. 112, §86; Code 1923, c. 43, §86.)

§25. Offenses Relating to Display of Registration Plates; Exceptions; Penalty.—No person shall operate or permit to be operated on any road or highway in this State a vehicle unless he shall display thereon the registration plate or plates of such vehicle, as in this article provided. No person shall operate or permit to be operated, a vehicle registered in this State upon which there is displayed the registration plate of another state, or a fictitious registration plate, or the plate of another vehicle, or the plate of a previous owner of the same vehicle: Provided, That in the event of the sale of a vehicle the person purchasing the same may, for a period of not more than ten days, operate such vehicle under the registration of its previous owner and display the registration plate thereof: Provided further, That he shall have and display on the demand of any proper officer the consent in writing of such previous owner so to use such registration. Any person violating any provision of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than ten nor more than fifty dollars.(1921, c. 112, §87; Code 1923, c. 43, §87; 1925, c. 17, §7.)

§26. Operator’s and Chauffeur’s Licenses; Learner’s Permits; Fees; Examinations.—No person shall operate any motor vehicle or tractor upon a highway of this State unless such person, upon application, has had issued to him a learner’s permit or an operator’s or chauffeur’s license by the state road commission under the provisions of this article.

An operator’s or chauffeur’s license shall not be issued to any person under the age of fifteen years; nor to any person who is addicted to the use of intoxicating liquor or narcotics; nor to any person who has previously been adjudged insane, or an idiot, imbecile, epileptic or feeble minded, and who has not, at the time of application, been restored to competency by judicial decree or released from a hospital for the insane or feeble minded upon a certificate of the superintendent or medical director that such person is competent, and not then unless the commission is satisfied that such person is competent to operate a motor vehicle or tractor with safety to persons and property; nor to any person when, in the opinion of the commission, such person is afflicted with such physical or mental disability or disease as will serve to prevent such person from exercising reasonable and ordinary control over a motor vehicle upon the public highway; nor to any person who is unable to understand highway warnings or direction signs in the English language.

Operator’s licenses shall be effective from the date of issue unless and until revoked as provided by law. The fee for an operator’s license shall be one dollar. Chauffeur’s licenses shall be effective from the date of issue until the close of the current calendar year, unless sooner revoked as provided by law. The fee for a chauffeur’s license, if issued on or before the thirtieth day of June, shall be three dollars; if issued on or after the first day of July, the fee shall be one dollar and fifty cents. The fee for a duplicate license shall be one dollar.

The commission, upon receiving from any person fifteen years of age or over an application for a learner’s permit, may in its discretion issue such permit, authorizing such applicant, while having such permit in his immediate possession, to operate a motor vehicle upon the highways for a period of sixty days from date of issue, when accompanied by a licensed operator or chauffeur who is actually occupying a seat beside the holder of the learner’s permit, except that permittees operating motorcycles or tractors need not be so accompanied. Every application for a learner’s permit shall be under oath, on a form provided by the commission, and accompanied by a fee of one dollar, and shall state the name, age, sex and residence address of the applicant, and such other information as the commission may desire, and whether or not the applicant has heretofore been licensed as an operator or chauffeur, and, if so, when and by what state, and whether or not such license has ever been suspended or revoked, and, if so, the date of and reason for such suspension or revocation.

Before granting an operator’s or chauffeur’s license to any person the commission shall require the applicant to demonstrate personally to the superintendent of public safety or his representative, in such manner as such superintendent may direct, that such applicant is a proper person to operate a motor vehicle, is of proper mental and physical condition, has sufficient knowledge of the mechanism of motor vehicles to assure their safe operation, and has a satisfactory knowledge of the laws and regulations concerning motor vehicles and their operation. No such license shall be issued or renewed by the commission if the superintendent shall make an unfavorable report on such application after examination: Provided, That the commission may, in its discretion, issue a chauffeur’s license without an examination if the applicant has had a chauffeur’s license for the preceding year, and may, in its discretion, issue a chauffeur’s license to a holder of an operator’s license without examination. Any person holding an operator’s or chauffeur’s license on the date this Code takes effect shall have authority to operate a motor vehicle on the public highways during the term for which such license was issued, unless sooner revoked for cause or otherwise provided in this chapter.

The commission may require that a holder of an operator’s or chauffeur’s license be examined or reexamined when in its judgment public safety and welfare demand, and if upon examination the said superintendent shall report that the licensee, when operating a motor vehicle, would be a menace to public safety and welfare, the commission shall forthwith revoke the licenses of such person. Upon such revocation the commission shall notify the licensee thereof and afford him an opportunity of hearing before the commission or its representative, provided such a hearing has not already been had, and after such hearing the commission shall rescind or affirm its former order of revocation.

The commission in collaboration with the superintendent of public safety and the health commissioner, shall adopt and promulgate proper regulations concerning the examination of applicants for operator’s and chauffeur’s licenses and the qualifications of such applicants.

Such operator’s or chauffeur’s license shall state the name, age, post-office address of the licensee, and the number assigned to him, and shall entitle the licensee to operate any vehicle of any make unless otherwise specified thereon. Such license shall have endorsed thereon, in the proper handwriting of the licensee, the name of such licensee, and when requested by a proper officer in the discharge of his duties under the law such licensee shall write his name in the presence of the officer, to the end that the identity of such licensee may be determined. A number shall be assigned to each of such licenses and a proper record of all applicants and licenses, and all licenses issued, shall be kept by the commission and shall be open to public inspection.

Every person operating a motor vehicle or tractor on a public highway of this State shall have his learner’s permit, operator’s license or chauffeur’s license, as the case may be, in his immediate possession when so operating.

The commission may cause to be destroyed the applications for chauffeur’s licenses and records in connection therewith two years after the year for which they are issued.(1921, c. 112, §84; Code 1923, c. 43, §84.)

§27. Necessity for License Where Vehicle is Not Owned in State or Operator is Nonresident.—The owner or operator of any vehicle not owned in this State, or any operator not a resident of this State, may, for a period not to exceed three months in any one year, use the roads of this State without being registered or licensed as required in this article: Provided, That such vehicle or operator shall have been licensed under the laws of the state in which such vehicle is owned or such operator resides; that such vehicle shall display its registration plates prominently, and such operator shall on demand of the proper authorities present his operator’s or chauffeur’s license; and that the state or federal district in which such vehicle is owned, or such operator or chauffeur resides, shall extend the same privileges to vehicles owned in this State, and to operators or chauffeurs residing in this State: Provided further, That this section shall not apply to motor vehicles used for commercial purposes.(1921, c. 112, §85; Code 1923, c. 43, §85.)

§28. When License of Vehicle, Operator or Chauffeur May be Refused or Revoked; New License.—The commission may refuse to license a vehicle which is so constructed as to be a menace to the safety of its occupants or the traveling public. It may refuse to license any motor vehicle, or any driver, operator or chauffeur, upon proof that the applicant has been convicted of violating any of the provisions of this chapter, and may revoke any license already granted for any like reasons.

The commission may also, after due hearing, upon not less than five days’ notice in writing, sent by registered mail to the address given by the operator or chauffeur when applying for his license certificate, which shall constitute a sufficient form of notice, suspend or revoke the operator’s or chauffeur’s license issued to such person for any cause which the commission may deem sufficient. The commission may take into consideration, in refusing, suspending or revoking licenses, the penalties (except minor speed violations) imposed by duly authorized officials in other states, where such records are kept and reported, if the commission deem the acts causing such penalties to be imposed to be of sufficient importance to justify such refusal, suspension or revocation.

In any case where a license is revoked, no license shall again be granted to such driver, operator or chauffeur, within one year from the date of revocation of such license, nor thereafter, except at the discretion of the commission.(1921, c. 112, §§78, 84, 89; Code 1923, c. 43, §§78, 84, 89.)

§29. List of Registered Vehicles; Synopsis of Vehicle Laws.—The commission shall prepare, on or before the first day of March of each year, a list of all vehicles registered up to, and including, January thirty-first of that year, and subsequently beginning with February shall issue in pamphlet form a list of motor vehicles registered in each month during the license year, together with a list of all licenses lost, stolen, canceled or revoked. Such monthly supplement shall be issued as soon after the last day of the month as practicable.

Officers of the State entrusted with the enforcement of the laws may be furnished with a complete list of vehicles registered and of licenses issued, and such list may also be furnished to such other interested parties as may be authorized by the governor or by the commission. In addition to the officers of this State, the commission may furnish lists of registration to similar officers in adjoining states. Copies of lists of registration may also be furnished to all other persons applying for the same, at a price to be fixed by the commission.

The commission shall prepare in pamphlet form a brief synopsis of the laws of this State relating to the use of vehicles upon public roads, together with the table of fees charged, and such other information as may be of interest to the owner or operator of any vehicle upon the public roads. The pamphlet shall be issued free of cost and one copy of the same shall be furnished to persons granted a license under this article, and to any other citizen of the State upon application.

The commission shall keep a record of all applications and statements in connection therewith filed with it, and of all license certificates and permits issued by it, which record shall be open and available to the public for inspection.(1921, C. 112, §79; Code 1923, c. 43, §79.)

§30. Offenses Relating to Licenses; Penalty.—Any person who, without the license or permit required by law, or whose license has been suspended or revoked, shall operate a motor vehicle or tractor; or any person who shall operate a motor vehicle or tractor, without the license required by law for the same being issued, or when a license for the same has been suspended or revoked; or the owner of any motor vehicle or tractor who permits any person not having the license or permit required by law to operate the same, or who permits such motor vehicle or tractor to be operated without the same first being licensed as required by law; or any person other than the one to whom an operator’s or chauffeur’s license or learner’s permit is issued who uses such license or permit, or any person to whom an operator’s or chauffeur’s license or learner’s permit is issued who permits a person other than himself to use the same; or anyone who changes the name of the licensee or permittee appearing upon any license or permit issued by the commission; shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars, or imprisoned in the county jail not less than one nor more than six months, or both fined and imprisoned, in the discretion of the court.(1921, c. 112, §84; Code 1923, c. 43, §84.)

§1. Certificate of Title; Application; Fee; Period During Which Valid.—Certificates of registration of any vehicle or registration plates therefor, whether original issues or duplicates, shall not be issued or furnished by the state road commission or any other officer charged with such duty, unless the applicant therefor already has received, or shall at the same time make application for and be granted, an official certificate of title of such motor vehicle. Such application shall be upon a blank form to be furnished by the state road commission, and shall contain a full description of the motor vehicle, which description shall contain the manufacturer’s number, the motor number and any distinguishing marks, together with a statement of the applicant’s title and of any liens or encumbrances upon such motor vehicles, the names and addresses of the holders of such liens, and such other information as the state road commission may require. The application shall be signed and sworn to by the applicant. The state road commission, or other officer charged with such duty by the commission, if satisfied that the applicant is the owner of such vehicle, or otherwise entitled to have the same registered in his name, shall thereupon issue to the applicant an appropriate certificate of title over the signature of the official designated by the commission, authenticated by a seal to be procured and used for such purpose. Such certificates shall be numbered consecutively, beginning with number one, and shall contain such description and other evidence of identification of such motor vehicle as the state road commission may deem proper. The charge for each original certificate of title so issued shall be one dollar.

Such certificate shall be good for the life of the ear, so long as the same is owned or held by the original holder of such certificate, and need not be renewed annually, or at any other time, except as herein provided.(1925, c. 14, §1.)

§2. Assignment of Certificate of Title in Event of Sale; New Certificate; Fee.—In the event of the sale or other transfer in this State of the ownership of a motor vehicle for which a certificate of title has been issued as aforesaid, the holder of such certificate shall indorse on the back of the same an assignment thereof with warranty of title in form printed thereon, with a statement of all liens or encumbrances on such motor vehicle, and deliver the same to the purchaser or transferee at the time of the delivery to him of the motor vehicle. The purchaser or transferee shall, within ten days thereafter, present such certificate assigned as aforesaid to the state road commission, accompanied by a fee of one dollar, whereupon a new certificate of title shall be issued to the assignee.(1925, c. 14, §2.)

§3. Penalty for Operating or Selling Motor Vehicle Without Procuring Certificate of Title.—Any owner, or any person without the consent of the owner being first obtained, who shall operate a motor vehicle in this State under a registration number of this State, without first procuring a certificate of title, as herein provided, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than twenty-five nor more than one thousand dollars; and any person who sells a motor ve hicle without complying with the requirements of this article, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than fifty dollars nor more than three hundred dollars, and imprisoned in the county jail not exceeding one year.(1925, c. 14, §3.)

§4. Refusal to Issue or Revocation of Certificate of Title.—If the State road commission shall determine at any time that an applicant for a certificate of title of a motor vehicle is not entitled thereto, it may refuse to issue such certificate or to register such vehicle, and may for a like reason, and after notice and hearing, revoke registration already acquired, or any outstanding certificate of title. Such notice shall be served in person or by registered mail.(1925, c. 14, §4.)

§5. False Statement in Application or Assignment.—Any person who shall knowingly make any false statement of a material fact, either in his application for a certificate of title or in any assignment thereof, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than one hundred nor more than three hundred dollars, and imprisoned in the county jail not exceeding one year.(1925, c. 14, §5.)

§6. Certificates of Title in Case of Dealers.—In the case of dealers in motor vehicles, including manufacturers who sell to others than dealers, all of whom are intended to be covered by this and all other provisions of this section, a separate certificate of title either of such dealer’s immediate vendor, or of the dealer himself, shall be required in the case of each motor vehicle in his possession, and the state road commission shall determine the form in which application for such certificate of title and assignments shall be made: Provided, however, That no such certificate shall be required in the case of new motor vehicles sold by manufacturers or dealers.(1925, c. 14, §6.)

§7. Duplicate Certificate in Case of Loss; Fee.—In the case of a lost certificate of title or registration, the loss of which is accounted for to the satisfaction of the state road commission, duplicates may be issued, the charge therefor to be one dollar each.(1925, c. 14, §7.)

§8. Altering, or Forging Certificate of Title or Assignment; Penalty.—Any person who shall alter or forge, or cause to be altered or forged, any certificate of title issued by the state road commission pursuant to the provisions of this article, or any assignment thereof, or who shall hold or use any such certificate of title or assignment knowing the same to have been altered or forged, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than one hundred nor more than five hundred dollars and imprisoned in the county jail not to exceed one year.(1925, c. 14, §8.)

§9. Stolen or Recovered Motor Vehicles.—It shall be the duty of the sheriff of every county of this State and of the chief of police of every city to make immediate report to the state road commission of all motor vehicles reported to him as stolen or recovered, upon forms provided by the state road commission. Upon receipt of such information the state road commission shall file the same in an index to be known as the “stolen and recovered motor vehicle index.” It shall also be the duty of the state road commission to file reports of stolen and recovered motor vehicles reported to it from other states. The state road commission shall publish once a month a list of all motor vehicles stolen or recovered during the previous month and forward a copy of the same to every sheriff and all police departments in cities of this State with over five thousand inhabitants. Such list shall also be forwarded to the state police department or other proper official in each state of the United States. Before issuing a certificate of title as heretofore provided, the state road commission shall check the motor and serial number on the motor vehicle to be registered against the “stolen and recovered motor vehicle index.”(1925, c. 14, §9.)

§10. Dealers in Used Vehicles; Duties; Penalty.—Any person conducting the business of buying, selling or dealing in used vehicles, and having received a license therefor, shall keep a book of record in such form as may be prescribed or approved by the state road commission, in which he shall keep a record of the purchase, sale or exchange, or receipt for the purpose of sale or exchange, of any secondhand vehicle, a description of such vehicle, together with the name and address of the seller, of the purchaser, and of the alleged owner or other person from whom such vehicle was purchased or received, or to whom it was sold or delivered, as the case may be. Such description shall also include the engine number, if any, the maker’s number, if any, chassis number, if any, and such other numbers or identification marks as may be thereon, and shall also include a statement that a number has been obliterated, defaced or changed, if such is the fact. He shall also have in his possession a duly assigned certificate of title from the owner of such motor vehicle in accordance with the provisions of this article, from the time when the motor vehicle is delivered to him until it has been disposed of by him: Provided, That any dealer who purchases a used motor vehicle for the purpose of disassembling it and reselling the parts, or who after purchase wishes to disassemble such vehicle and resell its parts, shall report the same to the state road commission, and receive authority from it to disassemble such vehicle before taking such action. Any person guilty of violating any of the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than fifty nor more than three hundred dollars and confined in the county jail not to exceed one year.(1925, c. 14, §10.)

§11. Destroyed Engine Numbers; Penalty.—Any person, firm or corporation, who shall sell or offer for sale in this State a motor vehicle, the original engine number of which has been destroyed, removed, altered, covered or defaced, with the exception of electrically propelled motor vehicles, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than two hundred nor more than five hundred dollars, and imprisoned in the county jail for a term of not less than thirty nor more than one hundred and eighty days, and, upon a second or subsequent conviction under this section, the conviction shall be for a felony and the punishment shall be imprisonment in the penitentiary for a term of not less than one nor more than five years: Provided, however, That any person, firm or corporation, who is the owner or custodian, or has possession, of a motor vehicle, the original engine number of which has been previously destroyed, removed, altered or defaced, shall apply to the state road commission, on a blank to be prepared and furnished by the commission upon request, for permission to make or stamp, or cause to be made or stamped, on the engine of such motor vehicle, a special engine number.

The application for permission to make or stamp a special engine number on the engine of a. motor vehicle under the provisions of this article shall contain a description of such motor vehicle, including the make, style and year of model of the same; as complete a description of the original engine number, if any part of the same remains, as it is possible to give; any distinguishing marks that may be on the engine or body of such motor vehicle; tbe name and post-office address of the applicant; the date on which he purchased or procured possession of the same; the name and post-office address of the person or persons from whom he purchased such motor vehicle, and such information as the state road commission may require, all of which description and facts shall be sworn to by such applicant. Upon receipt of such application, together with a fee of one dollar, the state road commission shall issue to the applicant written permission to make or stamp on the engine of such motor vehicle a special engine number, to be designated by the commission, and when such special engine number so designated has been stamped or otherwise placed on the engine of such motor vehicle, it shall become and therafter be the lawful engine number of such motor vehicle for the purpose of identification and registration and for all other purposes under the provisions of this article, and the owner thereof may sell or transfer the same under such special engine number so designated by the commission. Any person or persons who shall destroy, remove, cover, alter or deface any special engine number so designated by the state road commission shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be imprisoned in the county jail for a period not exceeding one year.

In designating special engine numbers for motor vehicles under the provisions of this article, the state road commission shall designate and number the same consecutively, beginning with the number (1), preceded by the letters “W. Va., ” and followed by the letters for each and every make of motor vehicle for which application for a special engine number shall be made, and in the order of the filing of applications therefor: Provided, That the commission shall not register any motor vehicle without an engine number, or issue a license for the operation of the same, except as specifically provided for in this article: Provided further, That before issuing such license, the commission shall require of the applicant a statement that the special number assigned to be placed on the particular motor vehicle in question has been put on in a workmanlike manner, and this statement be certified to by the sheriff, chief of police or other convenient peace officer, and that he has inspected such motor vehicle and found such number to be on such motor vehicle as required by the commission. Nothing herein shall be construed to prevent any manufacturer or his agents, other than dealers, from doing his own numbering on motor vehicles or parts removed or changed and replacing the numbered parts.(1925, c. 14, §11.)

§1. Traffic Regulations.—Every person operating a vehicle upon any highway in this State shall observe the traffic rules and regulations prescribed in this article.(1921, c. 112, §96; Code 1923, c. 43, §96.)

§2. Vehicles Not in Motion.—All vehicles not in motion shall be placed with their sides as near the right hand side of the highway as practicable, except on city streets where traffic is obliged to move in one direction only.[1921, c. 112, §96 (a); Code 1923, c. 43, §96(a).]

§3. Slow Moving Vehicles.—Slow moving vehicles shall at all times be operated as close to the right hand side of the highway as practicable.[1921, c. 112. §96 (b); Code 1923, c. 43, §96 (b).]

§4. Passing Vehicle Coming From Opposite Direction.—An operator meeting another vehicle coming from the opposite direction on the same highway shall turn to the right of the center of the highway so as to pass without interference.[1921, c. 112, §96 (c); Code 1923, c. 43, §96 (c).]

§5. Passing Vehicle Going in Same Direction; When Not to Pass; When to Sound Signal.—An operator of a vehicle overtaking another vehicle going in the same direction and desiring to pass the same shall pass to the left of the vehicle so overtaken, provided the way ahead is clear of approaching traffic, but if the way is not clear, he shall not pass unless the width of the roadway is sufficient to allow his vehicle to pass to the right of the center thereof in the direction in which his vehicle is moving: Provided, however, That no operator shall pass a vehicle from the rear at the top of a hill, or on a curve where the view ahead is in any way obscured, or while the vehicle is crossing an intersecting highway. An operator overtaking and desiring to pass a vehicle shall blow his horn or sound his signal, and the operator of the vehicle so overtaken shall promptly, and upon such signal, turn his vehicle as far as reasonably possible to the right in order to allow free passage on the left of his vehicle.[1921, c. 112, §96 (e); Code 1923, c. 43, §96(e).]

§6. How to Proceed When Rounding Curves.—An operator in rounding curves shall keep his vehicle as far to the right on the highway as reasonably possible.[1921, c. 112, §96(d); Code 1923, c. 43, §96 (d).]

§7. Signal When Turning to Left.—An operator intending to turn his vehicle to the left shall extend his arm in a horizontal position and slow down.[1921, c. 112, §96 (f); Code 1923, c. 43, §96(f).]

§8. Signal When Turning to Right.—An operator intending to turn his vehicle to the right shall extend his arm with the forearm raised at right angles and slow down.[1921, c. 112, §96(g); Code 1923, c. 43, §96(g).]

§9. Signal When Desiring to Stop.—An operator intending to stop his vehicle shall extend his arm and move it up and down in a vertical direction.[1921, c. 112, 96(h); Code 1923, c. 43, §96 (h).]

