The Stock on Roads Bylaw 2017 was approved by the Council on 23 November 2017, and came into force on 1 March 2018.
The Stock on Roads Bylaw 2017 was approved by the Council on 23 November 2017, and came into force on 1 March 2018.
This bylaw applies to roads, or parts of roads, under the control of the Council. It does not cover roads such as State Highways, private roads, unformed roads (such as paper roads) and roads that are not maintained by the Council.
The movement of stock along or across rural roads is a necessary part of farming activities. While moving stock along or across roads has not been identified as a significant or frequently occurring traffic safety issue in the district, people moving stock along or across roads are expected to:
Other road users that may come across stock on roads are required to take due care when driving and to drive to the conditions, including anticipating hazards.
New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) indicates that, although there are relatively low numbers of accidents involving stock under control on roads generally, the two contributing factors in related road crashes are: insufficient warning distance; and inconsistent forms of warning. (Source: NZTA, Stock under control (crossing and droving) April 2015.)
This bylaw regulates the movement of stock along or across roads based on risk, and has different requirements for different types of roads and different types of stock. It also sets out, among other things, warning distances and standard forms of warning.
There are cattle stops in some remote locations, where stock are not confined to property by fences and are free to wander on the road. The bylaw makes allowance for these situations by ensuring permanent warning signs are in place to alert road users to the presence of uncontrolled stock, and by not placing any stock control requirements on the owner on roads in these areas.
Standard conditions for moving stock either along or across roads are outlined in the schedules attached to this bylaw. These standard conditions are based on NZTA’s best practice guidance and are designed to be used for most stock movement situations on most rural roads. The standard conditions apply to moving sheep or non-dairy cattle.
For dairy cattle and all other types of stock, an assessment needs to be undertaken by Council staff. In-milk dairy cattle present a unique set of issues and risks that need to be managed, and as do stock other than cows or sheep.
An assessment by Council staff also needs to be undertaken for moving stock on restricted roads. Restricted roads are listed in a register associated with this bylaw, and have higher risks than other roads, such as higher operating speeds or traffic volumes.
An assessment is needed to determine the specific risks and ways of managing risks, with three possible outcomes: (1) the need for a permit, with conditions, or (2) the need for a traffic management plan, or (3) the risk may not be able to be sufficiently mitigated, in which case the stock may need to be moved without impacting on the road (such as transporting the stock in a vehicle).
The bylaw also covers temporary roadside fencing for grazing, or as a temporary stock race to move stock along the road but off the roadway.
There is a greater risk from uncontrolled stock on roads (such as escaped or wandering stock) than from stock that are being driven along or across a road in a controlled way, and this bylaw also seeks to complement the coverage of the Impounding Act 1955 by ensuring stock are adequately fenced.
This bylaw should be read with the relevant road user rules relating to stock on roads.
The Christchurch City Council makes this bylaw under sections 145 and 146 of the Local Government Act 2002 and section 22AB of the Land Transport Act 1998.
