SOWA TOWN COUNCIL (ROADS AND TRAFFIC) BYE-LAWS

(sections 44 and 45)

(1st April, 2022)

ARRANGEMENT OF BYE-LAWS

    BYE-LAW

PART I
Preliminary

    1.    Citation

    2.    Interpretation

PART II
General Requirements for Public Roads

    3.    Damage to trees

    4.    Barbed wire, dangerous and electrical fencing

    5.    Protection of public roads

    6.    Cleanliness of public roads

    7.    Article placed in building facing public road

    8.    Damaging of Council’s property

    9.    Cleaning and repairing on public roads

    10.    Defacing, marking or painting public roads

    11.    Racing, pace-making and trial of speed

    12.    Loitering on public roads

    13.    Loitering and touting at place of public entertainment

    14.    Public decency

    15.    Public road collections

    16.    Control of stormwater and watercourses on public roads

    17.    Obstruction on public road and improper parking in bus stop or taxi stop

    18.    Planting on sidewalks

    19.    Display or sale of goods on roads or demarcated space

    20.    Abandonment of property on road or road reserve and disposal thereof

    21.    Damage to Council property

    22.    Clinging to moving vehicles

    23.    Removal of obstructions

PART III
Traffic Matters

    24.    Games, throwing stones, on public roads

    25.    Shoeing and cleaning of animals on public roads

    26.    Animals on public roads

PART IV
Works on, Across or Under any Public Road

    27.    Ropes, wires or poles across public roads

    28.    Excavations on public roads

    29.    Permission to hoard in footway

    30.    Emergency works by service providers

PART V
General Provisions

    31.    Offences and penalties

        SCHEDULE

S.I. 27, 2022.

PART I
Preliminary (bye-laws 1-2)

1.    Citation

    These Bye-laws may be cited as the Sowa Town Council (Roads and Traffic) Bye-laws.

2.    Interpretation

    In these Bye-laws, unless the context otherwise requires—

    "authorised official" means—

    (a)    a bye-law enforcement officer;

    (b)    a law enforcement officer; or

    (c)    a person or official authorised as such, in writing, by the Council;

    "backfill" means to replace the structural layers, including the base, sub-base and subgrade, but excluding the surfacing, in a trench dug in, or other excavation of, a road reserve;

    "bus stop" means a place on a taxi, bus or minibus route intended for the picking up and depositing of passengers, which may be demarcated by yellow lines and indicated by a sign bearing the words, "Bus Stop", "Taxi Stop" or both or the words, "Bus" or "Taxi" painted in yellow on the road surface within such place;

    "Council" means Sowa Town Council;

    "Council area" means the area falling within the jurisdiction of the Sowa Town Council;

    "Council store" means the store of the Council;

    "demarcated space" means a space laid out and marked on a public road, the time and occupation of which by a vehicle is intended to be recorded by a parking meter;

    "emergency works" means works on the road reserve, which are necessary to prevent, end or avert a dangerous situation or unplanned interruption in the provision of services by a service provider;

    "licensee" means a person issued with a licence under section 32 of the Communications Regulatory Authority Act (Cap. 72:03);

    "official website" means the website of the Council;

    "Police Service" means the Botswana Police Service;

    "public road" means a road including a street, footpath, pavement, sidewalk, square, road island, subway, bridge, public passageway or other thoroughfare which the public has the right to use;

    "public water" means all water flowing over the surface of the ground or contained in or flowing from a river, spring, stream, natural lake, pan, swamp, or in or beneath a watercourse and all underground water made available by means of works, but does not include any water which is used solely for the purposes of extracting mineral substances therefrom or water which has been lawfully appropriated for use;

    "reinstate" means to replace the surfacing, including the bituminous surfacing, paving blocks, paving slabs, earth or grass, as the case may be, of a road reserve;

    "restore" means to place a public road in the state in which it was found prior to the performance of works in the road reserve, including to backfill and reinstate the road reserve;

    "road reserve" means an area of land reserved for construction and maintenance of roads and the accommodation of utility services;

    "Roads Design Manual" means a manual issued from time to time by the Minister responsible for Roads or such authority as may be responsible for the specification of roads design, construction and maintenance;

    "service" means a utility or other service provided to the public or a section of the public over a network including, but not limited to, electricity, water and telecommunications network services and any other system for supplying a public need;

    "watercourse" means a river, spring, or natural channel in which water flows regularly or intermittently or a wetland, lake or dam into which, or from which water flows, and reference to a watercourse includes where relevant, its bed and banks; and

    "works" means work that may affect motorists, cyclists, pedestrians, the public road, footways, kerbing, traffic signs, traffic signals, street lighting, underground or over ground services or any other structure or service that is contained in the road reserve and includes the digging of trenches, tunneling, erection of signboards, hoardings and other structures, shaping and landscaping in the road reserve.

PART II
General Requirements for Public Roads (bye-laws 3-23)

3.    Damage to trees

    (1) A person shall not climb upon, break, damage or in any way mark or paint a tree that is alongside a public road within the Council area.

    (2) A person shall not lop, trim, cut down or remove a tree alongside a public road, unless specifically authorised by law and with the prior written permission of the Council.

    (3) A person shall apply, in writing, to the Council for a written permission referred to under sub-bye-law (2).

    (4) For the purposes of this bye-law, any activity which is authorised to be conducted on a public road in terms of these Bye-laws or any other written law shall be deemed not to cause an obstruction.

4.    Barbed wire, dangerous and electrical fencing

    (1) A person other than an owner or occupier of an agricultural land, shall not erect or cause or permit to be erected, along a public road, a barbed wire fence, railing, paling, wall or other barrier which, by reason of spikes or other sharp or pointed protrusions, or otherwise by reason of the nature of its construction or design, is or may become a danger to a member of the public using such public road.