§10. Right of Way.—An operator of a vehicle shall have the right of way over the operator of another vehicle who is approaching from a the left on an intersecting highway, and shall give the right of way to an operator of a vehicle approaching from the right on an intersecting highway.[1921, c. 112, §96 (i); Code 1923, c. 43, §96(i).]

§11. Passing Street Cars; Penalty.—An operator of a vehicle shall bring the same to a full stop not less than five feet from any street car which has stopped or is about to stop to receive or discharge passengers, and shall remain standing until such car has taken on or discharged such passengers: Provided, however, That the operator may pass such street car where a safety zone is established by the proper authorities: Provided further, That the operator, if he slows down and proceeds cautiously, may pass such street car at a distance of at least eight feet therefrom when outside the limits of any in corporated town or city. Any person driving or operating a motor vehicle in violation of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than twenty-five nor more than one hundred dollars, or imprisoned in the county jail not less than one nor more than six months, or both, in the discretion of the court or justice trying the case[1921, c. 112, §96(j); Code 1923, c. 43, §96 (j).]

§12. Approaching Pedestrians, Animals, Crossings; Rounding Turns, Curves and Steep Descents.—Upon approaching any person walking in the traveled portion of any public highway, or a horse or other animal being led, ridden or driven thereon, or railroad or traction crossing, or public highway crossing, or bridge, or sharp turn, or sharp curve, or steep descent, or school zone, and also in passing such person, horse or other animal, and in traversing such crossing, bridge, turn, curve, descent or school zone, a person operating a motor vehicle or motorcycle shall reduce its speed so as not to exceed fifteen miles per hour; and any turn, curve or descent, which is designated by a sign or marker under the provisions of this chapter, shall be conclusively presumed to be a “sharp turn,” “sharp curve” or “steep descent” within the meaning of this section. If such horse or other animal so led, ridden or driven shall appear to be frightened, or if the person in charge thereof shall signal so to do by raising his hand ‘vertically, the person operating such motor vehicle or motorcycle shall bring the same to a stop, and, if traveling in the opposite direction, shall remain stationary as long as may be reasonable to allow such horse or other animal to pass, or, if traveling in the same direction, shall use reason able caution in thereafter passing such horse or animal; but no person shall give such signal to stop unless necessary.[1921, c. 112, §96 (k); Code 1923, c. 43, §96(k).]

§13. When Not to Use Cut-out.—An operator shall not use the cut-out of a motor vehicle while on any highway in this State.[1921, c. 112, §96(l); Code 1923, c. 43, §96(l).]

§14. Signal When View Not Clear or Road Obstructed.—An operator of a motor vehicle or tractor shall sound his horn or other signaling device when approaching points on the highways where the view ahead is not clear, or where the view of the side of an intersecting highway is obstructed: Provided, That in no case shall such horn or signaling device be used for the purpose of making any unnecessary noise.[1921, c. 112, §96 (m); Code 1923, c. 43, §96 (m).]

§15. When to Display Lights; Spot Light.—Whenever there is not sufficient light to render clearly discernible a substantial object on the highway at a distance of two hundred feet ahead, the operator of a vehicle shall light and keep lighted all the lamps with which, under the provisions of this chapter, such vehicle must be equipped: Provided, That in the event of a bona fide failure of one or more lights, the operator may proceed to destination, if he sounds his horn or other signaling device once in every four hundred feet, and proceeds at a rate of speed not greater than ten miles per hour to the nearest place where he can put his lamps in order. A spot light used on a vehicle having a left-hand drive shall be placed on the left-hand side of such vehicle, and the rays of such spot light shall not be thrown to the left of the center of the vehicle for more than one hundred feet in advance thereof, while the vehicle is in motion. A spot light used on a vehicle having a right-hand drive shall be placed on the right-hand side of such vehicle, and the rays of such spot light shall at all times be on the right of the center line of the car. No person shall turn off any of the lights of a vehicle for the purpose of avoiding arrest or identification.[1921, c. 112, §96 (n) ; Code 1923, c. 43, §96 (n).]

§16. Vehicles Carrying Projecting Objects Danger Signal.—All vehicles carrying poles or other objects, which project more than five feet from the rear, shall, during the period of from one-half hour after sunset to one-half hour before sunrise, carry a red light at or near the rear end of the pole or other object so projecting. During the period of from one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset vehicles shall carry a red. flag as a danger signal at or near the rear end of the pole or other object so projecting.[1921, c. 112, §96 (o); Code 1923, c. 43, §96 (o).]

§17. Offenses Against Foregoing Sections of This Article.—Any person violating any of the provisions of the foregoing sections of this article, unless otherwise therein provided, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars.[1921, c. 112, §96(p); Code 1923, c. 43, §96(p).]

§18. Speed Limits of Motor Vehicles; Penalties; Special Fee for Officer Making Arrest.—No vehicle of the kinds and weights enumerated in this section shall be operated on the open country highways, suburban streets, or urban streets in this State at a greater rate of speed than herein prescribed, that is to say:

Any person who shall operate any such vehicle on any highway in this State at a greater rate of speed than herein allowed shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than ten nor more than fifty dollars, and may be confined in the county jail for fifteen days, or both fined and imprisoned, at the discretion of the court, for the first offense; and for a second or subsequent offense he shall be fined not less than fifty nor more than two hundred dollars, and may be confined in the county jail not more than sixty days, and his license may be revoked as provided in section twenty-eight, article six of this chapter.

The trial court or justice shall assess, as a part of the costs in the case, a special fee of two dollars for the officer making the arrest of a person convicted for any violation of the automobile laws of this State.(1921, c. 112, §§94, 95; Code 1923, c. 43, §§94, 95; 1923, c. 6, §§94, 95; 1925, c. 17, §95.)

§19. Speed on Bridges; Penalty.—No person shall drive or ride over any bridge faster than a walk: Provided, however, That any truck may be driven over any bridge at a rate of speed not to exceed ten miles per hour, and any motor vehicle used for carrying passengers at a rate of speed not to exceed fifteen miles per hour. Any person violating this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined five dollars for the first offense, and twenty-five dollars for each subsequent offense.(1921, c. 112, §58; Code 1923, c. 43, §58.)

§20. Dimension and Weight Limits of Vehicles; Penalty.—There shall not be operated on any road or highway in this State any vehicle whose width, including load, is greater than ninety inches (except traction engines, whose width shall not exceed one hundred and eight inches, and wagons and other vehicles of farmers when hauling hay, straw, fodder or other farm products on the roads, or when on the roads with farming implements), or which has a greater height, including load, than twelve feet, or a greater length, including load, than forty feet, and no combination of vehicles coupled together shall be so operated whose total length, including load, shall be greater than sixty feet: Provided, That in special cases vehicles whose dimensions exceed the foregoing may be operated under permits granted as provided in the next succeeding section of this article.

No vehicle whose gross weight, including load, is more than twenty thousand pounds; no vehicle, including load, having a greater weight than seventeen thousand pounds on any one axle; no vehicle, including load, having a greater weight than nine thousand pounds on any one wheel; and no vehicle, including load, having a weight upon any one wheel of more than six hundred pounds per inch width of tire in actual contact with the road surface, shall be operated upon any road or highway in this State: Provided, however, That there may be operated upon any road tractors equipped with caterpillar tread, together with trailer, trailers, semi-trailer or semi-trailers, whose combined weight, including load, shall not exceed eleven tons: Provided further, That in special cases vehicles, including load, exceeding the weight herein described, may be operated under special permits granted as provided in the next succeeding section of this article.

Any person, firm or corporation who shall operate or cause to be operated on any highway in this State a vehicle whose size or weight exceeds that herein prescribed shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than one hundred nor more than five hundred dollars, for the first offense, and not less than five hundred dollars nor more than one thousand dollars for any subsequent offense, and in addition thereto the license of such person, firm or corporation shall be revoked.(1921, c. 112, §93; Code 1923, c. 43, §93; 1923, c. 6, §93.)

§21. Special Permits for Vehicles Exceeding Certain Sizes and Weights.—The special permit required by the preceding section for the operation of a vehicle whose size or weight, with load, exceeds the limits therein prescribed shall be in writing, and be issued at the discretion of the commission, or of those officials in the State’s political subdivision who have charge of the highways, roads, streets, alleys and bridges over which such vehicle is to operate. Such permit may be issued for a single trip or for a definite period not beyond the date of the expiration of the vehicle registration, and shall designate the roads and bridges to be used. Any person operating a vehicle under such permit shall pay to the commission or other authorities having charge of the maintenance of such roads or bridges, the amount of any and all damages that may be caused to any road or bridge by reason of the operation of such vehicle thereon, and the possession of such permit shall not relieve any person from the liability for such damage. The commission or other authority granting such permit shall require from the person or corporation receiving the same a bond with satisfactory security conditioned upon the proper repair of all damages done the roads or streets over which such vehicle is operated. The commission or other authority granting such permits may also prescribe such rules and regulations governing the use of vehicles requiring a special permit as may be necessary to protect the roads and streets over which the same are operated from unusual damages therefrom. A violation by any person or corporation having a permit, of the rules and regulations so prescribed, shall be sufficient cause for the revocation thereof.(1921, c. 112, §94; Code 1923, c. 43, §94; 1923, c. 6, §94.)

§22. Weight of Commercial Vehicle; Brakes, Horn and Lights on Motor Vehicle; Connection of Trailer With Towing Vehicle.—All vehicles used for commercial purposes shall have plainly marked on the right side thereof in some conspicuous place the actual weight of the vehicle, with equipment, and the weight of the seating or loading capacity of such vehicle.

Every motor vehicle shall be equipped with two sets of brakes operating independently, except tractors and traction engines which shall be provided with suitable brakes.

Every motor vehicle and tractor, when in use on the roads, shall be equipped with a suitable horn or signaling device for producing an abrupt sound as a signal or warning of danger. The commission shall have the power to make and enforce suitable regulations governing the kind and use of such horns or signaling devices.

Every vehicle operated on any road in this State at night shall be equipped with a lamp, or lamps, as hereinafter provided, of sufficient power, and so adjusted and operated as to enable the operator of such vehicle to proceed with safety to himself and to other users of the road under all ordinary conditions of road and weather.

Every motor vehicle and tractor shall have mounted on the right and left sides of the front thereof a lamp, such lamps to be of approximately equal candle power, and every motorcycle shall have mounted on the front thereof one lamp. If such vehicles are so mechanically constructed, governed, or controlled that they cannot exceed a speed of fifteen miles per hour, they shall have front lamps capable of furnishing light of sufficient candle power to render any substantial object clearly discernible on a level road at least fifty feet directly ahead, and at the same time at least seven feet to the right of the axis of such vehicle for a distance of at least twenty-five feet. If such vehicles can exceed a speed of fifteen miles per hour, then they shall have front lamps capable of furnishing light of sufficient candle power to render any substantial object clearly discernible on a level road at least two hundred feet directly ahead, and at the same time at least seven feet to the right of the axis of such vehicle for a distance of at least one hundred feet: Provided, That no front lamp capable of furnishing more than four candle power light shall be used if equipped with a reflector, unless so designed, equipped or mounted that no portion of the beam of light, when projected seventy- five feet or more ahead of the lamp, shall rise above a plane forty-two inches higher than and parallel with the level surface upon which the vehicle stands: Provided further, That no electric bulb or other lighting device of a greater capacity than thirty-two candle power shall be used, no matter how the same may be shaded, covered or obscured.

Every trailer and semi-trailer, except small two-wheel trailers of one thousand pounds capacity or less, towed closely behind a motor vehicle, and semi-trailers when towed alone, whose over-all length, in both cases, including towing vehicle and load, does not exceed thirty feet, when on the roads of this State at night, shall carry at the front of its left side one lamp capable of throwing a white light visible from both sides of such vehicle.

Every horse drawn vehicle, when on any road at night, shall display a light visible from every direction for at least two hundred feet.

Every motor vehicle, tractor, trailer or semi-trailer, when on the roads of this State at night, shall have on the rear thereof, and to the left of the axis thereof, one lamp capable of displaying a red light visible for a distance of at least one hundred feet behind such vehicle: Provided, That when a vehicle is used in conjunction with another vehicle or vehicles, only the last of such vehicles shall be required to carry such a lamp. Every motor vehicle, tractor, trailer and semi-trailer, when on any road in this State at night, shall carry a lamp illuminating with white light the registration plate of such vehicle, so that the characters thereon shall be visible for a distance of at least fifty feet. The commission shall have power to make and enforce reasonable regulations regarding the kind of lighting devices that shall be used on vehicles.

Trailers having more than two wheels, when operated on any road in this State, shall be connected to the towing vehicle, or preceding trailer, by at least one chain, in addition to the hitch bar, of sufficient strength to hold the trailer on a hill if the hitch bar becomes disconnected, or shall be provided with some other adequate device to prevent rolling backward down hill.

Any person violating any of the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars.(1921, c. 112, §86; Code 1923, c. 43, §86.)

§23. Duties of Vehicle Operator in Case of Accident.—In case of an accident the operator of a vehicle, and the owner when present, shall stop immediately, and, upon request, give his name, address and the number of his operator’s license, and render such assistance as may be reasonable or necessary. In all cases of accident resulting in injury to any person, the operator shall immediately report the details of the same to the commission. Any person violating any of the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than twenty-five nor more than one hundred dollars: Provided, That any person convicted of failing to stop and give his name and render assistance in case of a serious injury to any person shall be fined not less than one hundred nor more than one thousand dollars, or imprisoned for not less than thirty days nor more than one year.(1921, c. 112, §97; Code 1923, c. 43, §97.)

§24. Assembly of Pedestrians or Vehicles in Obstruction of Traffic.—Pedestrians and drivers of automobiles and other vehicles shall not congregate or assemble such automobiles or other vehicles upon, travel upon, or otherwise occupy or use any public road in such manner, or under such circumstances, as to obstruct the free use of the same for vehicular or other traffic. Any person violating this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than five nor more than one hundred dollars: Provided, That the provisions of this section shall not apply in case of accident.(1921, c. 112, §98; Code 1923, c. 43, §98.)

§25. No Vehicle to be Operated by Person Under the Influence of Intoxicants, Drugs or Narcotics; Revocation of Operator’s or Chauffeur’s License.—No person shall drive or operate any vehicle, motor driven or otherwise, upon any public road or street in this State, while intoxicated, or under the influence of in toxicating liquor, drugs or narcotics; nor shall the owner of such vehicle, when present, permit the same to be operated by one intoxicated, or under the influence of intoxicating liquor, drugs or narcotics.

Anyone violating any of the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than twenty-five nor more than one hundred dollars, and shall be confined in the county jail not less than sixty days nor more than six months for the first offense; and for a second or subsequent offense he shall be deemed guilty of a felony, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be confined in the penitentiary not less than one nor more than three years. And, upon his conviction as aforesaid, his operator’s or chauffeur’s license to operate motor vehicles in this State, issued under article six of this chapter, shall be canceled and revoked by the court or justice trying the case as an additional penalty, and the same shall not be reissued for a period of at least one year after the revocation thereof.

All convictions under this section, wherein the penalty includes the revocation of an operator’s or chauffeur’s license, shall be immediately reported to the state road commision of this State, in the manner provided in the next following section.(1921, c. 112, §88; Code 1923, c. 43, §88; 1929, c. 64, §41.)

§26. Transcript of Judgment for Violation of Motor Vehicle Laws to be Transmitted to Commission.—Whenever a conviction is had in any court of record, or in a justice’s court, or in the police court of any incorporated municipality, for the violation of any law governing or regulating the licensing or operation of any motor vehicle under any of the provisions of this chapter, or for the violation of any provision of a charter, or by-law, or ordinance of such in corporated municipality governing or regulating the operation of motor vehicles, the clerk of every such court, or the justice, or the clerk or recorder of such municipality, as the case may be, shall in each case forthwith transmit to the state road commission a certified transcript of the judgment on such conviction, to which transcript shall be appended a certificate showing the nature of the offense upon which conviction was had.(1923, c. 6, §95; 1925, c. 17, §95.)

§27. Department of Public Safety, Sheriffs, Constables, Justices and Other Officers to Assist in Policing Roads.—It shall be the duty of the department of public safety of the State, its officers and police, all sheriffs, deputies, constables, justices of the peace, mayors of cities and towns, and the police thereof, to render the commission, without extra compensation, all necessary assistance in the performance of its duties in properly policing the roads of this State.(1923, c. 6, §95; 1925, c. 17, §95.)

§28. Traffic Regulations Prescribed by Commission; Penalties.—The state road commission, in collaboration with the superintendent of public safety, shall adopt and promulgate regulations, not in conflict with any law, to be designated as “traffic regulations,” to control motor vehicles and tractors when upon the public highways, whether in motion or otherwise; to direct traffic on the public highways; to govern the operation of motor vehicles upon the public highways; to designate equipment of motor vehicles and to require reasonably safe mechanical condition of motor vehicles operated upon the public highways and to inspect and test such vehicles and equipment to determine their condition; and to provide for such other matters which in the opinion of the commission and superintendent tend to assure the safety of the public upon the public highways. Upon the adoption and promulgation of such regulations, the commission shall publish the same in a manner to give the general public reasonable information in regard thereto and shall have the same printed in convenient form for distribution, but such regulations shall not become effective with in less than thirty days after the same are adopted. The commission may, in the same manner, change or amend such regulations from time to time as in its discretion it may deem necessary.

Any person violating any of the regulations so adopted and promulgated shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished with a fine of not less than ten nor more than three hundred dollars, or confined in the county jail not less than ten nor more than sixty days, or with both such fine and imprisonment, in the discretion of the court.

§1. Classification of Roads.—The public roads of this State shall be divided into two classes, to be known, respectively, as “state roads” and “county-district roads.” “State roads” shall include all roads which, pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, shall have been taken over for construction or maintenance by the state road commission. “County-district roads” shall include all other public roads except streets and other public ways in incorporated towns and cities.(1921, c. 112, §4; Code 1923, c. 43, §4.)

§2. Where Road Authority Vested.—The authority and control over the construction, maintenance and regulation of all public roads within the State is hereby vested in the state road commission, and in the several county courts, respectively. The state road commission shall have and exercise the superintendence and administration of the construction, reconstruction, maintenance and repair of state roads only, except as specified in this chapter. The county courts shall have the superintendence and administration of the construction, reconstruction, repair and maintenance of county-district roads only, except as specified in this chapter.(1921, §22; Code 1923, c. 44, §22; 1925, c. 90, §22.)

§3. Jurisdiction of Highways Transferred to Counties by State.—All roads, bridges and landings which have heretofore, by legislative enactment, been transferred from the State to the several counties thereof, and their control and regulation vested in the several county courts of the counties in which such roads, bridges and landings are located, shall remain public roads, bridges and landings under the control and jurisdiction of the county court, except where the same have been, or shall hereafter be, discontinued in the manner provided by law. When any such road, or part thereof, or bridge or landing, shall become a part of any state road, then the control and jurisdiction thereof shall be in the state road commission.(1921, c. 112, §§128, 129; Code 1923, c. 43, §§128, 129.)

§4. Right of Eminent Domain.—The state road commission, as to state roads, and the county court of any county, as to county-district roads, may acquire by right of eminent domain any land or water, or any interest therein, or any rights, ways or easements thereon or thereover, for the purpose of constructing, widening, straightening, grading or altering any such road or highway, or a connecting link thereof, or to provide a detour or temporary road or bridge while the same is in process of construction, reconstruction, improvement or repair, or for any other purpose authorized by any provision of this chapter, whenever a just compensation cannot be agreed upon with the owner or claimant of such property for such taking, use or damage.

The state road commission or county court, as the case may be, may likewise acquire by right of eminent domain any property, rights or easements for the purposes mentioned in section thirteen of article four, and in section eight of article ten, respectively, of this chapter.

Proceedings for the purposes aforesaid may be instituted in the name of the commission or the county court, as the case may be, and prosecuted and determined as provided in chapter fifty-four of this Code.(1921, c. 112, §§29, 31, 32, 165; Code 1923, c. 43, §§29, 31, 32, 165; 1923, c. 6, §31.)

§5. Power to Classify Roads and Streets and Regulate Use of Same by Tractors, Traction Engines and Commercial Vehicles.—The legislature hereby confers upon, and expressly delegates to, the state road commission, as to state roads, the several county courts of this State, as to county-district roads, and the councils or other municipal authorities acting in lieu thereof of all incorporated municipalities, as to the streets and alleys of their respective municipalities (except as to streets forming a part of or connecting link in the state road system), the power and authority to classify their respective roads, streets and alleys, and to regulate and restrict the use of tractors, traction engines and commercial vehicles thereon, and may designate such class of vehicle, and the weight thereof, including load, that may travel thereon or pass over the same.

All orders, ordinances, by-laws, rules and regulations so made, adopted and promulgated shall be made a matter of record by the body adopting the same, and signed by the chairman and secretary of the state road, commission, or by the president and clerk of the county court, or the mayor and recorder of such municipality or other corresponding officers thereof, as the case may be. Such orders, ordinances, by-laws, rules and regulations, when and as promulgated and authorized, shall be printed by the commission, or county court, or municipal body by whom adopted, for free distribution within the State or the political subdivision to which they apply. A printed copy of such orders, ordinances, by-laws, rules and regulations, when made by the road commission, shall be filed with the secretary of state and a copy sent to each of the officers of the commission and to the clerk of the county court of each county affected thereby. Printed copies of such orders, ordinances, by-laws, rules or regulations, when made by a county court, shall be filed with its clerk and copies thereof delivered to each county and district officer within such county, and when made by the council or other governing body of a municipality, printed copies shall be filed with its recorder or other corresponding officer, and copies delivered to all police and other municipal officers in the municipality. Copies of any such order, ordinance, by-law, rule or regulation, made and entered by any of the bodies aforesaid shall be delivered to any person interested, free of charge, upon request. The printing and distribution of any such order, by-law, rule or regulation shall be sufficient notice to the public of the provisions, requirements and effect thereof. Every general regulation adopted by any of the bodies aforesaid shall state the date on which it takes effect, which shall not be less than thirty days after its adoption and promulgation.

