Torrance Municipal Code Art. 4 Traffic Control Devices

a) Whenever the Vehicle Code of this State requires for the effectiveness of any provision thereof that traffic control devices be installed to give notice to the public of the application of such law, the City Traffic Engineer is hereby authorized to install the necessary devices subject to any limitations or restrictions set forth in the law applicable thereto.

b) The City Traffic Engineer may also place and maintain such additional traffic control devices as he may deem necessary to regulate traffic or to guide or warn traffic, but he shall make such determination only upon the basis of traffic engineering principles and traffic investigations and in accordance with such standards, limitations and rules as may be set forth in the traffic ordinances of this City or as may be determined by ordinance or resolution of the City Council.

The City Traffic Engineer shall determine the hours and days during which any traffic control device shall be in operation or be in effect, except in those cases where such hours or days are specified in this Chapter.

The City Traffic Engineer is hereby authorized to mark centerlines and lane lines upon the surface of the roadway to indicate the course to be traveled by vehicles and may place signs temporarily designating lanes to be used by traffic moving in a particular direction, regardless of the centerline of the highway. Where authorized signs have been placed designating off-center traffic lanes, no person shall disobey the instructions given by such signs.

a) The City Traffic Engineer shall install and maintain official traffic signals at those intersections and other places where traffic conditions require that the flow of traffic be alternately interrupted and released in order to prevent or relieve traffic congestion or to protect life or property from exceptional hazard.

b) The City traffic Engineer shall ascertain and determine the locations where such signals are required by field observation, traffic counts, and other traffic information as may be pertinent; his determinations therefrom shall be made in accordance with those traffic, engineering and safety standards and instructions set forth in the California Maintenance Manual issued by the Division of Highways of the State Department of Public Works.

The City Traffic Engineer may remove, relocate or discontinue the operation of any traffic control device not specifically required by State law, this Chapter or any other ordinance of the City whenever he shall determine in any particular case that the conditions which warranted or required the installation no longer exist or obtain.

(Amended by O-2038)

Whenever the City Traffic Engineer determines upon the basis of a traffic study and engineering principles that mandatory stop control and right-of-way assignment is necessary, he may designate any City street or portion thereof as a through street and may erect stop signs at entrances thereto. He may designate any City intersection at which vehicles are required to stop and may erect stop signs at one or more entrances thereto.

(Amended by O-1640)

a) For the purpose of traffic control, a service road shall be a separate roadway and all control thereon shall be independent of the controlled highway.

b) Whenever a service road intersects a street which in turn intersects that street which is parallel to the service road, the City Traffic Engineer shall cause to be placed, stop signs controlling the approaches of the service road.

Whenever any ordinance or resolution of this City designates any one-way street or alley, the City Traffic Engineer shall place and maintain signs giving notice thereof, and no such regulations shall be effective unless such signs are in place. Signs indicating the direction of lawful traffic movement shall be placed at every intersection where movement of traffic in the opposite direction is prohibited.

The City Traffic Engineer is authorized to place markers, buttons or signs within or adjacent to intersections indicating the course to be traveled by vehicles turning at such intersections, and such course to be traveled as so indicated may conform to or be other than as prescribed by this Code or any other law or ordinance.

When authorized markers, buttons or other indications are placed within an intersection indicating the course to be traveled by vehicles turning thereat, no driver of a vehicle shall disobey the directions of such indications.

The City Traffic Engineer may determine those intersections at which drivers of vehicles shall not make a right, left or U-turn, and shall place proper signs at such intersections. The making of such turns may be prohibited between certain hours of any day and permitted at other hours, in which event the same shall be plainly indicated on the signs or they may be removed when such turns are permitted.

(Added by O-1866)

The City Traffic Engineer is authorized to place Yield Right-Of-Way Signs at those intersections where it is determined by an engineering study that right-of-way control and assignment is necessary.

(Added by O-1899)

The City Traffic Engineer is authorized to place "No Parking Street Sweeping" signs on those streets where it is determined by an engineering study that such control is necessary to maintain proper sanitation standards in the public right-of-way.