Search Results | Clear Search | Previous (in doc) | Next (in doc) | Prev Doc | Next Doc

View Complete Statute

This Act is current to July 31, 2024
See the Tables of Legislative Changes for this Act’s legislative history, including any changes not in force.

Vancouver Charter

[SBC 1953] CHAPTER 55

Part XII — Street Traffic

By-laws respecting streets, traffic, carriers, parking and other matters

317.   (1) The Council may make by-laws

Regulating traffic

(a) for regulating pedestrian, vehicular, and other traffic and the stopping, parking and routing of vehicles upon any street or part thereof;

Persons to give name and address to constable

(b) for authorizing a police constable to arrest without warrant any person whom the police constable finds committing a breach of any provision of a by-law passed pursuant to the provisions of this Act respecting traffic if such person shall fail to stop and state the person's name and address when so requested by such police constable;

Classification of vehicles

(c) for defining and establishing different classes of vehicles and making different provisions, including exceptions, for the different classes established, and for making different provisions for different areas, times, conditions or circumstances as described by by-law in the exercise of any of the powers of the Council with respect to the use of streets;

Speeds may be fixed

(d) subject to the Motor Vehicle Act, for regulating and fixing the rate of speed of all vehicles, or of any class of vehicles, on any street in any zone, place, or area designated by by-law;

Sleds, skates, skateboards and other coasting and sliding devices

(e) for regulating the use of any street by persons sliding or coasting by means of sleds, skis, snowboards, skates, skateboards, roller skates, rollerblades or any other devices specified in the by-law;

(e.1) providing that if a sled, snowboard or skateboard is used, or skis are used, in contravention of a by-law under paragraph (e),

(i) any member of the police department may seize and detain the device,

(ii) the owner of the device be required to pay to the city the amount fixed by the by-law as expenses of the seizure and detention, including storage and other charges, and

(iii) the city may collect expenses referred to in subparagraph (ii) by the sale of the device at public auction or private sale, as directed by the by-law;

Classification of streets

(f) with respect to the use of streets, for establishing different classes of streets and parts of streets and making different provisions, including exceptions, for the different classes established, and for making different provisions for different areas, times, conditions or circumstances;

Classification of pedestrian traffic

(ff) for defining and establishing different classes of pedestrian traffic and making different provisions, including exceptions, for the different classes established, and for making different provisions for different areas, times, conditions or circumstances as described by by-law in the exercise of any of the powers of the Council with respect to the use of streets;

(g) [Repealed 2009-22-80.]

Carriers

(h) for defining and classifying carriers, whether of persons or chattels, and for differentiating and discriminating between classes of carriers in the exercise of any of the powers of the Council with respect to carriers;

Their routes

(i) for fixing routes to be taken by carriers of persons or chattels using any street;

Charges by carriers

(j) subject to the provisions of the Passenger Transportation Act, for fixing the maximum and minimum charges to be made by such carriers or any class thereof, which charges may be based upon zones or districts designated by by-law;

Powers may be assigned to board

(k) for providing that, subject to an appeal to the Council in accordance with the procedure prescribed by by-law, the Council may delegate to a board appointed by the Council any or all the powers vested in the Council with respect to the operation by carriers of any vehicle on any street, including the powers contained in section 272 as to licensing and regulation and in clause (j) of this section as to charges to be made by carriers and in clause (m) of this section as to limiting the number of vehicles with respect to which persons may be licensed in any class of carriers;

Chauffeurs

(l) for regulating chauffeurs and other drivers of vehicles used by carriers on a street in connection with their business;

Limiting licences

(m) for regulating the number of vehicles with respect to which persons may be licensed in any class of carriers;

Bicycle registration

(n) for regulating the use of bicycles, or other vehicles propelled by human muscular power, on any street or other public place, and for compelling the owners thereof to register the same annually pursuant to regulations provided by by-law, and for establishing and imposing a fee for such registration not exceeding one dollar per annum for each such vehicle;

Carrier to carry insurance

(o) for making it a condition of the granting and holding of any licence to a carrier that such carrier

(i) be the holder of a subsisting policy of insurance issued by an insurer authorized to carry on business in the Province, or by Lloyd's, in such amounts and against such hazards as shall be specified in the by-law; or

(ii) has given proof of financial responsibility pursuant to the Motor Vehicle Act or the Passenger Transportation Act

covering every vehicle in respect of which such carrier is licensed;