When any road, street or alley is classified as aforesaid and the use of commercial vehicles thereon is regulated or restricted, or the class of vehicle and the weight, including load thereof, that may travel thereon or pass thereover has been fixed by ordinance, resolution or by-law as aforesaid, the general law regulating the class and character of such commercial vehicles, motor driven or otherwise, and the maximum weight of load that may be transported over roads, streets and alleys generally, shall be subordinate to the classification, rules and regulations made and adopted by the state road commission, the several county courts and municipalities of this State as in this section provided.

A “commercial vehicle” within the meaning of this section shall include any vehicle designed or used for the transportation of merchandise or freight.

Any person who shall use any such road, street or alley in violation of any such order, ordinance, by-law, classification, restriction or regulation shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, fined not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars, and shall moreover be liable to the state road commission, county court or the municipality, as the case may be, for any and all damages occasioned by such use.(1921, c. 112, §§12, 148, 149; Code 1923, c.43, §§12,148,149; 1923, c. 6, §12.)

§6. Use of Roads or Streets May be Restricted or Prohibited When Damages Likely to Accrue Thereto.—The legislature hereby confers upon and expressly delegates to the state road commission, as to state roads, the several county courts of this State as to county-district roads, and the councils, or other municipal authorities acting in lieu thereof, of all incorporated municipalities within the State, as to the streets and alleys in their respective municipalities (except as to streets forming a part of or connecting link in the state road system), the power and authority to prohibit or restrict traffic upon any of the roads, streets or alleys within their respective jurisdictions, by motor driven or animal drawn vehicles, when such traffic is likely, by reason of weather conditions, or the season of the year, to damage such road, street or alley, and may make and adopt such reasonable orders, ordinances, by-laws, rules and regulations, as may, in their judgment, be necessary to prevent such damage, and to insure the proper use of such roads, streets and alleys during such weather conditions or season of the year.

All orders, ordinances, by-laws, rules and regulations so made, adopted and promulgated shall be made a matter of record by the body adopting the same, and signed by the chairman and secretary of the state road commission, or by the pres dent and clerk of the county court, or the mayor and recorder of such municipality or other corresponding officers thereof, as the case may be. Such orders, ordinances, by-laws, rules and regulations, when and as promulgated and authorized, shall be printed by the commission, or county court, or municipal body by whom adopted, for free distribution within the State or the political subdivision to which they apply. A printed copy of such orders, ordinances, by-laws, rules and regulations, when made by the road commission, shall be filed with the secretary of state and a copy sent to each of the officers of the commission and to the clerk of the county court of each county affected thereby. Printed copies of such orders, ordinances, by-laws, rules or regulations, when made by a county court, shall be filed with its clerk and copies thereof delivered to each county and district officer within such county, and when made by the council or other governing body of a municipality, printed copies shall be filed with its recorder or other corresponding officer, and copies delivered to all police and other municipal officers in the municipality. Copies of any such order, ordinance, by-law, rule or regulation, made and entered by any of the bodies aforesaid shall be delivered to any person interested, free of charge, upon request. The printing and distribution of any such order, by-law, rule or regulation shall be sufficient notice to the public of the provisions, requirements and effect thereof. Every general regulation adopted by any of the bodies aforesaid shall state the date on which it takes effect, which shall not be less than thirty days after its adoption and promulgation.

The provisions and requirements of any order, ordinance, by-law, rule or regulation, made, adopted, or promulgated, by virtue of the provisions of this section, may be enforced by any officer or person in charge of the maintenance of any road, street or alley included therein, after notice, by signs plainly stating the prohibited or restricted use of such road, street or alley and the period of time in which such prohibition or restriction applies, which shall have been placed at the beginning and end of each section of road, street or alley over which traffic is so prohibited or restricted.

§7. Restricted Authority of Counties and Cities to Regulate Traffic and the Use of Vehicles.—The provisions of this chapter shall apply in general throughout the State, and, except as a provided in the two preceding sections of this article, no political subdivision thereof shall make or enforce any ordinance, order, rule or regulation imposing fines and penalties in conflict with those prescribed in this chapter or increasing or decreasing the speed, size and weight of vehicles as in this chapter defined: Provided, however, That any incorporated city or town in this State shall have power to enact and enforce ordinances and regulations limiting the speed, size and weight of vehicles on such streets, alleys and other public thoroughfares within its limits, as are not designated by the state road commission as connecting parts of the state road system; and to regulate or forbid the parking of vehicles upon any designated streets, alleys and other public thoroughfares within its limits, and to regulate traffic at street intersections and in congested districts.(1921, c. 112, §§101, 148; Code 1923, c. 43, §§101, 148.)

§8. Damage to Roads by Heavy Loading or Unusual Traffic; Assessment of Cost of Repair and Maintenance.—Whenever any person, firm or corporation has damaged or is likely to damage, by means of heavy loading or unusual traffic, any county-district or state road to such an extent that the cost of repairs or maintenance will be more than the average cost of repairs or maintenance of other roads of like type and construction, the county court or the road commission, as the case may be, shall have power to regulate the loading of such vehicles and to assess the excessive cost of repairs and maintenance of such roads against the person, firm or corporation causing such damage and require the payment thereof before further use of such road by such a person, firm or corporation is permitted.(1921, c. 112, §13; Code 1923, c. 43, §13.)

§9. Prohibition of and Liability for Destructive Use of Highway.—Nothing in the general rules contained in this chapter regulating traffic shall be so construed as to authorize the use of any road, street or alley by any person, firm or corporation in such manner or for such purpose as would be destructive thereof. Any person making use of any road, street or alley in this State in such a manner or to such an extent as to be destructive thereof, or as is mentioned in the preceding section, shall be liable to the state road commission, the county court or the municipality, as the case may be, for damages by reason thereof, and the same may be recovered by appropriate action in any court having jurisdiction thereof.(1921, c. 112, §14; Code 1923, c. 43, §14.)

§10. Notice of Maximum Weight on Bridge; Liability for Injury From Excessive Weight.—It shall be the duty of the commission, the county court of each county, and the incorporated towns and cities of this State, to post and keep posted on or at each end of all bridges over which they have jurisdiction, respectively, notices clearly legible to the traveler upon the road, indicating the maximum safe load or weight that may pass over such bridge at any one time: Provided, That such notice shall not be required upon any small stone, brick, concrete, arch or slab bridge whose capacity clearly exceeds the weight that may lawfully pass over the adjoining road.

No city, town or county court shall be liable for any damage resulting to any person or property by reason of the breaking of any bridge by transportation at any one time on or over the same of any vehicle or animals weighing an amount in excess of that indicated by such notices as the maximum safe load or weight, but any owner or other person engaged in transporting, directing, driving or conducting the same in excess of such weight over such bridge shall be liable for all damages resulting therefrom.(1921, c. 112, §57; Code 1923, c. 43, §57.)

§11. Sidewalks Along Public Roads; Penalty for Injuring.—Whenever, in the judgment of the state road commission or the county court of any county, the safety or convenience of the traveling public demands it, the state road commission, as to state roads and bridges, and the county court, as to county-district roads and bridges, may construct and maintain sidewalks along the side or sides thereof; or any person, with the permission of the state road commission, as to state roads, or of the county court, as to county-district roads, may build, at his own expense, a sidewalk composed of plank, gravel, concrete or other suitable material, along the side of any public road in this State, and the public shall have the free use thereof. Such sidewalk shall not in any way interfere with the public travel on any such road, and shall be removed if ordered by the commission, or by the county court, as the case may be. Any person who shall in any manner injure or destroy any sidewalk already constructed, or that may hereafter be constructed under the provisions of this section, and shall fail to repair the same, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than five nor more than fifty dollars.(1921, c. 112, §§146, 147; Code 1923, c. 43, §§146, 147; 1923, c. 6, §146.)

§12. Protection of Roadbed; Crossings by Railroads, Pipe or Other Lines.—No railroad or electric or other railway shall be constructed upon the roadbed of any state or county-district road, except to cross the same, nor shall any person, firm or corporation enter upon or construct any works in or upon such road, or lay or maintain thereon or thereunder any drainage, sewer or water pipes, gas pipes, electric conduits or other pipes, nor shall any telephone, telegraph or electric line or power pole, or any other structure whatsoever, be erected upon, in or over any portion of a state or county-district road, except under such restrictions, conditions and regulations as may be prescribed by the state road commission, as to state roads, and the county court, as to county-district roads. Whenever any railroad or electric or other railway, heretofore or hereafter constructed, shall cross any public road, it shall be required to keep its own roadbed, and the bed of the road or highway at such crossing, in proper repair, or else to construct and maintain an overhead or undergrade crossing, subject to the approval of the state road commission, as to state roads, and the county court, as to county-district roads; and the tracks of such railroad or railway at grade crossings shall be so constructed as to give a safe and easy approach to and across the same.(1921, c. 112, §65; Code 1923, c. 43, §65.)

§13. When Railroads Are Required to Mak State or County-District Roads Safe for Travel; Procedure.—The circuit court of the county in which is located any state or county-district road, or any portion thereof, which has been taken for electric or other railway purposes, unless such state or county-district road, or portion thereof, is in an incorporated city, town or village which has the control of all its roads, streets and alleys, or has been constructed since the construction of such railway, may, upon petition of the state road commission, county court, or any party interested, served upon any such railway company as other civil process might be served, appoint a committee of three persons to inquire whether such state or county-district road, or portion thereof, is unsafe or inconvenient for travel by reason of such railway, or whether an alteration of such state or county-district road, or the construction of a new state or county-district road, is thereby rendered necessary for public safety and convenience. Any such committtee shall view the ground where such danger is complained of, and shall also give fifteen days ’ written notice to the state road commission, or county court, and the party making the complaint, if the complaint is made by a party other than the commission or county court, and also to the parties complained of, or their agents in the county, setting forth the time when, and the place where, the parties interested may be heard, and after the hearing shall report thereon to such court, which shall make any proper order in the premises. If the court shall order any alteration in, or construction of, such state or county-district road, and if such electric or other railway company fail or refuse to comply with such order, the state road commission, or county court, as the case may be, shall alter or construct such state or county-district road in accordance with the order of the court, and may recover the expense thereof from such electric or other railway company, in any court having jurisdiction thereof.

Where any public road has been taken over or adopted by the state road commission as a part of its system of roads, the location thereof, as to time, shall be determined and reckoned from the date of the location of the original road.(1921, c. 112, §178; Code 1923, c. 43, §178.)

§14. Elimination of Grade Crossings; Jurisdiction.—The state road commission, as to state roads, the several county courts, as to county-district roads, and the councils or other governing bodies of the municipal corporations of the State, as to the streets and alleys of their respective municipalities, shall have the jurisdiction and the power, whenever in the judgment of any of them it is necessary for the safety of the traveling public so to do, to order any railroad company, either steam or electric, owning or operating a railroad in this State, to separate the grades or relocate a road where any public road or any public street or alley in any municipality of the State crosses at grade the railroad tracks of such railroad company, and shall have the power to determine the location of the crossing or road to be substituted, the grade thereof, and whether it shall pass over or under the railroad track or tracks, and also the power to relocate any road or street so that grade crossings may be eliminated.(1921, c. 112, §65; Code 1923, c. 43, §65; 1925, c. 15, §1.)

§15. Same; Order; Contents.—Whenever, in the judgment of the state road commission, the several county courts, or the several councils or other governing bodies of the municipal corporations of this State, it is necessary for the safety of the traveling public that the grades of a railroad and any public road or public street or alley in any municipality should be separated or a road relocated for that purpose, the state road commission, the county court, or the municipal corporation, as the case may be, shall make a proper order to that effect and furnish a copy thereof by registered mail to the president or attorney of record of the railroad affected by such order. Such order shall specify the location of the crossing or road to be substituted, the grade thereof and whether it shall pass over or under the railroad tracks of the railroad company affected by such order, the width of the crossing ordered to be constructed, and the angle at which the crossing so constructed shall meet and converge into the roadbed on either side of the railway tracks.(1921, c. 112, §65; Code 1923, c. 43, §65; 1925, c. 15, §2.)

§16. Protest Against Order; Review by State Road Commission; Appeal to Supreme Court.—Any railroad company dissatisfied with the order of the state road commission, county court or municipal corporation, as the case may be, directing the separation or elimination of grades at any point, may, within thirty days after the receipt by the president or attorney of record of such railroad company of a copy of the order directing the separation or elimination of such grades, file with the state road commission a protest giving the reasons of said railroad why such order should not be enforced. On the filing of such protest, the state road commission shall set down for hearing the matter in issue. On the hearing of the protest the state road commission shall hear all evidence which may be offered by any party upon the reasonableness of the separation or elimination of the grades, and if the commission, from the evidence, shall find that the construction of the work is necessary, it shall enter an order to that effect, and direct that the work shall be proceeded with in accordance with this article. Any party affected by such order may appeal from the findings of the road commission to the supreme court of appeals of West Virginia in the same manner as appeals are now taken from the public service commission of West Virginia; but in all such appeals the record shall be filed in the office of the clerk of the supreme court of appeals not later than sixty days after the entry of the final order by the road commission. All cases appealed under this section to the supreme court of appeals shall be immediately docketed, and the appellant shall file its brief within fifteen days after such appeal is docketed, and the appellee shall file its brief within fifteen days thereafter. Thereupon the case shall be advanced and submitted.(1921, c. 112, §65; Code 1923, c. 43, §65; 1925, c. 15, §3.)

§17. Plans for Elimination of Grade Crossings.—Within sixty days after the entry of any order by the state road commission, the county court or municipal corporation, as the case may be, directing a separation or elimination of grades at any point, as herein provided, unless an appeal be taken from such order, and in case of such appeal, within ninety days after the final disposition thereof, the railroad company affected by such order shall, in the case of a separation of grades, prepare and present to the state road commission, the county court or municipal corporation, as the case may be, for its approval, plans, specifications and estimates of cost for the elimination of such crossing, including plans, specifications and estimates of cost of the necessary approaches thereto.(1921, c. 112, §65; Code 1923, c. 43, §65; 1925, c. 15, §4.)

§18. Bids.—Upon the approval of such plans and specifications by the state road commission, the county court or the municipal corporation, as the case may be, the railroad company affected shall secure sealed bids for the construction of such work, and within thirty days after the approval of such plans shall receive and open such bids, after having notified the road commission five days in advance of the day on which such bids shall be opened. The work shall be let to the lowest responsible bidder, subject to the provisions hereinafter contained. The successful bidder shall be required to prosecute the work to completion with reasonable diligence.(1921, c. 112, §65; Code 1923, c. 43, §65; 1925, c. 15, §5.)

§19. Cost of Plans and Work; How Borne.—The cost of preparing the plans, specifications and estimates of cost, of securing bids, and of the work of separating the grades, shall be borne equally by the railroad company and the state road commission, the county or the municipality, as the ease may be.(1921, c. 112, §65; Code 1923, c. 43, §65; 1925, c. 15, §6.)

§20. Rejection of Bids; Work Done by Commission, County Court, Municipality or Railroad Company.—The state road commission, the county court or the municipal corporation, as the case may be, shall have the authority to order the rejection of any or all bids submitted for the construction of any work ordered to be done under the provisions of this article, and the railroad company shall secure new bids. The state road commission, the county court, the municipal corporation or the railroad company affected shall have the power to reject any and all bids, and elect to do the work itself, in which event there shall not be charged to the railroad company or to the state road commission, county or municipality, as the case may be, any sum in excess of what it would have been required to pay had the contract been let to the lowest responsible bidder.(1921, c. 112, §65; Code 1923, c. 43, §65; 1925, c. 15, §7.)

§21. Payment Upon Estimates; Right of Commission, County Court or Municipality to Furnish Engineer.—In all cases the state road commission, county or municipality shall, as the work progresses, pay to the railroad company affected its share of the cost of such work as herein provided, which payment shall be made upon estimates furnished by the chief engineer of such railroad company. The state road commission, county or municipality shall have the right to furnish an engineer, at its expense, who shall act in cooperation with the engineering department of the railroad company affected in the supervision of such work.(1921, c. 112, §65; Code 1923, c. 43, §65; 1925, c. 15, §8.)

§22. Maintenance by Railroad Company.—All that part of the work constructed under this article, lying within the right of way of the railroad company, after the construction of the same, shall be maintained at the expense of the railroad company, except that the railroad company shall not be required to keep up the surface of the roadbed of such roadway, street or alley.(1921, c. 112, §65; Code 1923, c. 43, §65; 1925, c. 15, §9.)

§23. Authority to Change or Divert Streams.—The state road commission and the several county courts of the State, incidental to the construction and maintenance of state and county-district roads, shall have the power and authority to change or divert any stream of water which is not navigable, in order to avoid or facilitate the crossing thereof, or to economize in the construction or maintenance of any such road, or to protect the same from damage; and to effect a change or diversion of any such stream, they may exercise the right of eminent domain, in case such commission or county court cannot agree on a just compensation with the riparian or property owner affected by such change or diversion.(1921, c. 112, §65; Code 1923, c. 43, §65.)

§24. Regulations Concerning Dams; Penalties.—The owner or occupant of every dam shall, as far as the road passes over the same, keep such dam in good order at least fourteen feet wide at the top, and also keep in good order a bridge of like width over the pierhead, flood gates or any waste cut through or around the dam, and shall erect and keep in good order a strong railing on both sides of such bridge or dam. If he fails to comply with this section he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined, for every twenty-four hours failure, two dollars, but the fine shall not in any one prosecution exceed fifty dollars; and where a mill dam is carried away or destroyed, the owner or occupant thereof shall not henceforth be subject to such fine until one month after the mill shall have been put in operation. Every owner of a dam which, by the backing of water or otherwise as a result of any race or ditch connected therewith, materially obstructs any public road, shall, whenever it may be necessary for the safe and convenient crossing of the same or of the pond created thereby, build and keep in repair over and across such dam, pond, race or ditch, a bridge of like kind and description as hereinbefore specified, and for the failure so to do every such owner or occupant shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined as hereinbefore provided.(1921, c. 112, §170; Code 1923, c. 43, §170.)

§25. Bond Issues by Political Subdivisions.—Any county, district, group of districts or municipal corporation may, in the manner provided by law, vote bonds or provide funds by levy or otherwise for the improvement and paving of any roads constituting state routes lying within their respective boundaries and not theretofore taken over by the state road commission in the manner provided by this chapter, but such funds shall be expended under the charge and superintendence of the state road commission. Any such roads or portions thereof so improved with funds provided for that purpose by any county or political subdivision thereof shall, without unnecessary delay, be taken over by the state road commission as a state road, and the commission shall thereafter maintain the same: Provided, That where an agreement or contract exists between a county court or town having a population of less than twenty-five hundred persons and any contractor, firm or corporation for the construction of any road so taken over by the state road commission as a part of the state road system, the same shall be performed and completed according to the terms of such contract: Provided further, That where, under a contract or franchise existing between any street railway company, or other corporation or firm, and any county court or town having a population of less than twenty-five hundred persons, such street railway company or other corporation or firm is required to maintain any road which has subsequently been taken over by the State as a part of the state road system, such contract shall remain in force, and the state road commission shall succeed to and take over to itself all the rights of such county court or town existing under such contract or franchise. The street railway company, or other corporation or firm, shall be bound to carry out all of the requirements, and comply with all the terms and conditions, of such contract with the state road commission, the same as though such contract had been originally made between the state road commission and such street railway company or other corporation or firm.(1921, c. 112, §63; Code 1923, c. 43, §63.)

§26. Paving Contracts.—Before the state road commission or any political subdivision shall let any contract for the paving of any road or highway, it shall determine upon and approve plans and specifications for the construction of brick, concrete, asphalt, bituminous or other standard types of paving suitable for the project contemplated, and shall include in the advertisement and proposals for such work each type of paving so approved.(1921, c. 112, §26; Code 1923, c. 43, §26.)

§27. Unlawful Combinations; Penalties.—No contract authorized by this chapter shall be let to any person, association of persons, firm, company or corporation, who, or which, is or are connected, directly or indirectly, with any combination in the form of an unlawful trust in restraint of trade, or who, or which, enters, or has heretofore entered, or shall hereafter enter, into any understanding, directly or indirectly, to limit, in any manner, competition in bidding upon the construction of any public road or bridge, or for furnishing any materials used thereon and entering therein. Any such combination or unlawful trust is hereby forbidden. Any person, association of persons, firm or corporation entering into, or being a part of, any such combination or unlawful trust shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not exceeding one thousand dollars; and every person, county or state officer, or any employee of any county of the State, or of the state road commission, or other person connected therewith, directly or indirectly, and any officer or member of any corporation, who shall be engaged in any way in promoting any such combination or unlawful trust, or in aiding or abetting the same, or knowingly committing any acts in pursuance thereof, in addition to being subject to the fine aforesaid, may, in the discretion of the court, be imprisoned not exceeding six months.(1921, c. 112, §150; Code 1923, c. 43, §150.)

§28. Certificate by Seller of Purity of Road Materials or Supplies; Penalty.—Any person, firm or corporation offering for sale or selling any paints, metal or metal culverts, fence or fencing, or any other materials or supplies for use upon or in the construction of any road or bridge or part thereof to the State, or to any county, city, or town within the same, shall, if requested, furnish therewith a certificate under oath, showing its purity, chemical constituents and the percentage of impurities contained therein. Any person, firm or corporation making or furnishing a false certificate shall be guilty of perjury, and, upon conviction, shall be fined not less than twenty-five dollars nor more than two hundred dollars, and may be imprisoned not less than one month nor more than twelve months, and any contract made by reason of any false statement or representation may be canceled by order of the court..(1921, c. 112, §151; Code 1923, c. 43, §151.)

