Enforcement of byelaws by Local Authority.

Providing for uniformity in enforcement of byelaws.

The regulation of wires;

The strength of the materials to be employed in placing maintaining and supporting wires; and

The removal of wires erected or placed otherwise than in accordance with such byelaws and of disused wires:

And they may by such byelaws fix and determine the penalties to be imposed on the Company or any person failing to comply with any of the provisions of this Act and the continuing penalties to be imposed in the event of any such offence being continued after conviction thereof:

Provided that no such byelaw shall have any force or effect until it shall have been approved by the Board of Trade who may prescribe to whom and in what manner notices of the intended byelaws shall be given and provided also that before any such byelaws are proposed to the Board of Trade for confirmation notice thereof with copies of the intended byelaws shall be given to the Postmaster General :

After the making of any such byelaws a copy thereof shall be published in the London Gazette and in such other newspapers as the Board of Trade may direct :

Provided also that the Board of Trade may exempt any then existing wire from the operation of any such byelaw for such period as they think proper not exceeding five years from the confirmation thereof.

See the Byelaws made under authority of this section, post, p. 332.

6. Byelaws under this Act shall subject to the provisions of this Act be enforced and administered by the Local Authority.

7. If in any case in any one or more of the parishes or districts within the county any byelaw under this Act is in the opinion of the Council inadequately enforced or if in any two or more of such parishes or districts owing to want of uniformity in the method of administering any byelaw the Council consider it is expedient in the public interest that provision should be made for duly enforcing such byelaw or establishing uniformity in the application and enforcement of the same the Council may apply to the Board of Trade who may after hearing any vestry or district board concerned if they desire to be heard make under the hand of a secretary or assistant secretary such order for securing the enforcement of such byelaw or for establishing uniformity in the administration thereof as they may think expedient. Any such order may include a power to the Council to enforce any byelaw in any case in any parish or district and to recover any expenses incidental thereto from the vestry or district board.

overhead

8. It shall be lawful for the Council or the Local Authority as Inspectors of the case may be to appoint and employ an inspector or inspectors wires. of wires and such other officers and workmen as they may find requisite for the purposes of this Act.

overhead

9. If at any time on the report of any of their inspectors it Removal of shall appear to the Local Authority that any wire is in such a existing condition that danger to the public using the streets may be wires. apprehended the Local Authority may serve notice in writing on the Company requiring them to remove renew or alter the same and to place such wire in such position as the Local Authority may reasonably determine and in the event of such requisition not being complied with within such reasonable time as shall be therein specified it shall be lawful for the Local Authority to apply to a court of summary jurisdiction to issue a summons calling on the Company to show cause why the wire should not be dealt with in accordance with such requisition and such court may make an order authorising the Local Authority or any of their inspectors or officers to remove or alter any such wire and to charge the expenses of such removal or alteration on the Company to whom the wire belongs as may be prescribed in such order. And such expenses may be recovered under the provisions of the Summary Jurisdiction Acts:

Provided that the local authority may at any time after byelaws shall have been made and published under the provisions of this Act proceed under this section without any such notice or requisition in the case of any wire not being in accordance with such byelaws and at any time after such byelaws are made and published it shall be lawful for the Council or Local Authority to remove any such wire if they are unable to ascertain the owner thereof.

liability for

10. Nothing in this Act or in any byelaw made under this Act As to or any compliance with any of the provisions of this Act or of any accidents. such byelaw shall relieve the Company from any liability in respect of damage caused by any wire or support or attachment or the failure thereof or otherwise due to any works or operations of the Company.

11. Where under the provisions of this Act any matter is Arbitrator. referred to an arbitrator the reference shall be to an arbitrator who shall be appointed by the Board of Trade on the application of the Council Local Authority or the Company to whom the question refers.

12. No writ shall be issued and no proceeding shall be instituted against the Council Local Authority or any officer or person acting

Notice to be given of

legal pro

ceedings.

Recovery of penalties.

Application

of penalties.

Evidence of byelaws.

Wires not to be inconsistent with

under their authority in reference to this Act except after such notice and subject to such conditions as are specified in section 106 of the Metropolis Management Amendment Act 1862 which section shall be deemed to be incorporated with this Act.

Section 106 is repealed by the Public Authorities Protection Act, 1893 (56 & 57 Vict. c. 61). See that Act for substituted enactment in regard to the conditions under which such actions may be maintained.

13. Every sum of money required by this Act to be paid to the Council or Local Authority and every penalty imposed by any byelaw made in pursuance of this Act may be recovered by the Council or Local Authority in a summary way.

14. All penalties which may be recovered under any of the byelaws made under the powers of this Act shall notwithstanding anything contained in an Act made and passed in the session holden in the second and third years of the reign of Her present Majesty chapter 71 or in any other Act or Acts to the contrary if recovered by the Council be paid to the Council and be carried by them to the credit of the county fund or if recovered by the Local Authority be paid to their treasurer to their account or if recovered by the Commissioners of Sewers be carried to the credit of their consolidated rate.

As to application of penalties see Wray v. Ellis (1858), 1 E. & E. 276; and Reg. v. Titterton, ex parte Quelch, [1895] 2 Q. B. 61. As to Commissioners of Sewers, see footnote, ante, p. 326.