Testing of vehicles

(p)

(i) for fixing standards of safety and of repair to be required of vehicles other than trolley-coaches, while parked or being operated on any street, and for requiring the owners and operators of such vehicles to present the same for inspection as to safety and repair at such place and at such times as the by-law prescribes, and for imposing a charge for such inspection and for prohibiting the use or operation on any street of any vehicle which has not been presented as required for inspection pursuant to the by-law or, having been presented, fails to pass such inspection;

(ii) for appointing a Superintendent, Motor-vehicle Inspection, and delegating to such Superintendent or the Superintendent's assistants or inspectors any or all of the powers of inspecting and passing or failing to pass, in accordance with the standards of safety and repair so fixed, vehicles other than trolley-coaches;

Testing-stations

(q) for acquiring real property and providing and maintaining thereon the necessary buildings, equipment, and appurtenances for carrying out the inspection in the last clause mentioned;

Animals on streets

(r) for regulating the use of any street by horses or other animals, and for prohibiting any person from allowing the person's horse or other animal to be on a street unattended, except as may be provided by by-law;

Tires and weight, etc., of vehicles

(s) for regulating, in respect of any street or class of streets, the gross weight of vehicles with or without loads; the weight on any axle, tire, or wheel, or any combination thereof; the width, length, height of any vehicle or part thereof; the width, length, height, or number of any combination of vehicles; the width, length, height of any load, or vehicle and load combined; the fastening and distribution of loads; the kind, width, size, and inflation of tires or tracks; and, subject to the provisions of the Motor Vehicle Act, the number, kind, size, location, distribution, colour, and brilliance of lights on vehicles; and for delegating to the City Engineer any of the matters referred to herein in respect of any particular vehicle or class of vehicles;

Dogs to be curbed

(t) for requiring the owner, possessor, or harbourer of any dog to keep it from running at large on any street;

Lines on streets

(u)

(i) for designating streets or portions of streets on which a distinguishing single line or double line shall be marked, which lines need not be in the middle of the travelled portion of the street, and, notwithstanding anything contained in the Transportation Act, for prescribing that all vehicles shall be kept to the right of such double line at all times, and to the right of such single line except when passing an overtaken vehicle elsewhere than at a curve in the street;

Traffic-lanes

(ii) for marking traffic-lanes on streets, and, notwithstanding anything contained in the Transportation Act, for regulating the driving of vehicles within such lanes;

Delegation

(iii) for delegating to the City Engineer, or such other person as shall be named for the purpose, any or all the powers of designating or marking mentioned in this clause;

Safety-zones on streets

(v) for locating, establishing, and maintaining, in any street, areas or platforms reserved for the use of pedestrians only, as safety-zones, and for providing for the use of such safety-zones and the regulation of vehicular traffic in proximity thereto, and for providing such markings or warning-signs as may be thought necessary to identify such safety-zones;

Regulating, stopping, and parking on streets

(w) for designating streets, or portions of streets, upon which no vehicles shall be stopped or parked or only such vehicles or classes thereof at such times and upon such conditions as may be prescribed, and for delegating to the City Engineer or such other person as shall be named for the purpose all or any of such powers so to designate or prescribe;

Public parking

(x) for acquiring real property for the use of the public for the parking of vehicles, and for providing and maintaining thereon the necessary buildings and equipment therefor, and for operating and managing the business of affording parking accommodation thereon, and for allowing persons to use portions of such real property for the parking of vehicles upon such terms and conditions as may be prescribed in the by-law;

Contracting for parking areas

(y) for entering into leases or other agreements with persons desiring to take over and operate such real property for the business referred to in clause (x) of this section, and for prescribing the terms and conditions and the rent or other remuneration to be paid to the city therefor;

Parking Commission

(z) for appointing a commission to which the Council may delegate any or all of the powers exercisable by it under clauses (ee), (x), and (y) of this section;

Fees for on-street parking

(aa) in relation to on-street parking spaces for vehicles, for

(i) establishing and imposing fees to be paid for use of a parking space,

(ii) prohibiting persons from using a parking space for a vehicle unless the applicable fee is paid, and

(iii) the installation, operation and maintenance of meters or other systems for determining and collecting applicable fees;

(bb) for closing a street, or portion of a street, to vehicular traffic and not to pedestrian traffic, or vice versa;