§29. Complaints of Road Commission and County Courts to Public Service Commission.—In the matter of intrastate freight rates, car service and movement of road making material and machinery to be used in the construction of roads, the state road commission and the county courts of the State shall present any grievance they may have against the public carriers of the State to the public service commission, which shall have precedence over all other business before said public service commission.(1923, c. 6, §21a.)

§30. Commission to Devise and County Courts to Install a Uniform System of Accounting.—It shall be the duty of the state road commission to devise a uniform system of accounting for road moneys expended by the several county courts of this State, and to see that the same is properly installed and kept; and it shall likewise be the duty of the several county courts to adopt promptly such system of accounting when presented to them, respectively, for that purpose by the commission.(1921, c. 112, §155; Code 1923, c. 43, §155.)

§31. Conflict of Authority.—Whenever in any of the provisions of this chapter the same powers and duties have been conferred on, or prescribed for, two or more officials or agencies, or whenever any question as to the conflict of authority shall arise, the power and authority of the state road commission shall prevail over that of the county court, the county court over the county engineer or supervisor, and the county engineer or supervisor over any other official or employee engaged in work on the county-district roads.(1921, c. 112, §118; Code 1923, c. 43, §118.)

§32. Duties of Officers on Expiration of Term.—Every state or county road official who is now in office or who may hereafter be in office by virtue of this chapter shall, at the expiration of his term of office, pay over to his successor all the money in his hands by virtue of his office, taking duplicate receipts therefor, one of which shall be filed with the state road commission or the clerk of the county court, as the case may be.(1921, c. 112, §182; Code 1923, c. 43, §182.)

§33. Action for Injury From Defective Highway or Street; Levy to Pay Judgment; Mandamus.—Any person who sustains an injury to his person or property by reason of any county-district road or bridge, or any street, sidewalk or alley in any incorporated city, town or village, being out of repair, may recover all damages sustained by him by reason of such injury in an action against the county court, city, town or village in which such road, bridge, street, sidewalk or alley may be, except that such city, town or village, shall not be subject to such action unless it is required by its charter to keep the road, bridge, street, sidewalk or alley therein at the place where such injury is sustained, in repair. If it is not so required, the action and remedy shall be against the county court. When judgment is obtained against the county court, such court shall, at the time of laying the next annual levy, levy upon the taxable property of the district in which such injury is sustained a sufficient sum to pay such judgment with interest and costs, and the cost of collecting the same, and when it is obtained against the city, town or village, the proper corporate authorities thereof shall lay such levy, at the time of laying the next annual levy, on the property subject to taxation in such city, town or village. And in case of a failure by either so to do, or to pay the judgment as required by law, the circuit court of the county shall compel the laying of such levy, or the payment of such judgment, or both, by mandamus.(1921, c. 112, §167; Code 1923, c. 43, §167.)

§34. Injury From Defective Road or Bridge Belonging to Company or Person.—Any person who may be injured as aforesaid by reason of a turnpike, road or bridge belonging to any company or person, or to any county in its corporate of capacity, being out of repair, may recover all damages sustained by him by reason of such injury, in the manner prescribed in the preceding section, against such company, person or county, or against the lessee for the time being of any such road or bridge. Any judgment against a city, town, village or county under this R section may be enforced by the circuit court by writ of mandamus. The enactment of this section shall not affect any action or suit now pending against any such company as is mentioned herein, but the same may be prosecuted and judgment enforced with like effect as if this section had not been enacted.(1921, c. 112, §168; Code 1923, c. 43, §168.)

§1. Control and Supervision of County-District Roads.—The several county courts of the State, under regulations provided in this chapter, shall have the superintendence and administration of the construction, reconstruction, repair and maintenance of the county-district roads in their respective counties, except as such superintendence and administration is limited or otherwise controlled by the provisions of this chapter.(1921, c. 112, §11; Code 1923, c. 43, §11.)

§2. Authority Over Class A Roads Until Taken Over by State Road Commission.—The county courts of the several counties in the State shall continue in charge of the construction, improvement and maintenance of all roads heretofore known as Class A roads, located in their respective counties, and shall maintain them as county-district roads until such time as the state road commission shall, by order entered of record, take them over, either for construction or maintenance, after which they shall be and a remain under the exclusive authority and jurisdiction of the state road commission.(1921, c. 112, §64; Code 1923, c. 43, §64.)

§3. Records.—It shall be the duty of each of the county courts of this State to procure a record book to be kept in the office of their respective county clerks, to be known as the “Road Record,” in which shall hereafter be recorded all orders and papers or documents pertaining to road matters and required by this chapter to be recorded in their respective counties, and such books shall be used for that purpose only.

The said county courts shall also provide their respective clerks with a record book to be known and designated as the “Financial Road Record,” in form as prescribed by the state road commission, in which shall be kept all records of the county road funds, and of the road funds of the several districts thereof. Such record shall show the road upon which each item was spent, whether for construction or reconstruction, and the kind thereof, or for maintenance, and the character of the road maintained, and shall show whether the construction and maintenance was upon bridges or the roadbed proper.(1921, c. 112, §155; Code 1923, c. 43, §155.)

§4. Duty to Repair Highways; Rights, Powers and Duties as to Roads Acquired From State or Others.—So far as any road, bridge or public landing belongs to or is under the care or control of a county, it shall be the duty of the county court to cause the same to be kept in good repair and condition. And when any county acquires the interest of the State, or any other stockholder, in any road, bridge or public landing, under any of the provisions of this chapter, the county court of such county shall have all powers, rights and privileges, perform all the duties, and be subject to the same liabilities, that were vested in, held, exercised, or required to be performed by, or imposed upon, the State or other former stockholders therein.(1921, c. 112, §166; Code 1923, c. 43, §166.)

§5. Supervision of Employees.—The county court shall see that all its appointees and employees faithfully perform their respective duties, obey its orders and expend all moneys and perform labor as ordered and directed by the court and as required by this chapter.(1921, c. 112, §191; Code 1923, c. 43, §191.)

§6. Road Signs; Designation and Name of Roads; Records Thereof.—It shall be the duty of the several county courts to erect, and thereafter maintain, a system of signs designating directions and distances to given points, and mark and designate sharp turns, curves, steep descents, crossings, school zones and other points deemed dangerous by it, on all county-district roads in their respective counties, in accordance with the sign system devised by the state road commission, as provided in section eighteen, article four of this chapter. It shall see that the record provided for in said section is entered by its clerk.

The several county courts shall likewise designate each of the county-district roads in the several districts of their respective counties by a separate number or name, and, as far as practicable, give the same number or name to such road in each district into or through which it extends. In making such designation, the order of the court shall show the date of the establishment of the road and the order book and page showing such establishment and each section or portion thereof. If there be no such record, and such road has been open to travel to the public and money or labor has been expended thereon for a period of ten years or more, then such record shall state that fact, and describe the road with such particularity as to show clearly its location.(1921, c. 112, §66; Code 1923, c. 43, §66.)

§7. Gates Across Roads.—The county court of a county may, upon petition, permit gates be erected across any county-district road therein, or cause any gate erected across a county-district road to be removed, but notice of every petition for that purpose shall first be posted the front door of the court house, and at three public places in the vicinity of the gate proposed to be erected or removed, at least three weeks before the meeting at which such order is made.(1921, c. 112, §169; Code 1923, c. 43, §169.)

§8. Powers of County Court in Obtaining Materials for Roads.—For the purpose of training materials to be used in the construct and maintenance of county-district roads, county court is hereby authorized and empowered, on behalf of the county, to establish stone quarries, stone crushing plants, and erect such sheds and other buildings in connection therewith as shall be actually necessary in the prosecution of its work, and to acquire lands and appurtenances thereto. The county court shall also have the power to rent, purchase, condemn, or acquire by any other lawful means, stone quarries, gravel or other material with rights of way thereto; remove such materials from such lands to other places; to prepare such materials for use; to purchase such equipment as shall be actually necessary therefor; to make such contracts and employ such labor as may be necessary to establish a conduct such plants; to acquire, prepare a transport such materials for use and to do other things needful or necessary in connection therewith; and all costs and expenses incidental the thereto shall be paid out of the county road fund.(1925, c. 17, §103a.)

§1. Annual Estimate for Road Purposes.—It shall be the duty of the county road engineer or its or supervisor at the end of each fiscal year to ascertain and report in writing to the county court of the county the estimated amount of money necessary to open, construct and keep in repair all county-district roads in each of the magisterial districts of the county, payable during the next ensuing fiscal year, and it shall be the duty of the court to carefully examine such court report, and estimates therein contained, and to make such alterations and corrections therein as the court may think proper. Such report shall show the amounts estimated for the construction, reconstruction and maintenance of the county-district roads, and the same shall be used by the three court as the basis of laying all levies provided for in this article.(1921, c. 112, §118; Code 1923, c. 43, §118.)

§2. County Road Levy and County Road Fund.—In addition to the general county or district levy, the county court may lay a county road levy not to exceed twenty-five cents on each one hundred dollars’ assessed valuation of all have taxable property in the county, the proceeds of which shall be known as the “County Road Fund’’ and shall be expended for the construction, improvement and maintenance of the county-district roads in such county, for the construction and maintenance of the bridges thereon, and for the purposes mentioned in section eight, article ten of this chapter.(1921, c. 112, §103; Code 1923, c. 43, §103.)

§3. District Road Fund; Emergency Levy; General Limitations on Levies.—In addition to the general county and district levy, the county court shall lay a district levy not to exceed fifteen cents on each one hundred dollars’ assessed valuation of all taxable property in each of the several districts of such county, the proceeds of which shall be known as the district road fund of such district, and shall be expended only for the construction, reconstruction, improvement and maintenance of the county-district roads and parts thereof in said district, and for the construction, reconstruction and maintenance of bridges thereon after such roads are properly located. In case of calamity, such as floods and the like, which shall result in unusual damage, or the washing away of bridges or roads, or other urgent necessity, the county court of any county, with the written approval of the state tax commissioner, may lay a special emergency district levy in excess of the district road levy hereinbefore provided, not to exceed ten cents on each one hundred dollars’ assessed valuation of the taxable property of the district, for such year or years as may be named in such approval, but in no case shall the combined district road levy and emergency district levy exceed twenty-five cents on each one hundred dollars ’ assessed valuation of the taxable property of said district.(1921, c. 112, §110 ; Code 1923, c. 43, §110.)

§4. Capitation Tax.—The county court of each county shall levy for road purposes a capitation tax of one dollar on each male inhabitant of the county who has attained the age of twenty-one years and who is not a pauper or of unsound mind. Such capitation tax shall be collected by the assessor and the proceeds thereof credited to the county road fund.(1921, c. 112, §111; Code 1923, c. 43, §111.)

§5. Payment of County Road Claims.—All claims of any contractor or others, which may, under the provisions of this chapter, be due to such contractor or other persons for labor done or materials furnished in and about the construction, reconstruction or improvement of county district roads, shall, when certified by the county road engineer, be presented to the county court at the proper session thereof, and if found correct, shall, upon the order or warrant of such a court, signed by the president and clerk thereof, be paid by the sheriff. It shall be the duty such road engineer to furnish the county court at such times as it may direct a certified statement showing the amount of each claim due such contractor. In contracts, for the construction of new roads, the payment shall be conditioned as set out in the original contract therefor, with the right in the court to reserve not more than twenty per cent of payments on all estimates until the work is completed. No county road engineer shall certify the claim of any such contractor until upon examination he shall find that the provisions of the contract have been strictly complied with.(1921, c. 112, §152; Code 1923, c. 43, §152.)

§6. Payment for Road Work During Vacation of County Court.—The county court, for the purpose of meeting and taking care of the necessary charges and expenses which may be incurred by the county road engineer or other representative of the county court having any road work in charge during the vacation of the court, in performing the duties required of him under the provisions of this chapter, may, at any regular term of the court, set apart and appropriate out of the road fund of the county or any magisterial district thereof, and not otherwise appropriated, funds sufficient to pay such expenses. Such appropriation shall be based on a written itemized estimate to be certified and furnished to the county court by such engineer or other representative of the court having the work in charge.

After the appropriation shall have been made as aforesaid the engineer, or other representative having such work in charge, shall certify to the clerk of the county court the amount each person is entitled to receive by virtue of any work or labor performed or materials furnished, and sign the same in his official capacity; whereupon, the clerk shall have authority to issue an order payable out of the proper fund to the person entitled thereto, which order shall be paid as other orders issued by the clerk, payable out of the several road funds of the county or district.

It shall be the duty of the county court to furnish to the county road engineer, or other representative having said work in charge, proper blank forms upon which to certify to the clerk of the court the amounts which the several persons performing labor or furnishing material by virtue of this section are entitled to receive.

The clerk shall keep a record of all claims so issued, showing the amount thereof, to whom issued, upon the authority of what road official and for what purpose, and make report thereof to the court at each of its regular sessions.

The clerk shall not issue orders or drafts in excess of the amount of money appropriated by the court for the particular work mentioned in the estimates aforesaid.(1921, c. 112, §154; Code 1923, c. 43, §154.)

§7. Report of Engineer.—It shall be the duty of the road engineer, or other representative of the court having such work in charge, at each successive regular session of the court, to make a report in writing, showing what orders he has given authorizing the clerk to issue drafts or orders as aforesaid, under the provisions of this article, to whom payable and for what services. The report of the county clerk and that of the road engineer, or other representative of the county court, shall be audited by such court, filed and recorded in its road record book. The county road engineer, or other representative of the court having such work in charge, shall not expend money or issue orders to the clerk in excess of the amount appropriated by the court for the purpose or purposes aforesaid. If any county road engineer, or other representative of the county court, or the clerk of such court, shall issue, or cause to be issued, any order or orders herein authorized, in excess of such appropriation, or improperly issue any such orders, or cause the same to be done, which are paid in the manner provided by law, such county road engineer, or other representative, or the clerk of such court, shall be liable for the same on his or their official bonds. Nothing herein contained shall be construed as authorizing the payment to any road contractor or contractors of any sum which may be due to such contractor or contractors, under the terms or provisions of his contract, or under the provisions of this chapter, until the estimate provided by such contract and by law has been made and certified as in such contract or the law is provided, and approved by the county court.(1921, c. 112, §154; Code 1923, c. 43, §154.)

§8. Engineer Not to Discount Claims; Penalty.—It shall be unlawful for the county road engineer, or other representative of the county court having such work in charge, directly or indirectly to discount any of the claims or orders authorized under the two preceding sections. Any one violating this or either of the two preceding sections shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than ten nor more than twenty-five dollars.(1921, c. 112, §154; Code 1923, c. 43, §154.)

§9. Delinquent Road Taxes.—Delinquent lists of taxes uncollected under the provisions of this article shall be returned and disposed of as school and other district levies are returned and disposed of according to law. Such delinquent taxes shall be collected at the same time, by the same officer, and in the same manner as state and county taxes are collected, pursuant to chapter eleven of this Code.(1921, c. 112, §172; Code 1923, c. 43, §172.)

§1. Establishment or Alteration of Road, Bridge or Landing.—When any person desires the establishment or alteration of a county-district road, bridge or landing in any county, he shall petition the county court of the county in which the road, bridge or landing is situated, setting forth in his petition specifically the nature and location of the proposed work, and the county court shall thereupon (and they may do so without such petition in any case in which they deem the interests of the people of the county require it) appoint two or more viewers, or a committee of their own body, who, together with the county road engineer, shall view the ground and report in writing the advantages and disadvantages which, in their opinion, will result as well to individuals as to the public from the proposed work, and the grades and bearings of the proposed roads, and the facts and circumstances that may be useful to enable the county court to determine whether such work ought to be undertaken by the county, or, if the petition be for the establishment or alteration of a county-district road leading from another public road or roads, whether such road should be established, stating specifically whether it would be necessary to take any burying ground, garden, yard, orchard, or any part thereof, or to injure or destroy any buildings, and the probable cost of the work, the names of the landowners whose property would have to be taken or injured, which of them would require compensation, and the probable amount to which each of them would be entitled. They shall make careful examination of other routes or locations than that proposed or petitioned for, keeping in view at all times the possible future development of the country and the accommodation of the general traveling public, and shall report in favor of the one they prefer, with the reasons for their preference. A map giving the grades and bearings of the routes and locations shall be returned with their report. The report may be recommitted by the court with or without special instructions, or upon petition, or upon their own motion, the court may appoint a special committee of viewers, who shall make examination and report according to the provisions of this section. In any ease where it shall appear to the county court that the interests of the general public may be promoted thereby, they shall personally examine the proposed work, or shall appoint a committee of their own body to make examination as herein provided.

If the court at any time have sufficient evidence before it to enable it to ascertain what would be a just compensation to the proprietors and tenants, and if such proprietors and tenants are willing to accept what the court deems just, the court, upon such acceptance being reduced to writing and signed by the proprietors and tenants, may determine to undertake the work.(1921, c. 112, §137; Code 1923, c. 43, §137.)

§2. Hearing and Proceedings on Application Therefor; Determination of Compensation to Landowners.—Upon hearing the parties interested in an application for a county-district road, the county court shall decide for or against undertaking the proposed work on behalf of the county. If it decides in favor of the same, and the compensation for damages, if any, to be paid to any proprietor or tenant be not fixed by agreement, it shall order proceedings to be instituted and presented in its corporate name in the circuit court of the county, pursuant to chapter fifty-four of this Code, to ascertain what will be a just compensation, if any, to each proprietor or tenant for the land proposed to be taken. But when such compensation, if any, shall be so ascertained, it shall be at the option of the county court to pay the same or to abandon the proposed undertaking. If it decides to pay the same, it shall, if necessary, lay a sufficient levy for that purpose. In any case where the petition is for the establishment or alteration of a county-district road leading from the main public road or roads, the. court may refuse to undertake the proposed work, unless the petitioner, or some one for him, shall deposit with the county court a sufficient sum to pay all damages and costs sustained by reason of the establishment or alteration of such road. In such case, if it seems proper so to do, the court may establish any such road, upon condition that the petitioner shall pay all costs and damages as aforesaid, and make and keep in repair such road, and erect and maintain in good repair one or more gates across such road where the road passes through a fence or fences, as provided in section seven, article ten of this chapter; and the court may also impose upon such petitioner, his heirs or assigns, and upon the public, such other conditions in reference to such road as the court may deem just. In the event that any of the conditions so imposed by the court are not fully complied with, the court at any time, after giving at least sixty days’ notice to the public and to the petitioner, his heirs or assigns, in such manner as the court may prescribe, may discontinue or abandon such road.(1921, c. 112, §138; Code 1923, c. 42, §138; 1923, c. 6, §138.)

§3. Width of Roads and Bridges.—No bridge, unless it be exclusively for footmen, and no county-district road, shall be less than fourteen feet wide. All county-district roads which are now or which may hereafter be established in any of the counties of this State as public roads, shall occupy a right of way not less than thirty feet wide, exclusive of slopes for cuts and fills, unless the county court shall have made a special order for a different width, which order shall be a matter of record in the office of the county clerk.(1921, c. 112, §130; Code 1923, c. 43, §130.)

§4. Grade of Roads.—The grade of any county-district road to be hereafter established shall not exceed five feet rise per hundred feet, unless specially authorized by the county court when such grade is impracticable as to distance or cost of construction, and in no case shall a county district road be established having a grade exceeding ten feet rise per hundred feet.(1921, c. 112, §131; Code 1923, c. 43, §131.)

§5. Public Landings.—Not more than two acres of land shall be condemned for any landing, and no road or landing shall be established by the county court of the county upon or through any lot of any incorporated city, town or village without the consent of the owner thereof, except as herein otherwise provided.(1921, c. 112, §132; Code 1923, c. 43, §132.)

§6. Discontinuance of Old Road on Alteration.—When any road is altered, the former road shall be discontinued to the extent of such alteration, and no further, unless otherwise ordered by the court.(1921, c. 112, §133; Code 1923, c. 43, §133.)

§7. Report and Record of Rights of Way and Road Discontinuances.—Nothing in this article shall be so construed as to prevent any county court from acquiring any land for county-district road purposes as provided in this chapter, but the title to all rights of way, whether secured by gift, purchase or condemnation, and all discontinuances of county-district roads, shall be reported by the county engineer or supervisor to the county clerk and recorded in the road record book in his office.(1921, c. 112, §134; Code 1923, c. 43, §134.)

§8. Change of Road by County Engineer or Supervisor With Consent of Landowner.—With the consent of the owner of land in which a change is proposed to be made, given in writing, setting forth the exact changes proposed, the county road engineer or supervisor may change any county-district road in his county: Provided, That such change does not materially increase the length or grade, or require more work to keep the road in repair, or place the same on worse ground than it was before such change, or render the road in any respect worse than it was before the change.(1921, c. 112, §135; Code 1923, c. 43, §135.)

§9. Discontinuance of Road, Bridge or Landing.—The county court of the county may, upon petition, direct that any county-district road, bridge or landing, other than a turnpike, bridge or landing in which private citizens may hold a majority of the stock, be discontinued, but notice of such petition shall be published once each week for four successive weeks in two newspapers of opposite politics and of general circulation in the county, and, in addition, notices must be placed at three public places in every district in which any part of such road or landing may be. Upon such petition, after notice given as aforesaid, the county court shall appoint two or more viewers or a committee of their own body, who, together with the county road engineer, shall view such road or landing and report in writing whether, in their opinion, any, and if so, what inconvenience would result from discontinuing the same. Upon such report and other evidence, if any, the court may discontinue the road, bridge or landing, taking care, in the case of an established post road, not to discontinue the same until another has been established.(1921, c. 112, §136; Code 1923, c. 43, §136.)

§10. Highway Record by County Clerk.—It shall be the duty of the clerk of the county court to keep a complete record in the road record book in his office of all titles to rights of ways, all maps, plats and surveys, and all discontinuances of county-district roads within the county, which are now, or may hereafter be, reported to the county court of the county.(1921, c. 112, §145; Code 1923, c. 43, §145.)