15. The production of a written copy of a byelaw made under this Act if authenticated by the corporate seal of the Council shall until the contrary is proved be sufficient evidence of the due making and existence of the byelaw and of the byelaw having been approved by the Board of Trade.

16. The Company shall not under the powers of this Act or any byelaw made under this Act be required to place any wire in any regulations of manner which shall be inconsistent with any regulation or

Board of

Trade.

As to authorised electric lighting undertakers and wires.

condition for securing the safety of the public or for the protection of the electric lines and works of the Postmaster General made prescribed or imposed by the Board of Trade under the Electric Lighting Acts 1882 and 1888 or under any special Act or Provisional Order or license under the provisions of the Electric Lighting Acts 1882 and 1888 or either of them.

17. Nothing in this Act or any byelaw made in pursuance thereof shall apply or extend to any undertakers acting under special Act Provisional Order or license under the Electric Lighting Acts 1882 and 1888 or to any wires of such undertakers.

18. Nothing in this Act shall extend to any wire placed by any Exempting person for his private use over land belonging to him or in his private wires. occupation which does not extend over any street and is so constructed and placed that neither the wire nor any support thereof or attachment thereto would be liable to fall into any public street.

19. Nothing in this Act contained shall be deemed to authorise Not to the Council to confer any powers of placing wires for electric authorise placing unlighting purposes overhead on any company body or person not authorised authorised so to place such wires by a special Act Provisional wires overOrder or license under the provisions of the Electric Lighting Acts 1882 and 1888.

head.

Exemption

of GovernCrown property from overhead

ment and

powers as to

20. Nothing in this Act shall authorise any wire to be carried over supported on or attached to any land building or structure in the occupation and under the management of or maintained by Her Majesty or Her Majesty's Duchy of Lancaster or the Duchy of Cornwall or any department of Her Majesty's Government or shall authorise any entry upon any such land building or structure wires. without in each case the consent of the department of Her Majesty's Government or of the officer or body charged with the management of such land building or structure.

Postmaster
General.

21. Nothing in this Act or in any byelaws made in pursuance Saving for of this Act shall be deemed to apply or extend (except by way of protection) to any telegraphic line belonging to or used by the Postmaster General or to any support or attachment thereof and nothing in this Act or in any such byelaws shall be deemed to take away abridge or prejudicially affect any right power or privilege enjoyed by the Postmaster General.

ments by Local Autho

this Act.

22. All costs and expenses of any vestry or district board in As to paythe execution of this Act or any byelaws under this Act shall be paid as part of the expenses of such vestry or district board of rities under executing the Metropolis Management Act 1855 and the Acts amending the same, and all costs and expenses of the Commissioners of Sewers in the execution of this Act or any byelaws under this Act shall be paid out of the consolidated rate as part of the expenses of such Commissioners.

As to Commissioners of Sewers, see footnote, ante, p. 326.

ments under this Act.

23. All costs and expenses of the Council in the execution of As to paythis Act (except so far as they may be otherwise provided for by this or any other Act) shall be defrayed as payments for general county purposes within the meaning of the Local Government

Act 1888 and the costs charges and expenses preliminary to and of and incidental to the preparing applying for obtaining and passing of this Act shall be paid by the Council in like

manner.

THE ADMINISTRATIVE COUNTY OF LONDON.

BYELAWS-OVERHEAD WIRES.

Byelaws made by the London County Council in pursuance of the London Overhead Wires Act, 1891.

[N.B.-The Act (see s. 18) does not extend to any wire placed by any person for his private use over land belonging to him or in his occupation, which does not extend over any street, and is so constructed and placed that neither the wire nor any support thereof or attachment thereto would be liable to fall into any public street.]

In these byelaws—

The expression "the Act" means the London Overhead Wires Act, 1891.

The expression "wire" has the same meaning as in the Act, except that it does not include any support or attachment.

The expression "cable" means any covered or insulated wire, of which the diameter to the outside of the covering exceeds twice the diameter of the bare wire, and where more wires than one are enclosed in the same covering or insulation, includes all such wires and covering, without reference to diameter.

General.

1. The Company shall deliver to the Council and the local authority full particulars of the material and gauge of the wires of the Company, and the nature and position of the several supports, and the length of span between the several supports. The Company shall also deliver to the Council a plan, on a scale of not less than 25 inches to the mile, showing the routes of such wires and the position of the supports, or at their option shall cause the routes of such wires and the position of the supports to be marked upon a map to be supplied for the purpose at the office of the Council.

Existing wires.

2. In the case of wires or supports existing at the date of the approval of these byelaws the Company shall comply with the requirements of byelaw 1 within six months after that date.

New wires.

3. In the case of new wires or supports placed after the date of the approval of these byelaws, the Company shall comply with the requirements of byelaw 1 within one month after the placing thereof.

4. A wire shall not be placed so as at any point to be at a less height above the ground than 20 feet, or where it crosses a street 35 feet, or at a less height above the roof of any building than 6 feet, except where it is brought into any building for use in that building, or is attached to a chimney or other part of a building in accordance with these byelaws.