A deadline for mapping all Class 1, 2, 3 and 4 Town Highways and Legal Trails is approaching and it is important for Towns, Cities and Villages to be aware that there is one year remaining to get any highways or trails added to the 2015 Certificate of Highway Mileage, and subsequently to the General Highway Maps.
On July 1, 2006, Act No. 178 of 2006 (“An Act Relating to Unidentified Corridors”) and the subsequent companion Act, Act 158 of 2008 (“An Act Relating To Mapping Class Four Town Highways And Trails And Mass Discontinuances Of Unmapped Town Highways”) went into effect, changing some of the processes and requirements defined in Vermont Statutes Annotated (V.S.A.), Title 19 (Highways), Chapters 3 (Town Highways) and 7 (Laying Out, Discontinuing and Reclassifying Highways). A copy of the Acts can be found on-line at –
Act 178 – https://www.leg.state.vt.us/docs/legdoc.cfm?URL=/docs/2006/acts/ACT178.HTM
Act 158 – https://www.leg.state.vt.us/docs/legdoc.cfm?URL=/docs/2008/acts/ACT158.HTM
Over the course of the last 8 years, many Towns, Cities and Villages have worked to research, document, and map all the town highways and trails that were legally established over the course of time. These town highways and trails may have been submitted on the annual Certificate of Highway Mileage and subsequently added by VTrans on the General Highway Map, also referred to as the Town Highway Map.
There is a requirement from statute for all Class 1, 2, 3, 4 town highways and legal trails to be mapped by July 1, 2015. The statutory reference is below:
19 V.S.A. § 305 (c) All class 1, 2, 3, and 4 town highways and trails shall appear on the town highway maps by July 1, 2015.”
https://www.leg.state.vt.us/statutes/fullsection.cfm?Title=19&Chapter=003&Section=00305
If the municipality wishes to include any legally established highways or trails on the Town Highway Map by the July 1, 2015 deadline, it will be necessary to have the research and documentation ready for the 2015 Certificate of Highway Mileage submittal. The Certificates will be sent to all the municipalities by early January, and then will need to be put on file in the Town, City or Village Clerk’s Office by February 10th of 2015, finally being submitted to VTrans Mapping by February 20, 2015.
In advance of next Mileage Certificate cycle, it would be beneficial for each municipality to review the current series of Town Highway Maps and provide any feedback regarding any missing roads, discontinued sections, classification and surface type changes, upgraded untraveled sections, or other items that may not be correctly shown on the Town Highway Maps. We would like to work to improve the accuracy of the maps and properly show the highway and trail network prior to the July 1, 2015 date.
It is important to know that there is a distinction between the legislative date of July 1, 2015 to have all the highways and trails maps, and the functional date of February 10, 2015 for additions to the Town Highway Maps. February 10th is the functional date for these changes to be defined on the Mileage Certificates and the catalyst for changes to the Town Highway Maps.
VTrans Mapping is currently working to incorporate all the changes provided on the 2014 Mileage Certificates and will be generating a 2014 series of maps. In advance of this series, the current Town Highway Maps may be accessed on-line at the following link: https://vtransplanning.vermont.gov/maps
Please feel free to contact Johnathan Croft at 802-828-2600 or via email at [email protected] with any questions or comments regarding the Mileage Certificates, Town Highway Maps, Act 178 and 158, or mapping in general.