§11. Contracts for Construction or Maintenance of County-District Roads; City Street or Bridge.—The county court of any county may contract or pay for making, improving and keeping in order the whole or any part of any county or district road within the county. It may permanently improve by the use of asphaltum, concrete, brick, stone, block, or by macadamizing or other process of equal merit, the county-district roads within its county, and may contract therefor with any contractor for the use of any of the foregoing systems, and take bonds and security in a penalty equal to fifty per cent of the estimated cost of the work in question from any such contractor for the faithful performance of his contract.

The court shall have authority to designate, as a connecting part of a county-district road, any street, or portion of a street, in any incorporated city, town or village, and may expend labor and money thereon as far as may be necessary to put the same in good condition, and the municipality shall thereafter maintain the same in good condition; but in case such municipality is financially unable to maintain the same in good condition, or to construct and maintain any bridge on any county-district road within its corporate limits, the county court shall construct and maintain the same, or aid in constructing and maintaining the same to the extent that may be necessary in order to supplement the funds of the municipality available or that may be made available for that purpose. A county court may purchase or construct and maintain, or may aid any municipality within the county to purchase or construct and maintain, any bridge already constructed or in process of construction or which may hereafter be constructed by such municipality, whether such bridge be located or intended for location wholly within the county or across the boundary thereof. The county court of any county may take over any bridge, road or street theretofore built by any municipality and lying within its limits and designated by the county court as a connecting part of a county-district road, when requested so to do by the authorities of such municipality, and thereafter maintain the same.(1921, c. 112, §104; Code 1923, c. 43, §104; 1923, c. 6, §104.)

§12. Standard Plans and Specifications to be Furnished County Courts by Commission.—The county court of any county, when about to improve any of the roads aforesaid, in the manner aforesaid, or to construct any bridge, may apply to the state road commission for standard plans and specifications of the character of road proposed to be built, constructed, reconstructed or repaired, or of the bridge proposed to be constructed. It shall be the duty of the commission upon such request to furnish such plans and specifications free of charge.(1921, c. 112, §105; Code 1923, c. 43, §105.)

§13. Bids and Contracts for County-District Roads.—All bids for work to be done by contract under the authority of the county court shall be received at the court house of the county in which such road is to be constructed at the time specified in the advertisements, and shall be opened only in open court, and the amount and items comprising each bid shall be publicly announced, and the contract, if let, shall be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder for the type of construction selected, who shall give bond with security to be approved by the court in an amount equal to fifty per cent of the contract price, conditioned for the faithful performance of the contract.

After such bids have been opened, as herein provided, it shall be the duty of the county court or other tribunal acting in lieu thereof to publish in two newspapers of opposite politics, if there be such, published in the county, but if not, then in some newspaper of general circulation therein, which publication shall be made in the first issue of such newspaper after the bids are opened, the names of all persons bidding on such contract, together with the itemized amount of their respective bids, designating the person to whom such contract was awarded, if awarded, together with the amount of his bid.

The court may reject any and all bids, and may thereafter have the work done in any other manner that may seem advisable. If there shall be two bids of the same amount for any section of road, or for any other improvement thereon, the court shall have the power to accept either of such bids.

The court may reserve from payment not more than twenty per cent of the amount accruing on any contract until the completion of such work and the approval thereof.

Any person who shall open any of the bids at any other time or place than herein provided, or shall make known the name of the bidder, or the amount of his bid, otherwise than as herein provided, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than fifty nor more than two hundred dollars, and be imprisoned in the county jail not less than one nor more than six months. Any member of the county court or other tribunal acting in lieu thereof, who shall violate any of the provisions of this section, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than fifty nor more than two hundred dollars, and imprisoned in the county jail not to exceed six months, and shall be deemed guilty of misconduct in office and forfeit the same.(1921, c. 112, §150; Code 1923, c. 43, §150.)

§14. Work May be Done Otherwise Than by Contract; Advertising for Work or Supplies.—In the event the county court shall decide to have the work done otherwise than by contract, then the work shall be done under the direction of the county road engineer, or the court may appoint a competent superintendent who, under the direction of the county road engineer, shall have the supervision of the road or roads of the district or section for which he was appointed. He shall devote his entire time and attention to the work, or so much thereof as the court may direct, and he shall receive such compensation for his services as may be determined by the court; or in case the court does not have a county road engineer, or for any reason the court deems it advisable there is a county road engineer, it may appoint a special competent district engineer to take charge of any district, or particular piece of work, and fix the compensation of such district or special engineer.

All notices and advertisements for the letting to contract for construction or reconstruction of county-district roads, or any part thereof, or for the purposes of procuring supplies, equipment or material, shall, unless otherwise provided, be published once each week for at least two consecutive weeks preceding the date of the letting of such contract, in two newspapers of general circulation and of different politics, if there be such, within the county; if not, then in one paper of general circulation therein.(1921, c. 112, §150; Code 1923, c. 43, §150.)

§15. Notice of Closing Road; Temporary Road or Bridge; Penalty for Traveling Over Closed Road.—If it shall appear necessary to the engineer or other representative of the county court in charge to close a county-district road, which is being constructed or repaired under this chapter, so as to permit a proper completion of such work, he shall execute a notice in duplicate, stating the necessity for closing such public road, and describing the portion to be closed. He shall cause to be posted at each end of the portion to be closed a copy of such notice, and may have the same published in one or more newspapers in the county one week, and shall thereupon close the same to public travel by erecting suitable obstructions and posting conspicuous notices.

In the event such road is closed, the engineer or other representative of the county court in charge shall direct a detour by proper signs and guides or provide a new location by the construction of a temporary road to be used by the traveling public in lieu of the closed public road and may erect temporary bridges when necessary. For the purpose of locating and constructing such temporary road and bridge, the engineer or other representative of the county court in charge may enter upon the land adjoining or near the closed public road and may, with the approval of the county court, agree with the owner of such lands for the damages, if any, caused thereby. If the engineer or other representative of the county court in charge is unable to agree with such owner for the amount of damage, if any, for such temporary road or bridge, then the court shall have the right to condemn the same as provided by law. When such road shall have been closed to the public as provided herein, any person who disregards the obstruction and notice and drives or rides over the portion of the public road so closed, or in any way injures the same, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than five nor more than fifty dollars, and shall also be liable to the county court, or contractor doing the work, for all damages occasioned thereby.(1921, c. 112, §153; Code 1923, c. 43, §153.)

§16. Construction or Maintenance of Inter-County Bridge or Road; Mandamus.—When it becomes necessary to build or repair any bridge; across any stream on a county-district road on the line between two counties, or to keep in repair any county-district road or roads between two counties, or along the boundary lines thereof, the county courts of such counties may enter into such agreement therefor as to them shall seem best; but if they disagree in relation there to, it shall be the duty of the county court of each county to appoint two special commissioners, who, together with the county road engineer or road supervisor of each county, shall meet and arrange the matter. If they should disagree, or if the court of either county, upon being required so to do, shall fail to appoint commissioners, or if either court shall fail in any respect to fulfill its part of the agreement with respect to the work, the remedy by mandamus shall lie before the circuit court of the county whose county court is complained of on behalf of the county court of the other county, and the circuit court shall compel the county court complained of to do what ought to be done in the matter.(1921, c. 112, §140; Code 1923, c. 43, §140.)

§17. County Agreements for Such Purpose.—The county courts of any two or more adjoining counties are hereby authorized and empowered, where the interests of the public in both or all of such counties will be served thereby, to join in the construction and maintenance of bridges at points convenient to the public, and may locate any such bridge wholly within one county; but before beginning the construction of such bridge the county courts of the counties interested shall enter into a contract designating the location of such bridge and agreeing upon the proportionate part of the cost of construction and maintenance thereof to be borne by each county, which contract shall be entered of record in each of such counties: Provided, however, That no county shall join in the construction of a bridge wholly within another county when such bridge is located more than one mile from the line of either county; and the county in which such bridge is located shall pay at least one-half of the cost of construction and maintenance thereof.(1921, c. 112, §141; Code 1923, c. 43, §141.)

§18. Plans and Contract for Such Work.—If the county courts shall determine to make such improvements, they shall cause plans and specifications for such work to be prepared, and if, voting separately, they shall approve such plans and specifications, they shall advertise for bids, as provided in section fourteen of this article, in each of the counties. The commissioners of such county courts, with the county road engineer of each of the counties, shall constitute a joint committee which shall receive the bids at the time and place specified in the advertisement, and shall open and publicly announce the items comprising each bid, according to the provisions of section thirteen of this article, and the members of the committee from each county shall forthwith report such bids to their respective county courts for action thereon. The county courts shall jointly award the contract to the lowest responsible bidder, who shall furnish satis factory security to be approved by such county courts.(1921, c. 112, §142; Code 1923, c. 43, §142.)

§19. Sharing Cost of Such Work.—The contract for such work shall specify such share or portion of the costs thereof as is to be borne and paid by each county court, and each county court shall be severally liable for such share or portion.(1921, c. 112, §143; Code 1923, c. 43, §143.)

§20. Joint Maintenance of Such Bridges and Roads.—After the completion of the work, the improvement so made shall be maintained by the county court or courts or other authorities of the counties or political subdivisons joining in the improvement, which shall bear and pay the same proportionate share and cost of maintenance and repair that they severally bore toward the cost of the improvement.(1921, c. 112, §144; Code 1923, c. 43, §144.)

§1. County Road Engineer or Supervisor; Compensation; Removal.—There is hereby created in the several counties of the State the office of county road engineer. The county court in each of the counties in this State may appoint as county road engineer some engineer who is a practical road builder and competent to perform the duties relating to the roads and to keep the records prescribed by this chapter, and who holds a certificate of efficiency from the state road commission. In the event the county court shall not appoint a county road engineer as herein provided, then it may appoint a competent man as road supervisor for such county; but if a county road engineer be appointed, he shall be ex officio the road supervisor for his county. Every county road engineer and road supervisor provided for in this article shall, before entering upon the duties of his office, give bond, with security to be approved by the county court, in such sum as may be required by it, payable to the county court of the county, and conditioned for the faithful performance of his duties, and to account for, pay over and deliver all moneys, tools and materials that may come into his hands by virtue of his office. The county court of any county not appointing an engineer, as in this section provided, may employ a competent engineer for such time, and for such purpose, and upon such terms as may be agreed upon between such court and the engineer.

The county road engineer or supervisor shall serve as such during the will and pleasure of the county court. He shall receive such expenses and compensation, either by salary or per diem, as may be fixed by order of the court. It shall be the duty of the clerk of the county court to give written notice to the county road engineer or road supervisor of his appointment, as soon thereafter as practicable; and each person so appointed shall, within ten days after having been notified of such appointment, qualify by taking the oath prescribed by section five of article four of the Constitution, and execute the bond required herein. Such road engineer or supervisor shall be provided with office room free of rent by the county court.

Any county road engineer or road supervisor may be removed at any time by the county court of the county.(1921, c. 112, §112; Code 1923, c. 43, §112.)

§2. Duties.—The county road engineer or road supervisor shall in all matters cooperate with the state road commission in such manner and to such extent as may be required by the commission in its rules and regulations, and shall at the same time act as the agent of the county court of the county for which he was appointed, as to the supervision of roads and other duties required of him. He shall be subject to the authority of the county court and to the rules and regulations prescribed by the state road commission, have general charge and supervision as the representative of the county court of all the county-district roads and bridges thereon within his county, and shall see that the same are improved, repaired and maintained as provided by law, and shall have the general supervision of the work of constructing, reconstructing, repairing and improving such roads and bridges in his county, and shall make reports thereon from time to time as the court may direct. He shall advise and direct those employed by or under him, including the road superintendent herein provided for, as to the best methods of repairing, maintaining and improving such roads and bridges. He shall examine the various formations and deposits of gravel and stone in his county for the purpose of ascertaining the materials which are most available and best suited for the improvement of the public roads therein, and, when required by the state road commission, shall submit samples of such materials and make a written report in respect thereto. He shall establish or cause to be established such grades and recommend such means of drainage, repair and improvement as may seem to him necessary, when requested by the county court; shall, under the direction of the county court, perform all such duties as may be required to keep such roads open and in passable condition and in the best repair possible with the means at his disposal; and shall perform such other duties regarding county-district roads as may be required by the county court.(1921, c. 112, §113; Code 1923, c. 43, §113.)

§3. Employees.—By and with the advice and consent of the county court, the county road engineer or supervisor may employ such assistants, clerks, foremen, inspectors, agents and employees as may be deemed necessary to properly plan, locate, construct, maintain and care for the roads, payrolls, files, communications and records under his charge; and he may discharge such agents and employees at pleasure. Such agents and employees shall receive such compensation per day, month or year as may be determined by the county court of the county, according to the services rendered.(1921, c. 112, §114; Code 1923, c. 43, §114.)

§4. Purchase of Road Machinery or Tools.—The county road engineer or supervisor, with the approval of the county court, may purchase for the use of the county upon county-district roads, stone crushers, road rollers, traction engines, road machines for grading and scraping, tools and other implements, which shall be paid for from such road fund as the county court may direct, but any contract for the purchase of such equipment shall not be valid until approved by the county court. Such engineer or supervisor may in like manner lease or hire any of such equipment, the same to be paid for out of the county road fund.(1921, c. 112, §116; Code 1923, c. 43, §116.)

§5. Purchase or Condemnation of Road Materials; Entry on Adjoining Lands.—The county road engineer or supervisor may, with the approval of the county court, purchase any gravel, stone, earth or wood necessary in the construc tion, reconstruction, repair or maintenance of any county-district road, from any owner of such materials within or without the county. If such officer or the county court shall not be able to agree with such owner upon the price to be paid for such materials, such court may proceed to acquire such property and shall have the right to take and remove the same by condemnation proceedings, if the same is located within the county.

Any such road officer is also authorized to enter upon any land adjacent to a county-district road for the purpose of opening any exist ing drain or ditch, or for digging any ditch or drain, for the free passage of water in order to drain such road; and to enter upon any land adjoining rivers, streams or creeks to drive piles, throw up embankments or perform any other labor necessary to keep such rivers, streams and creeks within their proper channel and prevent their encroachment upon such roads or abutments of bridges, or any other damage to such roads or bridges, or for the purpose of constructing and providing detours for travel during the construction or improvement of any county- district road. For any damage done to such lands by entry thereon as aforesaid, the county court may make a reasonable and proper allowance to the owner. All moneys provided by this section to be paid as compensation or damages shall be paid from the respective funds applicable to the maintenance of the roads benefited.(1921, c. 112, §117; Code 1923, c. 43, §117.)

§6. Reports.—Each county road engineer or supervisor shall make to the county court, at each regular term thereof, and at such other times as the court may require, a full itemized statement of the expenditures made by him since his last report, giving number and names of hands and number of horses employed by him, the time each was employed, the amount paid to or for each, and such other matter as he may deem necessary or the court may require. The items of such statement shall first have been prepared according to the public accounting laws of this State and have been certified by the agent or agents of the county road engineer or supervisor having charge of the work.(1921, c. 112, §115; Code 1923, c. 43, §115.)

§7. Planting Shade or Other Trees Along Roads.—The county road engineer may, by an order in writing, authorize the owners of property adjoining the county-district roads at their expense to locate and plant shade trees, fruit trees or nut-bearing trees suitable for shade along such roads. Such trees shall not be planted within fifteen feet of the center of the road. Such trees shall be planted at least sixty feet apart and according to plans and regulations sent out by the state road commission.(1921, c. 112, §179; Code 1923, c. 43, §179.)

§8. Care and Protection of Such Trees.—The county road engineer shall have the full care and control of all such public shade trees on county-district roads in his county, and shall prosecute complaints for malicious injury to, or unlawful acts concerning, such trees.(1921, c. 112, §180; Code 1923, c. 43, §180.)

§9. Watering Troughs.—The county road engineer may authorize the owner or occupant of lands to construct and maintain watering troughs beside county-district roads, all such watering troughs to be supplied with fresh water, the surface of which shall be at least two feet above the level of the ground, and easily accessible for horses with vehicles. The county road engineer shall annually give a written order upon the county court for two dollars, to be paid out of the road fund of the district to each owner or occupant for maintaining such watering trough and keeping the same supplied with fresh water.(1921, c. 112, §66; Code 1923, c. 43, §66.)

§1. District Road Superintendent; Compensation.—The county court may appoint a road superintendent for each magisterial district, to serve as such during the will and pleasure of the court. He shall be an able-bodied man and a resident of the county. Each superintendent shall execute a bond pay able to the county court, with security to be approved by it, in a penalty of not less than five hundred dollars, conditioned for the faithful performance of the duties of his office, and to account for, pay over and deliver all moneys, tools and materials that may come into his hands by virtue of his office.

Every superintendent shall be allowed for his services a reasonable compensation for every day necessarily employed by him in the performance of his official duties. His account therefor, when verified by his affidavit and certified by the county engineer or supervisor and audited and allowed by the county court, shall be paid out of the district road fund of his district.(1921, e. 112, §§119, 120, 127; Code 1923, c. 43, §§119, 120, 127.)

§2. Certificate of Appointment.—The clerk of the county court shall, upon the appointment of a road superintendent by the county court, make out and deliver to said road super intendent a certificate showing his appointment, upon which certificate shall be printed a statment of the general duties of said superin tendent.(1921, c. 112, §121; Code 1923, c. 43, §121.)

§3. Duties of District Superintendent.—It shall be the duty of each road superintendent, with the funds at his command, to keep open all drains and culverts extending along, under or over county-district roads, to see that all such roads are well drained and kept clear of rocks, fallen timber, land slides, unnecessary shade, and other obstructions of every kind and character. He shall have police supervision and control over the placing of private foot crossings across any county-district road in his district, and shall remove or cause to be removed all dead timber standing within fifty feet of such road. Across each stream crossing a county-district road, such superintendent, where necessary, shall see that there is placed and kept a sufficient bridge, bench, or log for the accommodation of foot passengers. He shall inspect all county-district bridges within his district and see that the same are in a safe condition; and inspect the railing on such bridges and see that the same is kept in good repair, subject to the direction of the county road engineer or county road supervisor, as the case may be. The superintendent shall perform such other duties with respect to the county-district roads of his district as the county court may prescribe.(1921, c. 112, §122; Code 1923, c. 43, §122.)

§4. Police Powers.—Such superintendent shall have general police supervision over all county-district roads within his magisterial district, including the streets and alleys of unincorporated villages, and shall have the same authority to make arrests as duly qualified constables as to the violations of the provisions of this chapter and violations against the laws enacted for the protection of motor vehicles. He shall have authority to require abutting property owners to remove and keep removed fences and other obstructions on the right of way, and all garbage, refuse, and filth of every kind and character that may accumulate on such streets and alleys, and may order opened any street or alley on any town plat which is of record in the clerk’s office of the county court.(1921, c. 112, §123; Code 1923, c. 43, §123; 1923, c. 6, §123.)

§5. Equipment and Supplies.—The county court shall provide the road superintendent with such equipment and supplies as may be necessary to the proper discharge of his duties and pay for the same out of the district road funds.(1921, c. 112, §124; Code 1923, c. 43, §124.)

§6. Duties on Leaving Office.—Every superintendent of roads shall turn over to his successor all accounts, moneys and papers pertaining to his office, and all materials, tools, and equipment belonging to the district or county, taking receipt therefor in duplicate, one of which shall be kept by the outgoing superintendent, and the other filed with the clerk of the county court. If he fails to do so, he shall be liable to a fine and imprisonment as provided in the following section.(1921, c. 112, §125; Code 1923, c. 43, §125.)

§7. Failure to Perform Duty.—Any superintendent who has been duly appointed to and accepted the office, failing to perform the duties as prescribed in this article, without just cause therefor, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than twenty-five nor more than one hundred dollars, and, moreover, shall be liable on his official bond for the breach of any of its terms and conditions.(1921, c. 112, §126; Code 1923, c. 43, §126.)

§1. County Convicts to Work on Roads.—Whenever any able-bodied male person over the age of sixteen years shall be convicted of an offense punishable with confinement in the county jail, before any court or justice of the peace, and sentenced by such court or justice to imprisonment in the county jail and to pay a fine and costs, he shall be sentenced by such court or justice of the peace to labor on the county-district roads of the county, or to labor in quarries or elsewhere in the preparation of materials for county-district roads, or both, under the direction of the county road engineer, or other representative of the county court having such work in charge, during the time of such imprisonment, and until such fine and costs are satisfied. Whenever any person is imprisoned by virtue of section nine, article four, chapter sixty-two of this Code, and fails to execute the bond therein provided, he shall be required to work on such roads, or in the preparation of road materials as aforesaid, or both, until such fine and costs are paid under the regulations prescribed by this article: Provided, That such work shall not be required to be done on the streets or alleys of any city, town or village which under its charter is required to keep its own streets and alleys in order, unless the corporate authority thereof shall first arrange with the county authorities to pay for such work to the keeper of the jail of such county the amount to which he shall be entitled for the board of such prisoners.(1921, c. 112, §48; Code 1923, c. 43, §48; 1925, c. 17, §48.)

§2. Omission of Road Sentence.—The court or justice of the peace before whom any such prisoner is convicted or imprisoned may, for good cause appearing and entered of record, omit from the sentence that part of the penalty requiring such person to work on the public roads of the county, or in the preparation of road materials.(1921, c. 112, §50; Code 1923, c. 43, §50; 1925, c. 17, §50.)

§3. Regulations Governing County Convict Force.—The county court of each county shall provide for the working of such prisoners, and for their safe-keeping while performing such work, and to this end the border lines of each county shall constitute and be considered the walls of the jail of such county, and the county engineer or other representative of the county court having such work in charge shall be, and he is hereby empowered to adopt safe and humane methods of discipline and protection to enforce the provisions of this article and prevent the escape of the prisoners: Provided, That it shall be lawful for any county court to employ the prisoners of such county outside the county where they were convicted or imprisoned upon the same terms and conditions, and under the same rules and regulations, as govern their employment within the county where they were convicted.(1921, c. 112, §49; Code 1923, c. 43, §49.)

