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Roads Act

LAWS OF TONGA

1988 Revised Edition]

CHAPTER 155

ROADS ACT

Arrangement of Sections

Section
1 Short title.
2 Interpretation.
3 Road construction.
4 Public roads to be proclaimed.
5 Permit for heavy transport.
6 Power of Minister in respect of grant of permit.
7 Offences.
8 When order to pay cost of repair may be made.
9 Cleaning of road frontage.

THE SCHEDULE
FEES FOR PERMITS

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ROADS ACT

Acts Nos. 9 of 1909, 6 of 1920, 10 of 1920, 7 of 1924, 7 of 1926, 12 of 1980.

AN ACT RELATING TO ROADS

Commencement [4th September, 1920]

1 Short title.

This Act may be cited as The Roads Act.

2 Interpretation.

In this Act unless the context otherwise requires:

"public road" means any road proclaimed under this Act to be a public road or any road which was before the passing of this Act known or reputed to be a public road;

"road frontage" means the surface soil intervening between the boundary of land bordering a public road and the centre of such road;

"occupier" means any person who is lawfully in possession of or exercising control over any land.

3 Road construction.

The Minister of Lands shall have power to cause new roads to be made.

4 Public roads to be proclaimed.

(1) Whenever the Minister of Lands deems it advisable to proclaim any new road to be a public road, whether such new road be a metalled road or not, he shall cause a copy of such proclamation to be first published in the Gazette and from the date of the publication of such proclamation the said road will be and become a public road and all the laws and regulations now in force or hereafter to be enacted or made will be applicable to such proclaimed road.

(2) It shall not be necessary or incumbent upon the Minister of Lands to publish any proclamation in the Gazette relating to roads which are already known or reputed to be public roads and have been considered and treated heretofore as public roads.

5 Permit for heavy transport.

(1) Any person who desires to transport on any public metalled road in any vehicle or by any other means anything which together with the vehicle or other means of transport used is of a total weight of more than three tonnes shall apply to the Minister of Lands for a written permit to transport the same. (Amended by Act 12 of 1980.)

(2) The application shall be made in writing and the applicant shall furnish the Minister with the following particulars:

(a) the description of the article to be transported;

(b) the dimensions and approximate weight of the article and the vehicle or other means of transport;

(c) the means which it is proposed to use for such transportation;

(d) the place from and to which and the roads over which it is proposed to transport the article;

(e) the time during which it is proposed to transport the article.

6 Power of Minister in respect of grant of permit.

(1) The Minister of Lands may at his discretion refuse to grant a permit applied for under section 5 hereof or may on the payment of the fees prescribed in the Schedule grant a permit subject to such terms and conditions as to time, lighting and the amount to be deposited to cover any damage done to the road as to him may seem fit.

(2) The cost of making good any damage caused by transportation under a permit granted as aforesaid may be deducted from the amount deposited by the applicant for the permit.

7 Offences.

Any person who shall commit any of the following acts shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $40, that is to say any person who:

(a) in applying for a permit to transport any article for which a permit is required by section 5 hereof makes any misrepresentation or false statement of the particulars required;

(b) having obtained a permit fails to carry out any of the terms and conditions of the permit except as to time;

(c) damages any public road;

(d) interferes with or stops the ordinary traffic on a public road;

(e) leaves any article being transported or any vehicle on the road at night time without a light at each end of the same.

8 When order to pay cost of repair may be made.

Any person who without having obtained or having obtained by fraudulent misrepresentation a permit under section 5 hereof transports on any public metalled road any article for the transportation of which a permit issued by the Minister of Lands is required shall be liable on conviction to a fine of $40 and the magistrate on such conviction may order the defendant to pay the estimated cost of any damage to the public road caused by the unlawful act of the defendant.

9 Cleaning of road frontage.

(1) Every occupier of land adjoining to or bordering on a public road:

(a) shall keep the frontage thereof cut and clean; and

(b) shall cut down or lop away trees or shrubs growing upon such land in such manner as to prevent the same from overhanging the public road.

(2) Any person acting in contravention of this section shall be liable on conviction to a fine of 10 seniti for every 18 metres of frontage not properly cut and cleaned and 10 seniti for every tree or shrub not cut or lopped. (Amended by Act 12 of 1980.)

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THE SCHEDULE FEES FOR PERMITS

(Section 5)

(Amended by Act 12 of 1980.)

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