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Committee adopts substitute to allow signs warning of high‑clearance, 4x4‑only roads
Summary
The Senate Transportation Infrastructure Committee approved a committee substitute to allow the Commissioner of Highways to place text warning signs advising that certain unimproved roads are suitable for high‑clearance, four‑wheel‑drive vehicles only; committee members discussed implementation, liability, GPS mapping, and fiscal impact.
The Senate Transportation Infrastructure Committee approved a committee substitute for Senate Bill 7‑94 that would authorize the Commissioner of Highways to design and place signage warning motorists that certain unimproved or primitive roads are best traveled only by high‑clearance, four‑wheel‑drive vehicles.
Why it matters: Committee counsel said the bill would permit the Division of Highways to post text‑based warning signs that do not jeopardize federal highway funding. Supporters said signs would help warn drivers unfamiliar with back roads — including GPS‑directed drivers — that a route may be unsafe for ordinary passenger cars.
What the bill does
Counsel to the committee explained the substitute amends the code section describing the powers and duties of the Commissioner of Highways to authorize signs and markers, subject to federal funding constraints. Counsel said federal rules restrict development of new graphics but allow text signs; the committee substitute therefore contemplates text‑based warnings that urge the use of high‑ground‑clearance, four‑wheel‑drive vehicles on unimproved roads.
Committee discussion and implementation questions
Nate Taney, General Counsel with the West Virginia Department of Transportation, told the committee the department does not have an immediate count of how many roads would qualify and that implementation could be phased; he said the department could coordinate with traffic engineers and GIS to pin sign locations should the law be enacted. Committee members raised liability concerns; Taney said sovereign immunity generally applies and that claims would go through the claims commission. Senators also asked whether signage could be coordinated with mapping and GPS providers; Taney said the department works with mapping platforms in some cases but that classifying transient conditions on back roads can be difficult.
Committee action
The committee substitute was agreed to by voice vote. The vice chair from Taylor moved that the substitute be reported to the full Senate with the recommendation that it pass and under its original double committee reference be referred to the Committee on Finance; the chair announced the ayes had it and declared the motion adopted.
Quotes from the hearing
Counsel to the committee, Mariah: “What it would do is allow the commissioner to design and place signs and markers, that do not jeopardize federal highway funding, including warning signs that advise of unimproved or primitive roads and urge high ground clearance, 4 wheel, drive vehicle use.”
Nate Taney, General Counsel, West Virginia Department of Transportation: “I don't have a number for you here. I know we have the road miles of improved and unimproved and data like that. I just don't have it with me today.”
Ending
The committee adopted the substitute and reported it to the full Senate with a recommendation that it pass; members asked the Department of Transportation to provide more detailed implementation and cost information to the Finance committee as the bill proceeds.