§4. Escape From County Convict Road Force; Additional Sentence.—Whenever any such person shall escape while working on such public road, or in the preparation of road materials, or both, and be recaptured, he shall be taken by the officers having him in custody before any justice of the peace in the county where such escape was made, and such justice shall, after a trial, and upon conviction for such escape, sentence him to labor on the county-district roads of such county, or in the preparation of road materials, or both, in addition to the fine and sentence imposed for his previous trial, not less than sixty days, nor more than six months, and to pay the cost of making the arrest, including all costs of trial; and, in default of payment, he shall sentence the prisoner to work out such a costs on the roads, or in the preparation of road materials, or both, as herein provided.(1921, c. 112, §51; Code 1923, c. 43, §51; 1925, c. 17, §51.)

§5. Guards for County Convicts; Monthly Statement as to Prisoners.—The sheriff, upon recommendation of the county engineer, or other representative of the county court having the work in charge, and with the approval of the county court, shall employ a sufficient number of persons to guard such prisoners, not to exceed one for every ten or less number of prisoners so employed on such county-district roads, or in the preparation of road materials, and the wages of such guards shall be reasonable and shall be fixed by the county court and shall be paid out of the county treasury when allowed by the county court. Such guards when employed shall be subject to and under the direction of the county road engineer, or other representative of the county court having the work in charge. The keeper of the jail shall file with the clerk of the county court a monthly statement showing the number of prisoners in jail awaiting trial, the number of prisoners sentenced to work upon the public roads, or in the preparation of road materials, the number of days work performed, the number of days idle, and the reasons therefor. Whenever prisoners are worked from camps, or kept outside of the jail, the person in charge of the camp shall furnish the jailer with the infor mation herein required, or file the same with the clerk of the county court, under the direction of the county road engineer, or another such representative of the court.(1921, c. 112, §52; Code 1923, c. 43, §52; 1925, c. 17, §52.)

§6. Certification by Clerk or Justice of Sentence and Commitment of County Convict.—The clerk of every court, or the justice of the peace before whom any person is convicted of an offense and sentenced to be confined in the county jail, or sentenced to pay a fine and is confined for nonpayment thereof, shall certify to the jailer the length of sentence and the amount of fine in the manner and form following:

(1921, c. 112, §53; Code 1923, c. 43, §53; 1925, c. 17, §53.)

§7. Road Work by Misdemeanant in Lieu of Bail.—A person charged with a misdemeanor, who is unable to furnish a recognizance or bail bond with satisfactory sureties, according to law, may, after being committed to jail, elect to labor on the county-district roads, or in the preparation of road materials, of the county in which such crime is alleged to have been committed; and in such case the circuit, criminal or intermediate court of such county, or the judge there of in vacation, may, in its discretion, enter an order permitting such person to labor upon the county-district roads of such county, or in the preparation of road materials, until such time as may be fixed by such court, or judge thereof in vacation. If at the trial such person is convicted and sentenced to imprisonment in the county jail, or to labor on the county-district roads of such county, or in the preparation of road materials, he shall be credited on his term by the number of days he has so labored; if fined, he shall be credited on the amount of fine and costs with one dollar and fifty cents per day for each day he so labored; and if acquitted, be shall be paid seventy-five cents for each day he labored as aforesaid, out of the road funds of the county or district in which such work is chargeable, when allowed by the county court.(1921, c. 112, §54; Code 1923, c. 43, §54; 1925, c. 17, §54.)

§8. Credit on Sentence for Road Work by County Prisoner.—Each person sentenced to labor on county-district roads or in the preparation of road materials, under the provisions of this article, who faithfully complies with all the rules and regulations which may be prescribed by the county road authorities governing such labor, shall be entitled to a deduction from his sentence of five days for each month on each jail sentence that may be imposed upon him.(1921, c. 112, §55; Code 1923, c. 43, §55; 1925, c. 17, §55.)

§1. Obstructions Defined; Abatement by Injunction.—Obstructions, within the meaning of this chapter, shall include trees which have been cut or have fallen either on adjacent land or within the bounds of a public road in such a manner as to interfere with travel thereon; limbs of trees which have fallen within a public road or branches of trees overhanging the same so as to interfere with travel thereon; landslides; carcasses of dead animals, lumber, wood or logs piled within the bounds of a public road; machines, vehicles, conveyances and implements abandoned or habitually placed within the bounds of a public road; fences, buildings, or other obstructions within the bounds of a public road; ashes, cinders, earth, stone or other material placed on a public road or in any ditch or waterway along such road; water diverted from its regular course or channel so as to injure or endanger a public road; any road connected without lawful authority with a public road in such manner as to obstruct or impede travel thereon or the flow of water in the gutters or drains along such road; pipe lines, telegraph, telephone, trolley or other poles and wires con nected therewith, constructed or erected on a public road in such a way as to interfere with the use thereof; or any other thing which will pre y vent the easy, safe and convenient use of such public road for public travel. Such obstructions shall be considered within the bounds of any state or county-district road whenever any part thereof shall occupy any part of the right of way provided by law or acquired for road purposes, not including the additional land acquired for slopes, cuts or, fills.

Such obstructions so placed and left within the limits of such road are hereby declared to be public nuisances, and, in addition to other remedies provided in this chapter, the county court or the state road commission, as the case may be, may apply to the circuit court, or other court of competent jurisdiction of the county in which they may be, for an injunction to abate such nuisance.(1921, c. 112, §§184, 185; Code 1923, c. 43, §§184, 185; 1925, c. 17, §185.)

§2. Duty of Landowner, Occupant and Public Utility to Remove Obstructions and Fill Excavations.—It shall be the duty of the owner or occupant of land situated along any state or county-district road to remove all obstructions within the bounds of the road which have been placed there by himself or with his consent.

It shall be the duty of all telephone, telegraph, electric railway or other electrical companies to remove and reset telephone, telegraph, trolley and other poles and the wire connected therewith when the same constitute obstructions to the use of a state or county-district road by the traveling public. It shall be the duty of all pipe line companies whose lines have been laid across or along any state or county-district road in this State for the purpose of transporting natural gas, oils, water, or any other substance, to fill up all excavations made thereby and to make the road in all respects as good as it was before the excavation was made, and to keep the same in like good condition, and, when any such line has been laid along any such road on the right of way thereof and constitutes an obstruction to the traveling public, to relay or remove the same.(1921, c. 112, §§65, 173, 174, 175; Code 1923, c. 43, §§65, 173, 174, 175.)

§3. Right of Commission or County Road Engineer to Remove Obstructions; Proceedings; Expenses.—If such obstructions, poles, wires or pipe lines are not removed, or such poles with wires reset, or such excavations are not properly filled and maintained, or such pipe lines are not relaid or removed, within ten days after the service of a notice, by the state road commission, or its engineer in charge of the road obstructed, or the county road engineer or supervisor, as the case may be, upon such owner or occupant, or upon such company or corporation, requesting the same to be done, the commission or its engineer, or the county road engineer or supervisor, as the case may be, shall cause such obstructions and such poles and wires to be removed and reset, or such repairs on the excavation to be made, or such pipe lines to be relaid or removed, as may be necessary to place the same in its original condition. The expense thereby incurred shall be paid in the first in stance out of moneys levied and collected or available therefor, and the amount thereof shall be charged against such owner, occupant, company or corporation and levied and collected as provided in section four of this article.(1921, c. 112, §175; Code 1923, c. 43, §175.)

§4. Assessment and Collection of Costs of Removing Obstructions.—The state road commission by its engineer or engineers in charge, as to state roads, and the county road engineer or supervisor, as to county-district roads, shall assess the cost of removing obstructions from state or county-district roads and removing and resetting poles and wires or the relaying or removing of pipe lines pursuant to sections two and three of this article, against the owner, oc cupant, company or corporation neglecting to perform its duty imposed by the provisions of this article.

Such engineer or supervisor having charge of either state or county-district roads shall serve upon such owner, occupant or company a written notice stating that, at the time and place specified therein, he or his agents will assess such costs against the owner, occupant or company neglecting to perform such duty. Such notice shall be served at least ten days prior to the time specified therein. If directed against a corporation, it may be served as other notices or process are served under chapter fifty-six of this Code. At the time and place specified, he shall hear the parties interested and shall thereupon complete the assessment, stating therein the name of the owner, occupant or company, the amount assessed against him or it, and shall return such assessment to the state road commission or the county court of the county, as the case may be. Such assessment shall be made a matter of record by the commission or court, and the amount so as sessed and fixed shall constitute a lien upon the property of such person, firm or corporation as a lien for taxes. The amount so assessed, fixed and levied may be placed in the hands of the sheriff of the county wherein such road is located and shall be collected by him as taxes levied and imposed are collected, and shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the state road fund, or the county treasury to the credit of the district road fund, as the case may be, to reimburse the fund from which such costs were defrayed.(1921, c. 112, §177; Code 1923, c. 43, §177.)

§5. Liability for Failure to Remove Obstructions.—If any obstruction, such as is mentioned in section one of this article, be not removed by the person who, by himself or agent, caused the same, within ten days after written notice so to do, given on behalf of the state road commission or county court, by the engineer or person in charge of such road, then the person causing the obstruction shall be liable to such commission or county court, as the case may be, in a sum of not less than one nor more than five dollars for each day such obstruction remains unremoved after the service of such notice.(1921, c 112, §184; Code 1923, c. 43, §184.)

§6. Permit by Commission or County Court for Openings in, or Structures on, Public Roads.—No opening shall be made in any state or county-district road or highway, nor shall any structure be placed therein or thereover, nor shall any structure, which has been so placed, be changed or removed, except in accordance with a permit from the state road commission or county court, as the case may be. No road or highway shall be dug up for laying or placing pipes, sewers, poles, or wires, or for other purposes, and no trees shall be planted or removed or obstructions placed thereon, without the written permit of the commission or county court, or its duly authorized agent, and then only in accordance with the regulations of the commission or court. The work shall be done under the supervision and to the satisfaction of the commission or court; and the entire expense of replacing the highway in as good condition as before shall be paid by the persons to whom the permit was given, or by whom the work was done. A violation of any provision of this section shall be a misdemeanor, and the person or corporation violating the same shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined not less than twenty-five nor more than one hundred dollars for each offense.(1921, c. 112, §69; Code 1923, c. 43, §69.)

§7. Certain Permits or Franchises Prohibited.—It shall be unlawful for any county court of this State, or other tribunal acting in lieu thereof, to grant any permit or franchise to any corporation, individual or person, giving the right to operate or maintain any main gas line or lines with a diameter exceeding four inches in any right of way of a public road of this State: Provided, however, That nothing herein contained shall be so construed as to prevent any oil or gas company or person having a proper permit or franchise from trans porting oil or gasoline along any of the public highways of this State, nor to give such company a franchise without paying to the land owners through whose lands such road passes the usual and customary compensation paid or to be paid to the landowners for such right of way. Any grant or franchise when made shall be construed to give to such company or person only the right to use the easement in such public road.(1921, c. 112, §176; Code 1923, c. 43, §176.)

§8. Duty of Railroad Company to Keep Road in Good Condition.—Every railroad company heretofore or hereafter incorporated which has, by the building of its road, or otherwise, obstructed, or shall hereafter obstruct, any state or county-district road, shall, as far as possible, put the road so obstructed in as good condition as it was in before the obstruction. Every railroad company which has changed, or shall hereafter change, the grade or location of any state or county-district road, shall put the same in as good condition and repair, and on as practical a grade, as such road was before its change; and if such road, after construction, becomes damaged or injured or is caused to be damaged or injured by reason of the construction of any rail road, such railroad company shall be liable for all damages occasioned thereby and for all costs incurred in repairing and keeping in repair the road so damaged or injured as aforesaid.(1921, c. 112, §183; Code 1923, c. 43, §183.)

§9. Private Driveways or Approaches to Roads; Obstruction of Ditches.—The owner or tenant of land fronting on any state road shall construct and keep in repair all approaches or driveways to and from the same, under the direction of the state road commission, and, likewise, the owner or tenant of land fronting on any county-district road shall construct and keep in repair all approaches or driveways to and from the same, under the direction of the county road engineer, and it shall be unlawful for such owner or tenant to fill up any ditch, or place any material of any kind or character in any ditch, so as in any manner to obstruct or interfere with the purposes for which it was made.(1921, c. 112, §181; Code 1923, c. 43, §181.)

§1. Toll Prohibited Except Over Toll Bridges.—No tolls shall be charged or collected for travel upon any of the public roads, streets or highways of this State, except such tolls as may be authorized under the provisions of this article for travel over a toll bridge forming a part of such public road, street or highway.(1921, c. 112, §157; Code 1923, c. 43, §157.)

§2. Bridges Over Ohio, Great Kanawha or Big Sandy Rivers; Corporations for Such Purposes.—Corporations may be formed under the provisions of chapter thirty-one of this Code for the purpose of bridging the Ohio river. Any such corporation or any railroad corporation is hereby authorized to construct and maintain a bridge across said river in the manner now, or which may hereafter be, provided by the congress of the United States, upon complying with the requirements, conditions and provisions so prescribed, and not otherwise; and such corporation is authorized to take tolls for the passage of persons, railroad cars, engines, vehicles and other things passing on and over such bridge. Such corporation may obtain the real estate necessary for the construction of its bridge and the approaches thereto, under the provisions of chapter fifty-four of this Code, and may purchase from any other corporation which may have taken steps toward the erection of a bridge in the manner aforesaid, all the rights, franchises and property it may have acquired. Subscriptions to the stock or bonds of any such corporation may be made by counties, districts and municipal corporations, in the manner provided by law; and subscriptions may be made thereto by other corporations, including railroad corporations, with the assent of the holders of two-thirds of the stock of any such corporation, at any general or special meeting of the stockholders. Any corporation heretofore or hereafter formed for the purpose of bridging the Great Kanawha or Big Sandy rivers, or any railroad corporation constructing such bridge, shall have all the privileges accorded by this section to corporations formed for the purpose of bridging the Ohio river: Provided, however, That every bridge erected across the Great Kanawha river at and above the United States government lock number six, and between said lock number six and the United States government lock number three, shall have at least one channel span, the center of which shall be in the middle of the channel usually run by descending coal fleets in high towing stages; such channel span to have a clear opening of four hundred feet at low water line, and be at least sixty-five feet above low water: Provided further, That every bridge erected across the Kanawha river at and above the United States government lock number three, and below a point six hundred feet below the intersection at low water mark of Nancy’s branch with the Great Kanawha river—said point being approximately the head of the slack water pool formed by the United States government dam number two—shall have at least one channel span, the center of which shall be in the middle of the channel usually run by descending coal fleets in high water towing stages; such channel span to have a clear opening of four hundred feet at low water line, and be at least sixty-five feet above low water, except in cases where the United States government may authorize the construction of a bridge of a less height, not, however, to be below the minimum of sixty feet above low water; and said Great Kanawha river may be bridged by any such corporation at or above such point six hundred feet below the intersection at low water mark of Nancy’s branch with the Kanawha river, subject only to such terms and conditions, if any, as the United States government acting through its authorized officers may prescribe.

The benefits of this section shall not inure to any corporation whose corporate rights have lapsed, been forfeited or become forfeitable.(1857-8, c. 35, §§1, 2; Code 1860, c. 64, §§33, 34; Code 1868, c. 44, §22; 1872-3, c. 53; 1882, c. 159, §22; 1883, c. 34, §22; 1890, c. 1, §22; 1893, c. 34, §22; 1907, c. 73, §22; 1909, c. 56, §22; 1911, c. 46, §22; Code 1923, c. 44, §22; 1925, c. 90, §22.)

§3. Bridge Corporation May Borrow Money Mortgage or Deed of Trust.—Every corporation formed under the law of this State for the purpose of the construction and maintenance of a bridge or bridges, in addition to the powers here tofore conferred upon or possessed by it, shall have power from time to time to borrow such sums of money as may be necessary for the purposes and business of the company, and to issue bonds, bills of credit or indebtedness and preferred stock, and dispose of the same for any amount so borrowed, and to mortgage or encumber by trust deed its corporate property and franchises to secure payment of any debt contracted by such corporation for its purposes and business; but no such mortgage or trust deed shall be valid, unless authorized by a resolution adopted by the affirmative votes of the holders of a majority of the stock of the company. Any such mortgage or trust deed may include, grant and convey, and make subject to the lien thereof, all betterments, improvements and works made or constructed, and property and franchises acquired and used in the company’s business, after the making of such mortgage or trust deed, money and debts due the granting company excepted. The purchaser at any sale under such mortgage or trust deed shall be entitled to such betterments, improvements, works, property and franchises, with the exception aforesaid, as well as the property and franchises granted thereby, owned and possessed by the company at the time of the making of the mortgage or trust deed, under which the sale is made, any other law or statute to the contrary notwithstanding.

All mortgages or trust deeds heretofore made by any bridge company incorporated under the laws of this State, whether the same shall have been executed by virtue of a resolution adopted by a vote of the stockholders, or shall have been executed by virtue of a resolution adopted by the board of directors of such corporation without any action on the part of the stockholders thereof, which purport to grant and convey the property and franchises of the granting company owned and possessed at the time of making the mortgage or trust deed, or such property and franchises, together with property or franchises, or both, of such company which it may have acquired subsequently to the making of such mortgage or trust deed, shall be as valid and effectual for the purpose of effecting such granting and conveyance, and make the same as effectually, as if this section had been in full force before and at the time of the execution of such mortgages or trust deeds; and purchasers at any sales there under shall have the same rights, powers and privileges as are by this section conferred upon the purchasers at sales made under mortgages and trust deeds executed by such companies after this Code takes effect.(1872-3, c. 53, §8; 1893, c. 34, §22; 1907, c. 73, §22; 1909, c. 56, §22; 1911, c. 46, §22; Code 1923, c. 44, §22; 1925, c. 90, §22.)

§4. When Such Bridge a Nuisance; Abatement.—Every bridge across the Ohio river hereafter erected or commenced, wholly or in part within the jurisdiction of this State, contrary to the provisions of the two next preceding sections, and every railroad bridge across the Great Kanawha or Big Sandy river hereafter erected or commenced, wholly or in part within the jurisdiction of the State, contrary to the provisions of said sections, shall be deemed a public nuisance, and, so far as the same is within the said jurisdiction, may be abated and the construction thereof prevented and enjoined by presentment, indictment, or bill in equity in the name of the State or other remedy appropriate to the case; and it shall be the duty of the attorney general, as well as of the prosecuting attorney of the proper county, to cause proper proceedings to be instituted and prosecuted to abate, prevent and enjoin such work, as soon as they shall be credibly informed that the same has been or is about to be commenced. But the provisions of this and the preceding sections shall not apply to the portion of the Great Kanawha above the falls of said river, known as the falls of the Kanawha.(1857-8, c. 35, §3; Code 1860, c. 64, §35; Code 1868, c. 44, §23; 1882, c. 159, §23; 1883, c. 34, §23; 1890, c. 4, §23; Code 1923, c. 44, §23.)

§5. Obstruction of Navigation by Bridge.—Every such bridge shall be so made as not to obstruct the navigation of the watercourse over which it is erected at any ordinary stage of water.(Code 1849, c. 64, §28; Code 1860, c. 64, §28; Code 1868, c. 44, §17; 1882, c. 159, §17; Code 1923, c. 44, §17.)

§6. Unsafe Toll Bridge.—Whenever complaint is made to the county court of any county wherein a toll bridge is, that the same is not in a safe condition, it shall order its road engineer or supervisor to inspect the same and report his investigation, and if, after considering such report, the court be of opinion that the bridge is in an unsafe or dangerous condition, it shall make its finding a matter of record, and cause its clerk to certify a copy thereof to the public service commission for action thereon. It shall be the duty of said commission, upon the receipt of such certified record, to summon the corporation or person owning the bridge, or collecting tolls therefrom, to appear before it and make answer respecting such finding, whereupon the commission shall take such action and make such orders respecting such bridge as it may deem just. In case it is determined by the commission, upon such hearing, that the bridge is unsafe for travel, it shall prohibit the further collection of toll thereon until the same is placed in such condition as may be ordered or directed by the commission.(Code 1849, c. 64, §29; Code 1860, c. 64, §29; Code 1868, c. 44, §18; 1882, c. 159, §18; 1921, c. 112, §162; Code 1923, c. 43, §162, c, 44, §18.)

§7. Purchase, Construction or Repair of Toll Bridge.—When it is necessary to build or repair a toll bridge on any county-district road, or to purchase any existing toll bridge on such road within any county, or across the boundary thereof, the county court of the county may contract for the same, or any part thereof, on such terms as may be agreed upon, and take bond and security from the contractors in the sum of fifty per cent of the amount of such contract, and pay. for the same out of the county road fund or out of the road funds of the district or districts in which such improvement is located, or by issuing bonds for the amount that may be agreed upon; and to this end the court shall appoint a competent engineer to make a thorough investigation and estimate of the cost of such improvement. Upon receiving the estimate of cost, the court, if satisfied with the correctness of same and the necessity and importance of such improvement, may advertise for and receive proposals and make such other orders in the premises from time to time as shall be necessary and proper.,(1921, c. 112, §139; Code 1923, c. 43, §139.)

§8. Termination of Privilege to Erect and Maintain Toll Bridge; Toll Rates.—When a certificate of incorporation is hereafter obtained for the erection of a toll bridge, if the work be not commenced within one year from the date thereof, or be not completed within five years after such commencement, or if, after its completion, there be an abandonment of the bridge, or a failure for three successive years to keep it in good order, in each of these cases the privilege granted by such certificate shall cease. There may be charged and collected on persons and things passing over any such bridge such reasonable tolls as the corporation may, by resolution, from time to time prescribe, subject, however, at all times to the control of the public service commission.(Code 1849, c. 64, §27; Code 1860, c. 64, §27; Code 1868, c. 44, §16; 1882, c. 159, §16; Code 1923, c. 44, §16.)

