Chap. 178.—An ACT to amend and re-enact an act entitled an act approved
March 13, 1914, entitled an act to provide a road law for Spotsylvania county,
and all acts subsequent thereto, approved March 24, 1922. [S B 176]

Approved March 18, 1926.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That an
act entitled an act to amend and re-enact an act approved March
thirteenth, nineteen hundred and fourteen, entitled an act to provide
a road law for Spotsylvania county, and all acts subsequent thereto,
approved March twenty-fourth, nineteen hundred and twenty-two,
be amended and re-enacted so as to read as follows:

~ Section 1. The management and control of all roads in the county
of Spotsylvania shall be placed under the direction of the board of
supervisors of said county, who are hereby constituted a road board
for the purpose.

The board of supervisors are empowered and authorized to levy
annually, not in conflict with general laws, a road tax of not exceeding
sixty (60) cents on the one hundred dollars valuation of all taxable
property, which together with such other moneys as may be derived
from any road tax upon telephone lines, railroads, etcetera, shall con-
stitute a road fund.

The said road board shall adopt economical, modern, progressive
and uniform standards for the construction and repair of roads; shall
carefully scrutinize all expenditures of road funds, and in their dis-
cretion shall require all persons who use wagons, carts or other ve-
hicles in said county to provide such wagons, carts or other vehicles
in tires of such width as they, the said board, may prescribe, upon such
conditions as they may prescribe and may prescribe such fenalty for
the failure of any person to comply with said requirements or order
as they may deem best.

The said board may also erect toll gates on such of the roads of the
county or any district thereof as they may deem proper, at not less
than five miles apart and fix the rate of toll for the various kinds of
vehicles, automobiles, locomobiles, and so forth, in proportion to the
damage done by such vehicles, and from the action of the board in
fixing such rates of toll, etcetera, there shall no appeal. No toll gates
shall be maintained where the cost of keeping said gate exceeds fifteen
(15) per centum of gross receipts in any six months period.

The said road board is authorized to make and publish such orders
and regulations governing the use of the said road as it may deem wise
and proper in regard to hauling any loads over the road, this not to
apply to school children or individual travel and said road board,
while the same is being built, improved or repaired, and thereafter
when such travel would, by weather conditions, in the opinion of
said road board, greatly damage such road and may prescribe such
penalty for the failure of any person to comply with said order or
regulation as they deem best; to proceed, by warrant, against all
parties plowing up, moving or otherwise encroaching upon or obstruct-
ing said road; or driving vehicles unnecessarily into or along the
ditches on the side of said road; to require drivers of wagons to ac-
company same while same are in motion upon said public roads; and
any party so convicted shall be punished as for a misdemeanor and
fined not less than five nor more than twenty-five dollars. Said road
board may appoint for each of the districts in the county as many
persons as said board may deem necessary, to report to said board or
a justice of the peace, without compensation, all violations of this
act or of any order passed by said board in pursuance thereof.

It shall be the duty of such member of said road board of each dis-
trict of Spotsylvania county to see that the roads in his district are
kept cleared, smoothed or rocks and other obstructions, of necessary
width; that the beds of the road are raised in the middle and sloped
gradually each way to the sides, well drained, and secure from the
falling of dead timber thereon, and otherwise in good order; that if
needs be, a suitable sign board be placed and kept at every important
fork or crossing, on which shall be stated in plain letters the most noted
place to which each road leads; that bridges be constructed and main-
tained in a safe, substantial condition, and where the beds of said roads
are encroached upon, the members of said board for such district
shall notify the person trespassing by written notice to remove the
obstruction and if the same be not done in ten days, he shall cause
said obstruction to be removed and may recover the expense with
costs from said trespasser before any justice of the peace of said dis-
trict.

The said road board shall have authority to direct a surveyor of
said county to define the boundary of any road therein; to alter the
grade of any existing road, and to perform such other service as may
be necessary to carry out the provisions of this act, for which service
the said surveyor shall receive reasonable compensation from said
board, not exceeding, however, four dollars per day, payable out of
the road fund.

The said road board may adopt such methods of working and re-
pairing said roads as the board shall deem best; they may purchase
or hire such teams, road machines, engines, implements, tools, wagons,
camp equipment and all other necessary articles for the use of the em-
ployees working said roads; to hire such labor as may be necessary
and put the same to work for such time during the year as they may
deem best on any of the roads of said county. Each supervisor shall
be ex-officio foreman of roads for this district should he elect to act
as such, and in case he does not so elect, he shall employ a suitable
foreman competent to work the roads to the best advantage. Each
supervisor shall receive for his road service compensation at the rate
of thiry-five cents per hour for the time actually engaged in super-
vising the working of the roads; provided that no supervisor shall re-
ceive for road service more than three hundred and fifty dollars
($350.00) in any one year.

All road taxes shall be expended in the district from which they
are collected; provided however, that the construction and repair
of bridges shall be under the control and supervision of the board
of supervisors, and cost of said construction and repair may be paid
for out of the county levy.
Each member of the said road board, for his district, shall keep a
strict and faithful record of his expenditures of said road fund in his
district, requiré itemized accounts for all expenditures, pay all bills
out of said road fund, and shall on the first day of July of every year
produce before the commissioner of accounts of the circuit court of
Spotsylvania county, itemized bills showing disbursements of said
money so expended and it shall be the duty of the commissioner of
accounts to examine said accounts and if he finds them correct to
certify the same and deliver the accounts so approved by him to the
clerk of the circuit court of Spotsylvania county to be kept on file
by said clerk in his office.

The county treasurer shall keep the road fund separate from other
tax funds, keeping an account with each district separately.

Any person or persons violating any of the provisions of this act,
concerning the roads and bridges in said county, may be proceeded
against, as for a misdemeanor, by a warrant from a justice of the
peace of the county tryable in the district in which the offense occurred.

2. All acts and parts of acts in conflict herewith are hereby re-
pealed, so far as they affect Spotsylvania county.

3. By reason of the necessity of consummating the result pro-
vided in this act, an emergency exists and this act shall be in force
from its passage.