Impounding of vehicles

(cc) for

(i) authorizing the removal and detention or impounding of a vehicle, whether being driven or not, or other chattel that is unlawfully placed, left, kept or driven on a street,

(ii) requiring the owner of a vehicle or chattel dealt with under this paragraph to pay to the city the amounts fixed by the by-law as the expenses of the removal and detention or impounding, including towing, storage and other charges,

(iii) enabling the city to collect expenses referred to in subparagraph (ii) by the sale of the vehicle or other chattel at public auction or private sale as directed by the by-law or by action in a Court of competent jurisdiction,

(iv) providing that, for the purposes of this section, a vehicle shall be deemed to be a vehicle unlawfully left on a street if the vehicle has

(A) an automobile security system that is operating in contravention of a by-law, or

(B) a horn that is audibly sounding for a period of more than 10 minutes, and

(v) providing that any other vehicle that comes into the hands of the police shall be held and dealt with in accordance with the provisions of the by-law;

(dd) for delegating to the Park Board all or any of the powers of the Council with respect to traffic upon a street, or portion of a street, in a park, as defined in Part XXIII of this Act;

(ee) for acquiring by conveyance, lease, licence, or otherwise any property for the parking of vehicles, for providing and maintaining thereon the necessary buildings and equipment therefor, for operating and managing the business of affording parking accommodation thereon, and for entering into leases or other agreements with any person desiring to take over such property or to commence, carry on, manage, or take over such business upon such terms and conditions as may be deemed advisable by Council.

(2) Despite subsection (1), if the Council or Park Board adopts a by-law under that subsection that contains a provision regulating or fixing the rate of speed at which a person may drive or operate a vehicle on a street, a person who contravenes that provision does not commit an offence against the by-law.

1953-55-317; 1954-65-4; 1955-114-11; 1959-107-19; 1963-60-13,14; 1967-49-14; 1968-71-15,16; 1978-41-24; 1992-57-7; 1993-74-11; 1994-52-163; 1995-53-40; 1997-25-182; 1997-37-74; 2004-39-78; 2004-44-161; B.C. Reg. 337/2006; 2009-22-80; 2013-4-6; 2022-15-73,Sch 1; 2022-15-76,Sch 4; 2023-16-28.

Restrictions on authority to regulate in relation to passenger directed vehicles

317.1   (1) In this section:

"passenger directed vehicle" has the same meaning as in the Passenger Transportation Act;

"passenger directed vehicle authorization" has the same meaning as in the Passenger Transportation Act;

"transportation network services authorization" has the same meaning as in the Passenger Transportation Act.

(2) The council must not, under section 317 (1) (j) [by-laws respecting streets, traffic, carriers, parking], fix charges to be made by passenger directed vehicles operated under passenger directed vehicle authorizations or transportation network services authorizations.

(3) The council must not, under section 317 (1) (l), regulate in relation to chauffeurs or drivers who operate motor vehicles under passenger directed vehicle authorizations or transportation network services authorizations.

(4) The council must not, under section 317 (1) (m), regulate in relation to the number of passenger directed vehicles that may be operated under passenger directed vehicle authorizations or transportation network services authorizations.

2018-53-79.

Council powers in relation to traffic control

318.   (1) The Council may provide

Stop-signs, etc.

(a) for locating, establishing, and maintaining on any street such traffic signs, stop-signs, traffic lights or reflectors, traffic disks, markers, blocks, standards, indicators, traffic-control signals, or other devices or apparatus, whether automatic or manual, as may be deemed necessary for the regulation, direction, and control of traffic on any street, and for delegating to the City Engineer, or such other person as shall be named for the purpose, any or all the powers of locating, establishing, and maintaining mentioned in this clause;

School crossings

(b) for authorizing the City Engineer or other person to designate, by traffic signs and markings, portions of streets that the City Engineer or other person considers should be designated as school crossings or playground crossings, and, subject to the Motor Vehicle Act, for regulating traffic at such crossings, and for inflicting a minimum fine of fifteen dollars for any breach of such regulations;

One-way traffic

(c) for designating certain streets, or portions of streets, upon which at all times, or during specified hours, vehicular traffic may move only in a named direction;

Emergency powers for constables

(d) for empowering police constables to give directions during an emergency for the regulation or diversion of traffic upon a street in cases where

(i) it is necessary or desirable to expedite traffic or relieve traffic congestion; or

(ii) it is necessary to deal with accidental or other unexpected conditions affecting traffic; or

(iii) the safety of persons or property will be protected;

and for requiring that all persons shall comply with any direction so given, notwithstanding that it is at variance with a traffic-control signal, traffic sign, or the like.