§9. Toll Rates for Troops.—The tolls for troops or persons in the military or naval service of this State, or of the United States, with their arms, munitions and baggage, shall not exceed on any such bridge one-fourth of the tolls for other persons.(Code 1849, c. 64, §30; Code 1860, c. 64, §30; Code 1868, c. 44, §19; 1882, c. 159, §19; Code 1923, c. 44, §19.)

§10. Prepayment of Tolls.—The proprietor of any toll bridge may require lawful toll to be paid previously to a passage thereover. But if there be demanded at any such bridge more than is lawful, the proprietor shall forfeit to the party aggrieved so much as is illegally demanded and a further sum of not less than two nor more than fifteen dollars.(Code 1849, c. 64, §31; Code 1860, c. 64, §31; Code 1868, c. 44, §20; 1882, c. 159, §20; Code 1923, c. 44, §20.)

§11. Gatekeeper to Keep Small Change.—A gatekeeper on any toll bridge shall keep such money of small denomination on hand, as may reasonably be required in the ordinary course of business, for making change for passengers, and it is the duty of passengers to offer money for passage of a denomination as near as possible to the amount charged for such passage. This section shall not apply to persons now having a lawful right to pass on such bridge without the payment of toll.(1921, c. 112, §158; Code 1923, c. 43, §158.)

§12. Prompt Passage; Penalty.—If at an toll bridge there be a failure to give any person or property a passage over the same in a reasonable time, the proprietor thereof shall forfeit to such person not less than two nor more than twenty dollars. If the keeper of any toll bridge shall absent himself therefrom without leaving any person in charge of the gates thereon, he shall leave the gates open. Any keeper of a toll bridge who shall fail to comply with the requirements of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined fifty dollars for every such offense; and any person injured by such failure shall be entitled to recover therefor from such keeper all damages sustained thereby.(Code 1849, c. 64, §32; Code 1860, c. 64, §32; Code 1868, c. 44, §21; 1882, c. 159, §21; Code 1923, c. 44, §21.)

§13. State Bridge Commission; Definitions.—As used in this and the following sections of this article, the word “bridge” shall be deemed to include all property, rights and franchises relating thereto, including approaches; the of word “improvements” shall mean such repairs, replacements, additions and betterments of and to a bridge acquired by purchase as are deemed necessary to place it in a safe and efficient condition for the use of the public, if such repairs, replacements, additions and betterments are ordered prior to the sale of any bonds for the acquisition of such bridge; the term “cost of bridge,” as applied to a bridge to be acquired by purchase, shall include the purchase price, cost of improvements, financing charges, interest during any period of disuse before completion of improvements, and all other expenses, including legal fees, trustee’s fees, traffic estimates and other estimates, which are necessarily or properly incidental to the acquisition or the improvement or the financing; the term ‘ ‘ cost of bridge, ’ ’ as applied to a bridge to be constructed, shall embrace the cost of construction, the cost of all land, property, rights and franchises acquired which are deemed necessary for such construction, financing charges, interest during construction, and all other expenses, including legal fees, trustee’s fees, traffic estimates and other estimates, which are necessarily or properly incidental to the construction or acquisition of the necessary land, property, rights and franchises or the financing; the word “commission” shall mean the state bridge commission created by this article, or, if said commission shall be abolished, any board or officer succeeding to the ” principal functions thereof or upon whom the powers given by this article to said bridge commission shall be given by law; the term ‘ owner ’ ' shall include all individuals, incorporated companies, societies or associations having any title or interest in any bridge properties, rights or franchises to be acquired.(1929, c. 8, §1.)

§14. Same; Creation; Appointment, Qualifications and Salary of Members; Employees.—There shall be a commission known as the “West Virginia Bridge Commission,” which shall be a corporation, and as such may sue and be sued, plead and be impleaded, contract and be contracted with, and have a common seal. The commission shall consist of three members of well known and successful business qualifications, who shall be appointed by the governor, by and. with the advice and consent of the senate, not more than two of whom shall belong to the same political party. The commissioners in office on the date this Code takes effect shall, unless sooner removed, continue to serve until their respective terms expire, and until their successors have been appointed and have qualified. On or before the first day of June, nineteen hundred and thirty-one, and on or before the first day of June of each alternate year thereafter, the governor shall appoint a commissioner to serve for a term of six years, commencing on said first day of June, and any commissioner shall be eligible for reappointment. The governor shall designate one of the members chairman, who shall serve as such during his will.

The commissioners before entering upon their duties shall take and subscribe the oath prescribed by section five of article four of the Constitution, and each shall execute a bond, to be approved by the governor, in the penalty of ten thousand dollars, conditioned according to law, which oath and bond shall be filed with the secretary of state and preserved and recorded in his office as other oaths and bonds required of state officials. No person while in the employ of, or holding any official relation to any person, firm or corporation selling or furnishing any materials entering into the construction, improvement, repair or maintenance of any bridge wholly or partly within the State, or who is pecuniarly interested therein, as a stockholder or otherwise, shall hold the office of commissioner; nor shall the commission appoint hereunder any person or persons as engineers, superintendents, or foremen sustaining such relation to such person, firm or corporation; nor shall such engineers, superintendents or foremen thereafter become in any way connected with or interested in any such person, firm or corporation while in the employ of the commission; nor shall any of said commissioners, or any engineer, superintendent or foreman appointed by the commission, be a candidate for, or hold any public office other than that of commissioner or of employment under said commission, or be a member of any political committee, either while acting as such commissioner or while holding employment thereunder. In case any of said commissioners, or its servants or employees, shall be a candidate for or hold any other public office, or shall be a member of any political committee, his office as commissioner or position as employee, as the case may be, shall be ipso facto vacated.

The commission shall make necessary rules and regulations for its own government, shall appoint a secretary-treasurer, and shall have power and authority to employ engineering, architectural and construction experts and inspectors and attorneys, and such other employees as may be necessary in its judgment, and fix their compensation, all of whom shall do such work as the commission shall direct.

Each commissioner shall receive a salary at the rate of one thousand dollars per annum, and the necessary expenses incurred in the discharge of the duties of his office, to be paid monthly. All salaries and compensation shall be paid solely from funds provided under the authority of this article, and the commission shall not proceed to exercise or carry out any authority or power herein given it to bind said commission beyond the extent to which money has been provided under the authority of this article.(1929, c. 8, §2.)

§15. Same; Authority to Purchase Toll Bridges.—The commission may purchase, when ever it shall deem such purchase expedient, but solely by means of or with the proceeds of the bridge revenue bonds hereinafter authorized, any toll bridge or bridges over and across any navigable river lying wholly or partly within the State or forming a boundary of the State, or any such toll bridge or bridges wholly or partly constructed, of such design or designs and at such locations as shall be approved by the state road commission, or any franchises, permits, and/or contracts for the construction of any such bridge or bridges, upon such terms and at such prices as may be considered by it to be reasonable and can be agreed upon between it and the owner thereof, and approved by the governor, title thereto to be taken in the name of the State.(1929, c. 8, §3.)

§16. Same; Repair of Toll Bridge Before Purchase.—At or before the time any such bridge shall be acquired by purchase by the commission, it shall determine what repairs, replacements, additions or betterments will be necessary to place the bridge in safe and efficient condition for the use of the public, and to cause an estimate of the cost of such improvement to be made and submitted to the commission by an engineer or engineers appointed by the commission. Such improvements shall be ordered by the commission before the sale of any bridge revenue bonds hereinafter authorized for the purchase of the bridge, and shall be paid for out of the proceeds of such bonds.(1929, c. 8, §4.)

§17. Same; Construction of Toll Bridge; Purchase of Land, Etc., Therefor.—The commission may construct, whenever it shall deem such construction expedient, but solely by means of or with the proceeds of the bridge revenue bonds hereinafter authorized, any toll bridge or bridges over and across any navigable river lying wholly or partly within the State or forming a boundary of the State, of such design or designs and at such place or places as may be approved by the state road commission. The commission may purchase within this State and within any adjoining state, solely from funds provided under the authority of this article, such lands, structures, rights of way, franchises, easements and other interests in lands, including lands under water and riparian rights of any person, railroad or other corporation or municipality or political subdivision, deemed necessary for the construction of any such bridge, upon such terms and at such prices as may be considered by it to be reasonable and can be agreed upon between it and the owner thereof, title thereto to be taken in the name of the State.(1929, c. 8, §5.)

§18. Same; Power of Eminent Domain.—Whenever it shall become necessary, the commission may condemn any interest, franchise, right of privilege, land or improvement which may in its opinion be necessary, in the manner provided by law for the acquisition by this State of property for public purposes. The commission may also exercise in this State and in any adjoining state such powers of eminent domain as may be conferred upon the commission by any act of the congress of the United States now in force or which may hereafter be enacted. Title to property condemned shall be taken in the name of the State. The State shall be under no obligation to accept and pay for any property condemned and shall in no event pay for the same except from the funds provided by this article, and in any proceeding to condemn, such orders shall be made by the court having jurisdiction of the suit, action or proceedings as may be just to the State and to the owners of property to be condemned, and a bond or other security may be required by the court securing such owners against any loss or damage to be sustained by reason of the failure of the State to accept and pay for the property, but such bond or security shall impose no liability or debt upon the State as contemplated by the provisions of the Constitution of the State in relation to state debt.(1929, c. 8, §6.)

§19. Same; Bridge Revenue Bonds; Proceeds.—The commission may pay the cost as de fined hereinabove of any one or more such bridges by the issuance of bridge revenue bonds of the State, by a resolution of the commission which shall recite an estimate by the commission of such cost, the principal and interest of which bonds shall be payable solely from the special fund herein provided for such payment. The commission, after any such issue of bonds or simultaneously therewith, may issue further issues of bonds to pay the cost of any other one or more of such bridges, in the manner and subject to all of the provisions herein contained as to the bonds first mentioned in this section. All such bonds shall have and are hereby declared to have all the qualities of negotiable instruments under the law merchant. Such bonds shall bear interest at not more than six per cent per annum, pay able semiannually, and shall mature in not more than twenty-five years from their date or dates and may be made redeemable at the option of the State, to be exercised by the commission, at such price and under such terms and conditions as the commission may fix prior to the issuance of such bonds. The commission shall determine the form — of such bonds, including coupons to be attached thereto to evidence the right of interest payments, which bonds shall be signed by the governor and the chairman of the commission, under the great seal of the State, attested by the secretary of state, and the coupons attached thereto shall bear the facsimile signature of the chairman of the commission. In case any of the officers whose signatures appear on the bonds or coupons shall cease to be such officers before the delivery of such bonds, such signatures shall nevertheless be valid and sufficient for all purposes the same as if they had remained in office until such delivery. The commission shall fix the denominations of such bonds, the principal and interest of which shall be payable at the office of the treasurer of the State of West Virginia, at the capitol of said State, or, at the option of the holder, at some bank or trust company in the city of New York to be named in the bonds, either in lawful money or in gold coin of the United States, of or equal to the then current standard of weight and fineness, as may be determined by the commission. Such bonds shall be exempt from taxation by the State of West Virginia or any county or municipality therein. The commission may provide for the registration of such bonds in the name of the owner as to principal alone and as to both principal and interest under such terms and conditions as the commission may determine, and shall sell such bonds in such manner as it may determine to be for the best interest of the State, taking into consideration the financial responsibility of the purchaser and the terms and conditions of the purchase and especially the avail ability of the proceeds of the bonds when required for payment of the cost of the bridges, such sale to be made at a price not lower than a price which, computed upon standard tables of bond values, will show a net return of six per cent per annum to the purchaser upon the amount paid therefor.

The proceeds of such bonds shall be used solely for the payment of the cost of the bridges, and shall be checked out by the chairman of the commission and the secretary-treasurer thereof and under such further restrictions, if any, as the commission may provide. If the proceeds of such bonds, by error or calculation or otherwise, shall be less than the cost of the bridge or bridges, additional bonds may in like manner be issued to provide the amount of such deficit, and, unless otherwise provided in the trust agreement hereinafter mentioned, shall be deemed to be of the same issue and shall be entitled to payment from the same fund, without preference or priority of the bonds first issued for the same bridge or bridges. If the proceeds of bonds issued for any bridge or bridges shall exceed the cost thereof, the surplus shall be paid into the fund hereinafter provided for payment of the principal and interest of such bonds. Such fund may be used for the purchase of any of the outstanding bonds payable from such fund at the market price, but at not exceeding the price, if any, at which such bonds shall in the same year be redeemable, and all bonds redeemed or purchased shall forthwith be canceled and shall not again be issued.

Prior to the preparation of definitive bonds, the commission may under like restrictions issue temporary bonds with or without coupons, exchangeable for definitive bonds upon the issuance of the latter. Such revenue bonds may be issued without any other proceedings or the happening of any other conditions or things than those proceedings, conditions and things which are specified and required by this article or by the Constitution of the State.(1929, c. 8, §7.)

§20. Same; Trust Agreement Respecting Bonds.—The commission may enter into an agreement or agreements with any trust company or with any bank having the powers of a trust company, either within or outside of the State, as trustee for the holders of bonds issued hereunder, setting forth therein such duties of the State and of the commission in respect of the acquisition, construction, improvement, maintenance, operation, repair and insurance of the bridges, the conservation and application of all moneys, the insurance of moneys on hand or on deposit, and the rights and remedies of the trustee and the holders of the bonds, as may be agreed upon with the original purchasers of such bonds, and including therein provisions restricting the individual right of action of bondholders as is customary in trust agreements respecting bonds and debentures of corporations, protecting and enforcing the rights and remedies of the trustee and the bondholders, and providing for approval by the original purchasers of the bonds, of the appointment of consulting engineers and of the security given by those who contract to make improvements, and by any bank or trust company in which the proceeds of bonds or bridge tolls shall be deposited, and for approval by the consulting engineers of all contracts for improvements. All expenses incurred in carrying out such agreement may be treated as a part of the cost of maintenance, operation and repair of the bridge or bridges affected by the agreement.(1929, c. 8, §8.)

§21. Same; General Supervision of Bridges Under Its Jurisdiction.—The commission shall properly maintain, repair, operate, manage and control the bridges, fix the rates of tolls and establish by-laws and rules and regulations for the use and operation of the bridges, and may make and enter into all contracts or agreements necessary and incidental to the performance of its duties and the execution of its powers under this article, including power to permit use of such bridges by street railways and other transportation lines, and telephone, telegraph, pipe and other lines, and contract with them for such use and fix the terms and conditions thereof and the charges or tolls for such use.(1929, c. 8, §9.)

§22. Same; Tolls to be Charged; Disposition Thereof.—Tolls shall be fixed, charged and collected for transit over such bridges and shall be so fixed and adjusted, in respect of the aggregate of tolls from the bridge or bridges for which a single issue of bonds is issued, as to provide a fund sufficient to pay the principal and interest of such issue of bonds and to provide an additional fund to pay the cost of maintaining, repairing and operating such bridge or bridges, subject, however, to any applicable law or regulation of the United States of America now in force or hereafter to be enacted or made: Pro vided, however, That in ease a single issue of bonds is issued for the purchase and/or construction of two or more bridges, such bridges shall be located in whole or in part in one county of the State. The tolls from the bridge or bridges for which a single issue of bonds is issued, except such part thereof as may be necessary to pay such cost of maintaining, repairing and operating during any period in which such cost is not otherwise provided for (during which period the tolls may be reduced accordingly), shall be transmitted each month to the state sinking fund commission and by it placed in a special fund which is hereby pledged to and charged with the payment of the principal of such bonds and the interest thereon, and to the redemption or repurchase of such bonds, such special fund to be a fund for all such bonds without distinction or priority of one over another. The moneys in such special fund, less a reserve for payment of interest not exceeding one year’s interest on the bonds, if not used by the sinking fund commission within a reasonable time for the purchase of bonds for cancellation at a price not exceeding the market price and not exceeding the redemption price, shall be applied to the redemption of bonds by lot at the redemption price then applicable.(1929, c. 8, §10.)

§23. Same; When Tolls to Cease.—When the particular bonds issued for any bridge or bridges and the interest thereon shall have been paid, or a sufficient amount shall have been provided for their payment and shall continue to be held for that purpose, tolls for the use of such bridge or bridges shall cease except for the cost of maintaining, repairing and operating such bridge or bridges. Thereafter and as long as the cost of maintaining, repairing and operating such bridge or bridges shall be provided for through means other than tolls, no tolls shall be charged for transit thereover and such bridge or bridges shall be free.(1929, c. 8, §11.)

§24. Same; Construction of State Bridge Commission Law in Relation to State Debt.—Nothing in this article contained shall be so construed or interpreted as to authorize or permit the incurring of state debt of any kind or nature as contemplated by the provisions of the Constitution of this State in relation to the state debt.(1929, c. 8, §12.)

§25. Same; State Bridge Commission Law a Alternate Method; Construction of Competitive Bridge.—Sections thirteen to twenty-eight, inclusive, of this article shall be deemed to provide an additional and alternative method for the doing of the things authorized hereby and shall be regarded as supplementary and additional to powers conferred by other laws: Provided, however, That no bridge for the use of the traveling public shall hereafter be erected and operated by any public authority authorized by law to construct bridges, or by any person, firm or corporation, across any river or other stream in this State, between any bridge across such river or other stream and any bridge thereover owned by the State and operated as a toll bridge by the state bridge commission, except under a permit of the state bridge commission in writing, until a certificate of convenience and necessity shall have been granted for the construction and operation thereof by the public service commission. No such certificate of convenience and necessity shall be granted by the public service commission until application in writing shall have been made therefor, and the applicant shall have filed with such application a map showing the location and design of the bridge for the erection and operation of which the certificate of convenience and necessity is sought, and the location of the existing bridges across the river or other stream between which the bridge is proposed to be erected, and the location of all the public roads leading to, and between, the existing bridges for a distance of twenty miles on either side of the river or other stream, and such other information as the public service commission may deem necessary, together with proof that a copy of the application and map was, at least sixty days prior thereto, furnished to the state bridge commission or its secretary; nor until the public service commission shall, by investigation and by a hearing had thereon, under such rules as it may prescribe, determine that there is an imperative public need for the erection and operation of such bridge, and that its erection and operation will not materially injure the revenue of any bridge owned by the State and operated by the state bridge commission as a toll bridge. This proviso shall not apply where any bridge owned by the State and operated by the state bridge commission as a toll bridge is operated only for the maintenance, repair and operation of such bridge, and not for the purpose of paying any indebtedness against the same.(1929, c. 8, §13.)

§26. Same; When Consent of Other Officers and Boards Not Required.—It shall not be necessary to secure from any officer or board not named in this article any approval or consent or any certificate or finding, or to hold an election, or to take any proceedings whatever, either for the acquisition or construction of such bridges, or the improvement thereof, or their maintenance, operation or repair, or for the issuance of bonds hereunder, except such as are prescribed by this article or are required by the Constitution of the State.(1929, c. 8, §14.)

§27. Same; State Bridge Commission Law to be Liberally Construed.—Sections thirteen to twenty-eight, inclusive, of this article, being necessary for the health, welfare and convenience of the citizens of the State, shall be liberally construed to effectuate the purposes thereof.(1929, c. 8, §15.)

§28. Same; Provisions of State Bridge Commission Law Separable.—The provisions and parts of sections thirteen to twenty-eight, inclusive, of this article are separable and are not matters of mutual essential inducement, and it is the intention to confer the whole or any part of the powers herein provided for, and if any of the sections or provisions, or parts thereof, are for any reason illegal, it is the intention that the remaining sections and provisions or parts there of shall remain in full force and effect.(1929, c. 8, §16.)

§1. Ferries; Discontinuance by Disuse.—Every ferry established and not discontinued before this Code takes effect may continue to be kept. But if any such ferry, or any ferry that may hereafter be established, be disused for two years and six months, and any part of such time be after this Code takes effect, it shall, by reason of such disuse, be ipso facto discontinued, without any judicial or other proceeding for that purpose.(Code 1849, c. 64, §11; Code 1860, c. 64, §11; Code 1868, c. 44, §1; 1882, c. 159, §1; Code 1923, c. 44, §1.)

§2. Application for Establishment of Ferry; Notice.—A person desiring to establish a ferry across any watercourse, whether it be a stream bounding the State or not, who owns or has contracted for the use of land at the point at which he wishes to establish the same, may present his application for the privilege to the county court of the county, or of either of the counties, in or from which he desires to establish such ferry. But notice that the application has been presented, or of the intention to present the same, shall be posted at the front door of the courthouse, and three other public places in the district, in or from which such ferry is proposed, three weeks at least before the application is acted upon.(Code 1849, c. 64, §12; Code 1860, c. 64, §12; Code 1868, c. 44, §2; 1882, c. 159, §2; Code 1923, c. 44, §2.)

§3. View of Ferry Site.—The county court, after notice has been given as aforesaid, shall appoint two or more viewers, or a committee of their own body, to view the place and report the advantages and disadvantages which, in their opinion, will result, as well to individuals as to the public, from the proposed ferry, and the facts and circumstances that may be useful to enable the court to determine whether the ferry ought to be established or not. The expenses of the proceeding shall be ascertained by the court and paid by the applicant. When proper, they shall cause notice of the pendency of such application to be given, in such manner as they may direct, to the parties interested, or any of them.(Code 1849, c. 64, §13; Code 1860, c. 64, §13; Code 1868, c. 44, §3; 1882, c. 159, §3; Code 1923, c. 44, §3.)

§4. Decision on Application.—Upon such report, and on any other proper evidence, the court may reject the application, or may, unless the watercourse at such place be the division line between two counties, grant leave to establish such ferry, and prescribe, subject to revision and alteration by the public service commission, the number of hands and the number and kind of boats to be kept, and the rates of ferriage for persons and things at the same.(Code 1849, c. 64, §14; Code 1860, c. 64, §14; Code 1868, c. 44, §4; 1882, c. 159, §4; Code 1923, c. 44, §4.)

