However, municipalities may authorize other incidental uses of rights-of-way, including private uses, which do not unreasonably interfere with public travel. Washington cases have observed that the primary purpose of a right-of-way is public travel.
#Section 280 of the public utilities code code
That authority stems from the police power under the Washington State Constitution (Article XI, Section 11), as well as statutes such as RCW 35A.11.020, which provides code cities with broad power “in regard to the acquisition, sale, ownership, improvement, maintenance, protection, restoration, regulation, use, leasing, disposition, vacation, abandonment or beautification of public ways.” Other municipal entities also have broad authority: counties ( RCW 36.75.050) first class cities ( RCW 35.22.280(7) and (8)) second class cities ( RCW 35.23.440(33)) and towns ( RCW 35.27.370(4)). Here are links to more detailed information on the nature of right-of-way and street vacation.ĭespite its easement status, municipalities have broad authority to manage and regulate the rights-of-way. This is the reason why streets, when vacated, generally become the property of the abutting owners to the centerline of the right-of-way. In fact, the general rule is that city or county rights-of-way are easements for public travel and other secondary street purposes (such as utilities). It is a common misconception that rights-of-way are owned by local government. Fundamentals: What is a right-of-way and what can be done with it? The next article will cover sidewalks, utilities, trees and unused portions of the right-of-way. This article will cover right-of-way fundamentals and the issues presented by use of rights-of-way for travel. In this two part series, I will try to cover the fundamentals of rights-of-way and the duties of local governments and abutting owners. Over the years, we have touched on specific aspects of rights-of-way on our website and in blog articles. MRSC gets a lot of inquiries about street rights-of-way.
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