(2) Despite subsection (1), if the Council or Park Board adopts a by-law under that subsection that contains a provision regulating or fixing the rate of speed at which a person may drive or operate a vehicle on a street, a person who contravenes that provision does not commit an offence against the by-law.

1953-55-318; 1960-80-5; 1995-53-41; 2022-15-61.

By-laws respecting other use of streets

319.   (1) The Council may make by-laws

Parades

(a) for regulating parades and processions in or along any street, and for delegating to the Chief Constable the power to grant or refuse permits for such parades or processions and, when granted, to prescribe the routes of travel to be followed so as to prevent undue interference with other street traffic;

Gathering on street

(b) for regulating the assembling or gathering of persons in or upon a street;

Sales on streets

(c) for regulating the sale, or the offering or exposing for sale, of any merchandise or thing upon a street;

Advertising on streets

(d) for regulating the exhibiting or placing of signs or other advertising on, in, or above any street or on any pole or projection therein, including the billboards, hoardings, or other means used in connection with such signs or other advertising;

Distributing advertising-matter

(e) for regulating the distribution of advertising-matter to persons or vehicles on any street;

Use of streets for motion pictures, festivals and other events

(f) for regulating the use of any street for the making of motion pictures, television productions, festivals, races or other events, including the power to temporarily close streets to vehicular traffic, pedestrian traffic or both;

Fighting in public places

(g) for regulating fighting or similar physical confrontations between 2 or more persons in, on or near a street or other public place;

Street performers

(h) for regulating persons who perform or entertain on a street;

Limiting permits

(i) for regulating the number of permits which may be granted to persons in respect of sales on streets and to persons who perform or entertain on a street.

(2) The Council may, for the purposes of subsection (1), except for paragraph (g), make by-laws that do one or more of the following:

(a) make different provisions for different areas, times, conditions or circumstances as described by by-law;

(b) establish different classes of persons, places, activities, property or things;

(c) make different provisions, including exceptions, for different classes established under paragraph (b).

1953-55-319; 1990-76-6; 2004-51-47; 2009-22-81; 2023-16-29.

Relaxation of advertising by-laws

319.1   (1) The Council may, by by-law, provide for the relaxation of a by-law under section 319 (1) (d) in one or more of the following circumstances:

(a) enforcement of the by-law would result in unnecessary hardship;

(b) the signs or other advertising use technology not contemplated by the by-law;

(c) the signs or other advertising are in relation to a special event, as designated by Council by by-law or resolution.

(2) A by-law under subsection (1) may authorize such relaxations to be made by the Council, by any official of the city or by a board composed of such officials.

(3) A relaxation under this section, whether made by the Council, an official or a board, may be limited in time and may be made subject to conditions.

(4) A person whose request for a relaxation is dealt with by an official or a board is entitled to have the Council reconsider the matter.

2009-22-82.

Temporary traffic restriction and traffic control

319.2   (1) The Council may temporarily restrict or prohibit all or some types of traffic on a street.

(2) The Council may, by by-law, authorize an official of the city or any other person to control traffic on a street, or to temporarily restrict or prohibit all or some types of traffic on a street, in relation to matters specified in the by-law.

2009-22-82.

Street names and signs

320.   The Council may make by-laws

(a) [Repealed 1987-52-26.]

(b) for assigning names to streets and changing the names so assigned when deemed necessary, and affixing or otherwise displaying of such names at street corners or other convenient places either on a street or on private property.

1953-55-320; 1965-68-26; 1987-52-26.

Filings to be made

321.   The Council may cause the necessary filings with respect to such naming or changing of names to be made in the land title office or elsewhere.

1953-55-321; 1978-25-334, proclaimed effective October 31, 1979; 1997-25-183.

Contents | Preamble | Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI | Part VII | Part VIII | Part IX | Part X | Part XI | Part XII | Part XIII | Part XIV | Part XV | Part XVI | Part XVII | Part XVIII | Part XIX | Part XX | Part XXI | Part XXII | Part XXIII | Part XXIV | Part XXIV-A | Part XXIV-B | Part XXV | Part XXVI | Part XXVII | Part XXVIII | Part XXIX | Part XXX | Part XXXI