§5. Ferry Where Watercourse County Boundary.—If, however, the watercourse be such division line, and the court be of opinion that the application ought to be granted, they shall certify such opinion to the county court of the other county, with the number of hands and the number and kind of boats, and the rates of ferriage, which they deem proper at the same, subject to revision and alteration by the public service commission. The applicant may then apply to the county court of such other county, after notice therein as prescribed in section two of this article, and such court, upon the report already made, and any other proper evidence, may reject the application or grant the same on the terms prescribed by the other court.(Code 1849, c. 64, §15; Code 1860, c. 64, §15; Code 1868, c. 44, §5; 1882, c. 159, §5; Code 1923, c. 44, §5.)

§6. Unauthorized Ferry; Penalty.—If any person or corporation shall, without having obtained the privilege to do so, as provided in the four next preceding sections, establish, keep or maintain a ferry over any watercourse, on or over which another ferry has been legally established, or shall keep a boat or other watercraft with a hand or hands generally ready to transport or carry any person, horse, carriage, wagon, cart or other thing, whether for reward or not, or shall for compensation furnish, hire or loan to another any boat, skiff or other watercraft, to be used for ferrying any person or thing over such watercourse, every person so offending shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined for each offense not less than twenty-five nor more than two hundred dollars. And if the owner or occupant of any land bordering on any such stream shall suffer or permit another person who is keeping or maintaining any such ferry, or who is keeping such boat or other watercraft with such hand or hands with the object or for the purpose aforesaid, to use any part of the land so owned or occupied by him, as a landing for such ferry, boat or other watercraft, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on conviction, fined as aforesaid. And the owner or keeper of every such ferry, not legally established as aforesaid, and every person who shall keep such boat or watercraft as aforesaid, and the owner or occupier of any such land as aforesaid, shall moreover be liable to the owner or lessee of any ferry legally established over such watercourse for all damages he may sustain by reason of the unlawful keeping or maintaining of any such ferry, boat or watercraft on any such watercourse. But no ferry privileges or franchises shall preclude the erection of bridges over any watercourse, or entitle the owner of such privileges or franchises to damages in case of the erection of a bridge or bridges over any watercourse.(Code 1849, c. 64, §25; Code 1860, c. 64, §25; Code 1868, c. 44, §6; 1882, c. 159, §6; Code 1923, c. 44, §6.)

§7. Operation of Private Boats.—The preceding section shall not be construed to prevent a person from going across any watercourse in his own boat, or taking therein his own property, or the members of his own family, or persons in his employment; nor to prevent a merchant or miller from carrying across a watercourse in his own boat, without reward therefor, any person bonafide engaged in the actual transportation to or from his store, mine, or mill, of grain, coal, timber or other produce.(Code 1849, c. 64, §26; Code 1860, c. 64, §26; Code 1868, c. 44, §7; 1882, c. 159, §7; Code 1923, c. 44, §7.)

§8. Forfeiture for Unlawful Transportation.—In the case of a watercourse over which there is a lawfully established ferry, if any person, his horse or carriage, be unlawfully transported for reward over such watercourse, the person so transporting the same shall forfeit twenty dollars to the proprietor of such ferry over such watercourse as is nearest to the place of such transportation.(Code 1849, c. 64, §22; Code 1860, c. 64, §22; Code 1868, c. 44, §8; 1882, c. 159, §8; Code 1923, c. 44, §8.)

§9. Ferry Landings.—The proprietor of every ferry shall have a convenient wharf or landing made so as to be firm and dry. He shall also put up and maintain, at or near each landing of his ferry, a good and sufficient bell, conveniently hung and provided with a rope or other fixture for ringing the same; and he shall ferry persons or things from the point to which, as well as from the point from which, the ferry is established, and receive therefor the rates established at such ferry.(Code 1849, c. 64, §21; Code 1860, c. 64, §21; Code 1868, c. 44, §9; 1882, c. 159, §9; Code 1923, c. 44, §9.)

§10. Establishment of Wharf at Public Landing; Regulation.—Any person desiring the privilege of erecting a wharf at or on any public landing, not a part of a state road, may present a petition to the county court of such county for such privilege; but notice of the petition, or of his intention to present the same, shall be posted at the front door of the county courthouse and at three public places in the district in which it is proposed to erect such wharf, three weeks at least before the petition is acted upon. Such court, upon petition and notice, may grant such privilege upon such conditions and limitations, and fix such rates and charges for wharfage, as it sees fit, subject to revision and alterations by the public service commission. But it may at any time afterwards, upon ten days’ notice to the owner of such wharf, or his tenants, revoke such privilege or alter such conditions or limitations, subject to the regulatory power of said commission.(1909, c. 52, §48; 1921, c. 112, §163; Code 1923, c. 43, §163.)

§11. Wharf or Pier on Land Along Watercourse; Abatement.—Any person owning land upon a watercourse may erect a wharf on the same, or a pier or bulkhead in such watercourse, opposite his land, provided the navigation be not obstructed thereby, and provided such wharf, pier or bulkhead shall not otherwise injure the rights of any person. But the county court of the county in which such wharf, pier or bulkhead shall be, after causing ten days’ notice to be given to the owner thereof of its intention to consider the subject, if it be satisfied that such wharf, pier or bulkhead obstructs the navigation of the watercourse, or so encroaches on any public landing as to prevent the free use thereof, may abate the same.(1909, c. 52, §47; 1921, c. 112, §164; Code 1923, c. 43, §164.)

§12. Duty to Have Boats and Hands at Ferry Within Six Months After Order Establishing It; Cessation of Rights.—If any person to whom leave may be granted to establish a ferry shall not, within six months thereafter, have at such ferry the number and kind of boats, and the number of hands prescribed by the order granting such leave, he shall not, after such six months, have any rights under such order.(Code 1849, c. 64, §19; Code 1860, c. 64, §19; Code 1868, c. 44, §10; 1882, c. 159, §10; Code 1923, c. 44, §10.)

§13. Ferry Permit; Bond; Duties of Ferryman; Hours.—The proprietor of every ferry shall keep at the same the number and kind of boats, and the number of competent hands prescribed by the order under which such ferry has been or shall be established, or by the order of the public service commission. And it shall be unlawful for the proprietor of any ferry, or any person renting or leasing the same, at any ferry now established, or which may hereafter be established, on the watercourses of West Virginia or along the Ohio river, to engage in the business of ferryman, until he shall have obtained a permit or license from the county court, city, village or town council, or other tribunal in lieu thereof. Before such permit or license shall be granted, the applicant shall present to the authorities vested with the power to grant the same a certificate of good moral character, sober and temperate habits, with the requisite qualifications of a ferryman, together with a bond made payable to the State of West Virginia, in such penalty as the county court, city, village or town council, or other tribunal in lieu thereof, may fix, and with good security to be approved by the same, conditioned for the faithful performance of all duties required by law of such ferryman. And he shall promptly obey the summons given him by the ringing of such ferry bell, and ferry all persons and property during the hours which the county court, city, village, or town council, or other tribunal in lieu thereof, or the public service commission, shall prescribe for the daily ferrying, and he shall also ferry any messenger going for a physician or surgeon, and ferry any physician or surgeon going to or returning from professional calls, also mail carriers and telegraph couriers, at all hours, whenever required to do so, when the rivers are in a condition to ferry over, for which night service, after the usual hours prescribed for daily ferrying, he shall be entitled to double the daily rate of compensation.(Code 1849, c. 64, §20; Code 1860, c. 64, §20; Code 1868, c. 44, §11; 1882, c. 159, §11; Code 1923, c. 44, §11.)

§14. Posting Rates.—The public service commission may require the proprietor of a ferry to keep conspicuously posted at each landing a list of the rates lawfully chargeable at such ferry.(1864, c. 45; Code 1868, c. 44, §14; 1882, c. 159, §14; Code 1923, c. 44, §14.)

§15. Prepayment of Ferriage.—The proprietor of any ferry may require lawful ferriage to be paid previously to a passage over his ferry. But if there be demanded at any such ferry more than is lawful, the proprietor shall forfeit to the party aggrieved so much as is illegally demanded and a further sum of not less than two nor more than fifteen dollars.(Code 1849, c. 64, §31; Code 1860, c. 64, §31; Code 1868, c. 44, §20; 1882, c. 159, §20; Code 1923, c. 44, §20.)

§16. Prompt Passage; Ferries From Railroad Stations; Penalty.—If at any ferry there be a failure to give any person or property a passage over the same in a reasonable time, the proprietor thereof shall forfeit to such person not less than two nor more than twenty dollars. The owner or lessee of any ferry across a river between any city, town or village and a railroad depot or station, whether his ferryboat be propelled by steam or not, shall, whenever it can reasonably be done, cause such boat to be at the landing on the side on which such depot or station is on the arrival of each passenger train on such railroad, or within five minutes after such arrival, for the accommodation of passengers arriving on such train who may desire to cross such river, whether the arrival of such train be in the day or night, unless there be a bridge across such river at or near such ferry. He shall also, whenever it can reasonably be done, carry all persons desiring to take passage on any such train and their baggage across such river in time to enable them to do so before the departure of such train. Any owner or lessee of a ferry who shall fail to comply with the requirements of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined fifty dollars for every such offense; and any party injured by such failure shall be entitled to recover therefor from such owner or lessee all damages sustained thereby.(Code 1849, c. 64, §32; Code 1860, c. 64, §32; Code 1868, c. 44, §21; 1882, c. 159, §21; Code 1923, c. 44, §21.)

§17. Ferries Across Shenandoah River.—The county court of any county in the State of West Virginia, through which the Shenandoah river runs, may establish on and across said river not more than three free ferries; and such ferries shall be provided with sufficient landings and boats, and such attendants for the boats, as may be necessary to accommodate public travel. The court shall pay all expenses of establishing such ferries, and of providing and maintaining the necessary boats and attendants therefor, out of the county treasury.(1921, c. 112, §171; Code 1923, c. 43, §171.)

§18. Interference by Ferries in Another State.—Any owner or occupier, or the agent of an owner or occupier, of a ferry on the shore of another state opposite or within two miles of a ferry established under the laws of this State across such river, who shall ferry from the shore of such river within this State, whether for or without reward, any person, horse, carriage, cattle, sheep, hogs or other stock, and carry the same across such river to the shore of such other state, without the consent of the proprietor of the ferry so established under the laws of this State, shall, for every such offense, forfeit to such proprietor ten dollars.(Code 1849, c. 64, §23; Code 1860, c. 64, §23; Code 1868, c. 44, §15; 1882, c. 159, §15; Code 1923, c. 44, §15.)

§19. Offenses and Penalties; Termination of Ferry Privilege.—Any proprietor of a ferry, or any ferryman, who shall violate any provision of this article, which makes the violation thereof a crime without specifying the grade or fixing the penalty, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than ten nor more than twenty dollars; and, moreover, if the proprietor of any ferry fail in any respect to comply with any section of this article, the county court in which such ferry is established may adjudge and declare all his privileges in respect to such ferry at an end, after first causing such proprietor to be summoned to show cause against such order.(Code 1849, c. 64, §18; Code 1860, c. 64, §18; Code 1868, c. 44, §12; 1882, c. 159, §12; Code 1923, c. 44, §12.)

§1. Advertisements and Signs Prohibited; Penalty.—Any person who in any manner paints or affixes any advertisement, sign, notice, or other written or printed matter, other than notices posted in pursuance of law, on or to any stone, tree, fence, stump, pole, building or other structure, which is in or upon the right of way of any public road or highway, except that the commission may provide for suitable danger signals, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than five nor more than one hundred dollars. The commission is empowered to remove any such signs in place upon any road taken over by it for construction or maintenance.(1921, c. 112, §67; Code 1923, c. 43, §67; 1923, c. 6, §67.)

§2. Travel on Road Under Construction or Closed to Traffic; Injury to Road Work, Equipment or Materials; Penalty.—Any person who shall ride, or drive, upon any new roadbed or new repairs of any roadbed constructed or being constructed by or under the supervision of the state road commission or any county court before the same is open for traffic, and any person who shall remove any light or guard set up for the purpose of closing such road, or any part thereof, to traffic, and any person who shall otherwise maliciously injure or damage in any manner any road or highway built under the provisions of this chapter, either in the course of its construction or thereafter, or who shall maliciously injure or damage any work, equipment, material or structure used in connection therewith, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than one hundred dollars, or imprisoned not more than three months, or, in the discretion of the court, may be both fined and imprisoned.(1921, c. 112, §68; Code 1923, c. 43, §68.)

§3. Offenses Affecting Bridges; Penalty.—Whoever shall obstruct or cause to be obstructed any walk or driveway to or upon any public bridge, or shall loiter upon or about the entrance to the same, or in anywise interfere with the gatekeeper or passengers upon such bridge, unless he be an officer acting in the discharge of his duty, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined ten dollars.(1921, c, 112, §59; Code 1923, c. 43, §59.)

§4. Unauthorized Operation of Vehicle; Unlawful Taking, Receiving or Disposing of the Same; Penalty.—No person, other than the duly authorized agent, servant or employee of the owner thereof, shall take, without the knowledge and consent of the owner, and operate upon any public road or highway in this State, any automobile or other motor vehicle owned by another. Any person who, wilfully and without the knowledge or consent of the owner or person in lawful charge thereof, and with the intent to deprive such owner or person in lawful charge of the possession or use thereof, either temporarily or permanently, shall take possession of, enter and drive, or otherwise take away from any street, road, alley, public or parking place, garage or other building or place, while the same is lawfully therein or thereon, any automobile or other motor vehicle belonging to another or in his lawful possession; and any person or persons who shall assist, aid and abet, or be present for the purpose and with the intent to assist, aid or abet, another person or persons in such taking possession of, entering and driving or otherwise taking away any such automobile or other motor vehicle; and any person who shall receive, buy, conceal, or otherwise dispose of any such automobile or other motor vehicle, knowing the same to have been stolen or taken without the knowledge or consent of the owner or person in lawful charge thereof, shall be deemed guilty of a felony, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than two hundred nor more than five thousand dollars, and confined in the penitentiary for not less than two nor more than ten years. If a corporation or joint stock company, through or by any of its officers, members, agents, servants or employees, under the circumstances and with the knowledge defined in this section, shall receive, buy, conceal or otherwise dispose of any such automobile or other motor vehicle, such corporation or joint stock company shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished with a fine of not less than two thousand nor more than ten thousand dollars.(1921, c. 112, §90; Code 1923, c. 43, §90.)

§5. Prima Facie Evidence of Violation of Preceding Section.—The receiving, buying, concealing or otherwise disposing of any automobile, or other motor vehicle, by any person or persons, firm, partnership, corporation or joint stock company, prior to a demand and receipt from the seller thereof, or the person or persons otherwise disposing of the same, of an authentic and valid bill of sale, certificate of title, or other instrument showing title to the same in the person or persons so selling or disposing of the same, shall be prima facie evidence that such person or persons, firm, partnership, corporation or joint stock company, received, bought, concealed or otherwise disposed of such automobile or other motor vehicle knowing it to have been stolen or to have been taken without the knowledge or consent of the owner or person in lawful charge thereof, and with the intent to deprive the owner or person in lawful charge of the possession or use thereof, either temporarily or permanently.(1921, c. 112, §91; Code 1923, c. 43, §91.)

§6. Unlawful Taking or Receiving of Part of Vehicle or Thing Therein; Penalty.—Whoever maliciously, or without the knowledge or consent of the owner or the person in lawful charge thereof, or with intent to steal or deprive the owner of the use or possession thereof, either temporarily or permanently, shall take and remove from any automobile or other motor vehicle any part or portion thereof, or any thing attached thereto or contained therein; and whoever shall assist, aid or abet, or be present for the purpose of assisting, aiding and abetting, any person or persons in such taking and removing from any automobile or other motor vehicle of any part or portion thereof or anything attached thereto or contained therein, without the knowledge or consent of the owner or person in lawful charge thereof, or with the intent to deprive the owner or the person in lawful charge thereof of the use and possession thereof, either temporarily or permanently; and whoever shall buy, receive or have in his possession any of such articles or any part thereof so unlawfully removed, knowing them to have been taken without the knowledge or consent of the owner or person in lawful charge thereof, or with intent to steal or deprive the owner or person in lawful possession thereof, either temporarily or permanently, of the use and possession thereof, shall, if the value of such article or articles so taken and removed be less than twenty dollars, be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than one hundred nor more than five hundred dollars, and confined in the county jail for not less than sixty days nor more than six months. If the value of such article or articles shall exceed twenty dollars, he shall be deemed guilty of a felony, and shall, upon conviction thereof, be confined in the penitentiary not less than one nor more than five years, and be fined not less than one hundred nor more than five hundred dollars.(1921, c. 112, §92; Code 1923, c. 43, §92.)

§7. Jumping on Vehicle or Tamperin Therewith.—No person shall, without authority of the owner or person in charge thereof, climb upon, or into, or swing upon, any vehicle, whether the same is in motion or at rest, sound any horn or any signaling device, or attempt to manipulate any of the levers, the starter, brakes or machinery thereof, or set such vehicle in motion, or damage, tamper or interfere with the same. Any person violating any portion of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than five nor more than twenty-five dollars.(1921, c. 112, §99; Code 1923, c. 43, §99.)

§8. Unlawful to Employ Relatives on Roads.—It shall be unlawful for any county court, or any county engineer or supervisor, or district road superintendent, to appoint or employ, as a laborer on the public roads, the father, son, son-in-law, grandson, brother, brother-in-law, nephew or first cousin by blood of any member of such court or of such engineer or supervisor or superintendent; provided a sufficient amount of other efficient labor can be secured within the vicinity. Any person violating the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars.(1921, c. 112, §115; Code 1923, c. 43, §115.)

§9. Unlawful to Park Vehicle on Road With out Light.—Any person who shall park, except with its lights dimmed, any automobile or other motor vehicle on any public road or highway outside the limits of any incorporated town or city, between thirty minutes after sundown and thirty minutes before sunrise, shall be guilty of obstructing such road or highway, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than ten nor more than fifty dollars, or imprisoned in the county jail not less than ten nor more than thirty days.(1921, c. 112, §186; Code 1923, c. 43, §186.)

§10. Unlawful to Use on Road Vehicle With Fastened Wheel; Hauling Log or Heavy Object.—Any person who shall use on any public road not covered with ice a vehicle with a chained or roughlocked wheel, unless the same rests upon a shoe at least six inches wide and twelve inches long, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than five nor more than twenty-five dollars. Every person who shall draw upon the public road any log, stone or other heavy object, with the end thereof dragging on the ground so that the road shall be injured thereby, and shall not immediately put such road in as good repair as before, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than five nor more than twenty-five dollars, and in addition thereto shall be liable for the cost of repair of such road.(1921, c. 112, §188; Code 1923, c. 43, §188.)

§11. False Affidavit; Penalty.—Any person who shall make a false affidavit, where an affidavit is required under any of the provisions of this chapter, shall, except as otherwise provided, be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not exceeding one thousand dollars, or confined in the county jail not exceeding one year, or, in the discretion of the court or justice, both fined and imprisoned.(1921, c. 112, §189; Code 1923, c. 43, §189.)

§12. Unlawful Display of Insignia of Motor Club; Penalty.—It shall be unlawful for any person to display upon a motor vehicle in this State the insignia or emblem of any motor vehicle club or similar organization, unless he shall be entitled to use the same under the constitution, by-laws, rules or regulations of such club or organization. Any person violating the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be l fined not less than ten nor more than fifty dollars.(1925, c. 16, §1.)

§13. Miscellaneous Offenses; Penalty.—If any person, by himself or agent, without lawful authority so to do, shall destroy, injure or deface any of the guide boards, milestones or posts, parapets, walks, culverts, bridges, masonry of any kind, gates belonging to or forming a part of a public road, or toll houses in connection with a bridge authorized by law to receive tolls thereon; or who shall wilfully break down or destroy any bench or log placed across a stream for the accommodation of travelers; or who shall injure any statue, monument, chair or other seat, or lamp or lamp post, constructed on or being in any way connected with a public road, space or park, or any railing or fencing erected for public use, or inclosing any such space or park, or any railing, posts or guards along a public road for the protection of travel thereon, or any walk or crossing for foot passengers; or who shall obstruct or injure any public road or ditch made for the draining thereof, or any of its is sewers, curbing, gutters, drains or culverts; or who shall place or leave in a public road any ashes, cinders, earth, stone or other material, obstructive to the travel and use of such road; or who shall place or leave in any public road any vehicle or conveyance of any kind, or any kind of implement, so as to interfere with travel thereon; or who shall divert any stream of water from its regular course or channel so as to injure or endanger a public road; or who shall connect any road with a public road in such manner as to impede the flow of water in the ditches or gutters thereof or obstruct or impede travel thereon; or who shall throw or place, or cause to be thrown or placed, on any public road, any tacks, nails, scrap metal, glass, crockery, wire or other substance injurious to the feet of persons or animals, or the tires of vehicles; or who shall remove, injure or destroy any material or equipment, used or intended for use in the construction, reconstruction, repair or maintenance of any public road; or who shall kill a tree and leave it standing within fifty feet of any public road; shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than ten nor more than fifty dollars, and shall moreover be liable to the state road commission, county court or individual, as the case may be, for any injury caused by such act.

The term “public road,” as used in this section, shall include any street, alley or public highway.(1921, c. 112, §§184, 187; Code 1923, c. 43, §§184, 187.)

§14. Offense and Punishment When Not Specifically Defined or Fixed.—Any person violating any of the provisions of this chapter, where such provisions make the violation thereof a crime without specifying the grade or fixing the punishment, shall be guilty of a misdemean or, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than five nor more than fifty dollars.(1921, c. 112, §192; Code 1923, c. 43, §192.)

§15. Jurisdiction of Crimes by Justices.—Justices of the peace shall have concurrent jurisdiction with the circuit, criminal and intermediate courts to enforce the misdemeanor penalties prescribed by this chapter.(1921, c. 112, §190; Code 1923, c. 43, §190.)