Coachella Municipal Code Ch. 10.12 Transportation of Hazardous Materials

A. A vehicle transporting a hazardous material or substance as identified in Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations must be attended at all times by its driver or a qualified representative of the motor carrier that operates it, and shall not be parked on any highway, highway shoulder, street, alley, public way or public place, or within five feet of the traveled portion thereof, within a residential zone, or within one thousand (1,000) feet of any school or within three hundred (300) feet of any bridge or tunnel, except for brief periods when mechanical or equipment failure or disablement or malfunction of the vehicle, or the necessities of operation require the vehicle to be parked and make it impractical to park the vehicle in any other place.

B. Repair, maintenance, refuse, utility, termite and pesticide vehicles, fuel delivery vehicles, and vehicles delivering life support and health commodities, while servicing residential areas or schools, are exempt from the provisions of subsection A of this section. Additionally, such exempt vehicles need not be attended while the drivers are performing duties that are normally and necessarily performed by the operator of the vehicle or the provider of the service.

C. For purposes of this section:

1. A motor vehicle is attended when the person in charge of the vehicle is on the vehicle, awake and not in a sleeper berth, or is within one hundred (100) feet of the vehicle and has it within his unobstructed field of view.

2. A qualified representative of a motor carrier is a person who:

a. Has been designated by the carrier to attend the vehicle;

b. Is aware of the nature of the hazardous material or substance contained in the vehicle he or she attends;

c. Has been instructed on the procedures he or she must follow in emergencies concerning hazardous materials or substances; and

d. Is authorized to move the vehicle and has the means and ability to do so.

D. The rules of this section do not relieve a driver from any obligation imposed by federal, state, or local laws relating to the transportation of hazardous materials or explosives, motor carrier safety regulations, or the placement of warning signs or devices when a motor vehicle is stopped on a public street or highway.

(Prior code § 23-30)

Any person violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine in a sum not exceeding five hundred dollars ($500.00).

(Prior code § 23-31)