Appropriate temporary warning sign |
Means an orange temporary warning sign with a silhouette of a cow or sheep on it, referred to in the Land Transport Rule: Traffic Control Devices 2004, used to alert road users to the presence of stock on the road. For vehicle-mounted signs, the sign should be at least 600mm x 600mm. For a static sign, the sign should be at least 750mm x 750mm. |
Authorised officer |
Means an officer or other person appointed by the Council to perform duties required under this bylaw, including an enforcement officer. |
Cattlestop |
Means a metal grid installed across a road, allowing vehicles and pedestrians to pass, but not cattle and other animals. |
Council |
Means the Christchurch City Council and includes any person authorised by the Council to act on its behalf. |
Daylight hours |
Means any period of time between half an hour after sunrise on any one day and half an hour before sunset on the same day. |
Frangible |
Means collapsible on impact and resulting in less damage than an unyielding object and generally means able to be broken into fragments. |
High-visibility clothing |
Means personal protective equipment worn so workers can be easily seen by road users. A common example is a fluorescent orange sleeveless vest with reflective strips in a belt and braces configuration or a cross formation. High visibility clothing must comply with the joint Australia New Zealand Standard and with the Code of Practice for Temporary Traffic Management (CoPTTM). |
Non-standard stock |
Means any stock,
|
Owner |
Includes the manager of the stock (or person otherwise responsible for the stock). |
Pilot vehicle |
Means a motor vehicle that leads or follows the movement of stock along a road, with an amber flashing beacon and an appropriate temporary warning sign, and may be a truck, car, utility, quad bike, trike, or motorbike. |
Restricted road |
Means any road or part of a road or category of road that is resolved by the Council under clause 5 of this bylaw, and is listed in the Restricted Roads Register associated with this bylaw. |
Road |
Has the meaning given to that term in section 2(1) of the Land Transport Act 1998, and generally includes the carriageway and roadside verges up to private property boundaries. |
Road controlling authority |
Has the same meaning as in section 2(1) of the Land Transport Act 1998, and generally means the organisation with control over a road, or a person acting under delegation or authorisation given by the controlling authority. |
Roadway |
Has the meaning given to that term in the Land Transport (Road User) Rule 2004 and generally means carriageway, or portion of the road that is used for vehicles, but excludes the grassed roadside verges. |
Stock |
Means any farmed animal, including, but not limited to cattle, sheep, alpaca, deer, donkeys, goats, horses, llama and pigs. |
Traffic management plan |
Means a document approved by the Council describing the design, implementation, management and removal of temporary traffic management measures (such as signs, flashing beacons and cones) while an activity or event is taking place within the road or adjacent to and affecting the road. This includes plans prepared for one-off events and generic plans to cover activities carried out frequently. |
Wandering |
With respect to stock, means any stock that is not under direction or control. |
(A) Restricted roads
(B) Dairy cattle and non-standard stock movements
(C) Assessments
Subclause 7(1) does not apply to stock movements on any Restricted Road.
Horse manure on roads: Under the Road User Rules, horses should be ridden as far left as possible, on the road margin, and cannot be ridden on a footpath, lawn, garden, or other cultivation adjacent to or forming part of a road.
Horse riders should remove horse manure from the roadway when and where it is safe to do so – if the manure presents a road safety or amenity issue.
Any riding school, club or horse-related business should consider any impacts on other local road users and clean up accordingly, when and where it is safe to do so.
Note: Standard conditions do not apply to roads identified on the Restricted Roads Register.
Where the distance the stock are being moved along a road is less than 300 metres, the conditions for moving stock across a road apply (see Schedule two).
When moving stock along an unsealed road (shingle, gravel or metalled road):
displayed on a folding stand placed at the side of the road (off the roadway); or
if the distance is more than three and a half kilometres (3.5km), the supplementary temporary warning sign “NEXT 4 KM” must also be used at the start and end of the movement, displayed in a position that is clearly visible to approaching drivers, and at four kilometre intervals for a longer drove.
Note: Standard conditions do not apply to roads identified on the Restricted Roads Register.
This register is associated with, but is not part of, the Christchurch City Council Stock on Roads Bylaw 2017. It lists roads, sections of road, or categories of road that have been resolved by the Council under clause 5(A)(2) of the Stock on Roads Bylaw 2017.
Restricted Roads are roads that are associated with higher risks for the movement of stock.
Movement of stock along or across some roads requires special consideration and the management of different risks. If farmers want to move stock along or across these roads, they need to apply to the Council for an assessment, in accordance with clause 5(C) of the bylaw.
Assessments will be carried out by the Traffic Operations Team, with input from the Christchurch Transport Operations Centre (CTOC). The Council may decide to:
decline the application, in which case alternative means for transporting the stock that does not affect the road must be considered, such as transporting the animals by vehicle.
The following roads, sections of road, or categories of road are Restricted Roads for the movement of stock:
Any subsequent resolutions, amendments or revocations will be listed or otherwise set out in this register.