West Covina Municipal Code § 22-58 Installation of traffic signals

Footnotes:

--- (3) ---

State Law reference— Authority to establish traffic-control devices by ordinance or resolution, Veh. Code, § 21100(d).

(a) The public works director, city engineer, or designee shall install traffic control devices whenever directed by any provision of this chapter, at any particular location specified herein and at any other particular location where so directed by the city council, by this Code, or any other ordinance of this city.

(b) The public works director, city engineer, or designee may also place and maintain or cause to be placed and maintained such additional traffic-control devices as deemed necessary or proper to regulate traffic or to guide or warn traffic, but such determination shall be made 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 this chapter.

(c) Whenever the traffic law of this state, or any traffic regulation set forth in this chapter requires for its effectiveness that traffic-control devices be installed to give notice to the public of the application of such law or regulation, the public works director, city engineer, or designee is hereby authorized to install or cause to be installed the necessary devices.

(d) No other person, board or department of this city and no private person or agency, shall install, place, or maintain any traffic-control device within the purview of this chapter except upon order of the city council.

(Code 1960, § 3118; Ord. No. 1308, § 1, 7-26-76; Ord. No. 2531, § 5, 7-15-25)

No provision of this chapter for which signs or markings are required shall be enforced against an alleged violator, if, at the time and place of the alleged violation, an official sign or marking is not in place and sufficiently legible and visible to be seen by an ordinarily observant person.

(Code 1960, § 3119)

The driver of any vehicle, the person in charge of any animal, and any person on a bicycle shall obey the instructions of any official traffic-control device applicable thereto placed in accordance with this chapter unless otherwise directed by a police officer, subject to the exemptions granted by section 22-5.

(Code 1960, § 3124)

No person, contractor or public utility shall erect or place any barrier or sign on any street unless of a type approved by the city council, or disobey the instructions, remove, tamper with or destroy any barrier or sign lawfully placed on any street by any person, contractor or public utility.

(Code 1960, §§ 3120, 3135; Ord. No. 2531, § 6, 7-15-25)

(a) The public works director, city engineer, or designee are hereby authorized to install and maintain official traffic signals at those intersections and other places where traffic conditions are such as to 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 traffic committee shall ascertain and determine the locations where such signals are required by field investigation, traffic counts, and other traffic information as may be pertinent, in accordance with those traffic engineering and safety standards set forth in the bureau of public roads' "Manual on Uniform TrafficControl Devices." The traffic committee shall provide recommendations to the city council based upon such determinations.

(Code 1960, § 3121; Ord. No. 2531, § 7, 7-15-25)

The city council may establish safety zones of such kind or character consistent with the Vehicle Code and at such places as the city council may deem necessary for the protection of pedestrians.

(Code 1960, § 3122; Ord. No. 2531, § 8, 7-15-25)

The public works director, city engineer, or designee are hereby authorized to install and maintain center lines, lane lines, turning markers, and pavement warning signs, to indicate upon the surface of pavement the course to be traveled by vehicles at any place where the city council determines that such devices are advisable or necessary to foster the orderly and safe movement of traffic.

(Code 1960, § 3123; Ord. No. 2531, § 9, 7-15-25)

No person shall operate a vehicle so as to leave the traveled portion of the roadway and re-enter the same or any other street for the purpose of taking a shortcut or avoiding a duly authorized traffic-control device.

(Code 1960, § 3125)

The public works director, city engineer, or designee are hereby authorized to remove, relocate or discontinue the operation of any of the traffic-control devices hereinafter enumerated, after the city council approves such removal, relocation, or discontinuance and whenever it shall be determined in any particular case that the factors or conditions which warranted or required the installation no longer exist, to wit:

(a) Official traffic signals,

(b) Stop signs and yield signs.

(c) Signs or markings limiting or prohibiting stopping, standing or parking except at locations where maintenance of such signs is required by ordinance.

(d) Crosswalks, safety zones.

(e) Directional signs, lane lines, turn signs and any other device or devices to guide or warn traffic.

(Code 1960, § 3126; Ord. No. 2531, § 10, 7-15-25)

No person, unless authorized by the city, shall paint any street or curb surface; provided, however, that, this section shall not apply to the painting of numbers on the curb surface by any person who has complied with the provisions of any resolution or ordinance of this city pertaining thereto.

(Code 1960, § 3127)

The public works director, public safety director, city engineer, or designee may, without notice, remove or cause to be removed every unofficial sign, signal or device placed, maintained or displayed upon any city street.

(Code 1960, § 3128; Ord. No. 2531, § 11, 7-15-25)

No person shall tamper with, or deface, or remove or cause to be removed, without authority of the city engineer to do so, any sign, marking or traffic-control device, erected under or pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.

(Code 1960, § 3129; Ord. No. 2531, § 12, 7-15-25)