Bill 105 - An Act to Amend the Highway Act

BILL 105

An Act to Amend the Highway Act

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick, enacts as follows:

1 Section 1 of the Highway Act, chapter H-5 of the Revised Statutes, 1973, is amended

(a) by repealing the definition “municipality”;

(b) by repealing the definition “rural community” and substituting the following:

“rural community” means a rural community incorporated or continued under the Local Governance Act; (communauté rurale)

(c) in paragraph (b) of the definition “highway” by striking out “lying within the boundaries of a municipality and designated by the Minister under section 15 and classified as arterial, collector or local under section 14” and substituting “lying inside the territorial limits of a local government and designated by the Minister under section 15 and described as a provincial highway or provincial-municipal highway under section 14 and classified as an arterial highway, collector highway or local highway under section 14”;

(d) by adding the following definitions in alphabetical order:

“local government” means a local government as defined in the Local Governance Act; (gouvernement local)

“provincial highway” means a highway that is described by the Minister as a provincial highway; (route provinciale)

“provincial-municipal highway” means a highway that is described by the Minister as a provincial-municipal highway; (route provinciale-municipale)

2 Section 14 of the Act is amended

(a) by adding after paragraph (a) the following:

(a.1) may describe or re-describe any highway as a provincial highway or a provincial-municipal highway,

(b) by repealing paragraph (b) and substituting the following:

(b) may classify and reclassify any highway as an arterial highway, collector highway or local highway, including classifying and reclassifying any highway that is described as a provincial highway or provincial-municipal highway,

3 The heading “Village and rural community streets” preceding section 31 of the Act is repealed and the following is substituted:

Village, rural community and regional municipality streets

4 Section 31 of the Act is amended

(a) in subsection (1) by striking out “in a village or rural community” and substituting “in a village, rural community or regional municipality”;

(b) in subsection (2) by striking out “village or rural community” wherever it appears and substituting “village, rural community or regional municipality”.

5 The heading “Vesting of soil and freehold of highway, release of highway to municipality” preceding section 32 of the Act is amended by striking out “municipality” and substituting “local government”.

6 Section 32 of the Act is amended

(a) in subsection (2) by striking out “the municipality” and substituting “the local government”;

(b) in subsection (3) by striking out “that municipality” and substituting “that local government”.

7 Subsection 34(2) of the Act is repealed.

8 Paragraph 36(12)(b) of the Act is amended by striking out “municipality” and substituting “local government”.

9 Section 39 of the Act is amended

(a) in subsection (2) by striking out “municipal road or street” and substituting “local government road or street”;

(b) in subsection (10)

( i) in subparagraph (b)(ii) by striking out “a municipal road or street” and substituting “a local government road or street”;

( ii) in paragraph (c)

( A) in subparagraph (ii) by striking out “a municipal road or street” and substituting “a local government road or street”;

( B) in subparagraph (ii.1) by striking out “boundaries” and substituting “territorial limits”.

(c) in subsection (17) by striking out “any municipal road or street” and substituting “any local government road or street”;

(d) in subsection (19) by striking out “any municipal road or street” and substituting “any local government road or street”.

10 Subsection 39.1(1) of the Act is amended by striking out “any municipal road or street” and substituting “any local government road or street”.

11 Paragraph 43(1)(a) of the Act is amended

(a) in subparagraph (i) by striking out “limits” and substituting “territorial limits”;

(b) in subparagraph (ii) by striking out “limits” and substituting “territorial limits”;

12 Subsection 44.1(1) of the Act is amended in the definition “highway” in the portion preceding paragraph (a) by striking out “is outside of a municipality” and substituting “is outside the territorial limits of a local government”.

13 The heading “Municipal highways” preceding section 47 of the Act is amended by striking out “Municipal” and substituting “Provincial-municipal”.

14 Section 47 of the Act is repealed and the following is substituted:

47( 1) Subject to subsection (3), the Minister may construct, reconstruct, repair and maintain a provincial-municipal highway, including storm drainage systems, catch basins, curbs and gutters associated with the highway, but shall not carry out or provide for

(a) flushing or sweeping of the highway,

(b) cleaning or maintenance of catch basins, storm sewers or drainage ditches, or

47( 2) Subject to this Act, a local government may carry out or provide for the services listed in paragraphs (1)(a), (b) and (c).

47( 3) In addition to the services under subsection (1), the Minister and a local government may carry out or provide for the services prescribed by regulation.

47( 4) The Lieutenant-Governor in Council may make regulations

(a) prescribing the services in relation to a provincial-municipal highway; and

(b) specifying the roles and responsibilities of the Minister and a local government in relation to carrying out or providing for the services.

15 The heading “Maintenance of municipal highways” preceding section 49 of the Act is repealed.

16 Section 49 of the Act is repealed.

17 The heading “Summer and winter maintenance of local highways” preceding section 49.1 of the Act is repealed and the following is substituted:

Maintenance agreements with local governments

18 Section 49.1 of the Act is amended

(a) in subsection (1) in the definition “summer maintenance”

( i) by striking out “local” in paragraph (d);

( ii) by striking out “local” in paragraph (g);

(b) by repealing subsection (2) and substituting the following:

49.1( 2) The Minister may enter into an agreement with a local government providing that either winter maintenance or summer maintenance, or both, shall be performed

(a) for a provincial highway of any classification referred to in paragraph 14(b) or a provincial-municipal highway classified as an arterial highway or a collector highway,

( i) by the Minister, or

( ii) by the local government and paid for by the Minister in accordance with the regulations under subsection (2.1),

(b) for a local government road or street,

( i) by the local government, or

( ii) by the Minister and paid by the local government in accordance with the regulations under subsection (2.1), and

(c) for a provincial-municipal highway classified as a local highway, by the Minister or the local government and paid for equally by the Minister and the local government.

49.1( 2.1) The Lieutenant-Governor in Council may make regulations

(a) providing formulae for determining the rate of compensation to be paid under an agreement made under subsection (2) that provides for a payment for maintenance services for a highway referred to in paragraph (2)(a) or for a road or street referred to in paragraph (2)(b), and

(b) allowing the Minister to determine the lane kilometrage of those highways, roads or streets.

(d) by repealing subsection (3) and substituting the following:

49.1( 3) When winter maintenance or summer maintenance is performed on a provincial-municipal highway classified as a local highway but no agreement has been entered into under subsection (2), the cost of the maintenance services shall be paid for equally by the Minister and the local government in accordance with this section.

(e) by repealing subsection (4) and substituting the following:

49.1( 4) The Minister shall

(a) determine the lane kilometrage of provincial-municipal highways classified as local highways in respect of which the cost of maintenance services is paid for equally by the Minister and the local government, and

(b) set the kilometrage rates to be paid by the Minister and a local government under this section for winter maintenance and for summer maintenance on provincial-municipal highways classified as local highways.

(f) in subsection (5) by striking out “on local highways within a municipality”;

(g) by repealing subsection (7).

19 The English version of the heading “Power of municipality respecting winter fences” preceding section 50 of the Act is amended by striking out “municipality” and substituting “local government”.

20 Section 50 of the Act is amended in the portion preceding paragraph (a) by striking out “municipality” and substituting “local government”.

21 The heading “Power of Minister to repair municipal bridge” preceding section 51 of the Act is amended by striking out “municipal” and substituting “local government”.

22 Section 51 of the Act is amended by striking out “any municipality the Minister may construct or repair any bridge within the limits of that municipality” and substituting “any local government, the Minister may construct or repair any bridge outside the territorial limits of that local government”.

23 Paragraph 67(1)(b) of the Act is repealed.