How to install a barrier and road signs in the local area

Who is responsible for installing road signs?

Formally, the local road service is responsible for the condition of the road and all its facilities. However, in practice this can be done by several organs at once:

• Federal Office for Traffic Management (Ministry of Transport, Rosavtodor),
• department of a subject (region or city of Russia) for organizing the installation of road signs, traffic lights, markings (usually the local traffic department),
• The traffic police monitors the legality of their installation.

The good news is that you can check the road sign through all the specified departments, and you can submit an appeal online.

Who is doing

People mistakenly believe that the traffic police is responsible for the installation and placement of signs. For this purpose, there are special organizations responsible for road traffic:

• Traffic police officers are responsible only for their technical condition and correct installation.
• Installation of road signs is carried out based on the traffic pattern on the road.
• Before installation, each location must be approved by various authorities. Of course, the first authority for this is the traffic police.
• This scheme is in the city directorate for organizing traffic on the road. This is where the register is kept, which includes every installed sign in the city.
• If any sign is missing, it means it is installed in the wrong place.

Important! Illegal installation of signs is punishable by administrative liability.

Can I put my own sign?

Neither an individual nor a legal entity has the right to simply dig up his own road sign. However, a person can initiate the installation of an element of the road network by sending the same request as by analogy with checking the legality of the installation of a sign.

What about in yards and on private property?

It's also impossible. In general, a direct ban on putting up signs without authorization in 2021 is prohibited by traffic regulations. In particular, paragraph 1.5 indicates that the Rules prohibit the independent installation of technical means of traffic management.

Of course, if you put a sign in your private yard, there will be no penalty for it. But if we are talking about an apartment building, then you cannot arbitrarily install any signs, barriers, traffic lights, or other organizational means.

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Temporary signs

Temporary signs on the road
Sometimes, due to weather conditions, the markings on the road are difficult to see.

Until the condition of the roadway is improved, additional signs may be installed.

Temporary road signs may be installed during repairs or due to seasonal conditions.

Such signs, as well as traffic lights, can be covered with special opaque covers for periods when they are not needed. Typically, this happens during road repairs.

Signs that were installed during the period of repair work must be removed after the cause of their appearance has been eliminated.

Who is in control?

We indicated above that responsibility for road maintenance rests with the road service. However, the State Traffic Inspectorate also has the right to control the actions of the latter. In particular, the traffic police are given the rights to:

1. exercise supervision over the condition of road signs (clause 59 of the Administrative Regulations introduced by Order No. 664),
2. issue orders to eliminate traffic violations to municipal and other authorities regarding the dismantling or, conversely, installation of signs (clause 21, paragraph 1, article 19 of the Law on Police)

Illegally placed signs

Nowadays the issue of illegal installation of signs on roads is very relevant:

• Companies often install special signs near their personal territory, such as “parking for employees.” It is precisely such actions that lead to administrative liability. Such actions, without approval, are not legal, especially since they limit the rights of citizens.
• In practice, there have even been situations where residents of the house themselves installed a “no entry” sign. Usually it can be immediately determined, since it will not comply with GOST.

If such a sign is found on the road, it must be immediately reported to the road inspection. They will come to the location of the sign, remove it, find the culprits and help bring them to justice.

How and where to submit an application online?

So, we have 3 services where you can apply:

1. traffic police,
2. federal traffic safety controller,
3. municipal security authority.

Please note that the last two are general and more specific departments of the same organization. But they consider, accordingly, signs at different levels:

• The federal body has the authority to dismantle and install road signs on federal highways (those whose names contain the letter “M” at the beginning - for example, on the M7 highway) - as indicated in Article 5 of Federal Law No. 443 On the organization of road traffic,
• regional road workers check the legality of signs on intercity highways that are not federal (Article 6 of the same law),
• but the maintenance of elements of local (city and other populated areas) roads is carried out by municipal bodies - administration and the like (Article 7).

Thus, you can submit your appeal on the following resources:

• on the official website of Rosavtodor regarding federal roads (sample application on their website),
• on the official resource of the regional department regarding regional routes - just enter in the search “[your city] government body of the constituent entity of the Russian Federation in the field of traffic management” - for example, for Tatarstan this will be the website of the Ministry of Transport, for the Krasnodar Territory - a similar Ministry,
• or on the website of the local municipal authority - you can also find it by searching; for example, in Moscow it is the data center, in St. Petersburg it is the DODD.

Accordingly, you can submit an appeal through the online reception of these services. Only for Moscow this will no longer be the official website of the data center, but a single transport portal of the capital.

But in St. Petersburg, the DODD website does not provide online appeals. But you can write an email using the application template.

In addition, do not forget that we can still contact the traffic police with the same statement (but we will not be able to copy the text from the letter to the road service here - the site has a ban on contextual commands).

GOST standards for signs

Meanwhile, certain road structures and objects may not always arouse your suspicions. Thus, the regulation of requirements for road signs is very strict, including their sizes, colors, area ratio, objects drawn on them, materials of manufacture and other characteristics - all this is regulated by GOST R52290-2004.

Therefore, even if you have the slightest doubt not only about the legality of installing a sign, but also about its compliance with GOST, you can write to the appropriate authority to check its installation on a given section of the road and compliance with technical requirements.

Something else useful for you:

• Application "Euro Accident Report" - how to officially register an accident over the phone?
• Are GOSTs mandatory in road traffic or not?
• Is it necessary to comply with reduced traffic signs?

What does the Road Works sign warn about?

The main purpose of this sign is to warn motorists about approaching an area where road construction or repair work is being carried out: specialized vehicles are operating and people are involved. The road sign “Repair work” is installed in the following cases:

• if the existing pavement is being repaired or new asphalt is being laid;
• Infrastructure facilities and curbs are cleaned of dirt;
• replacement of light bulbs in traffic lights;
• Trees growing along the roadside are pruned;
• in other cases.

This sign may indicate the fact that there may be specialized equipment on the roadway along with a large number of workers who can be easily identified by their reflective uniforms. On the designated section of the road, construction or repairs are literally in full swing, equipment and people are in motion, and precisely on the roadway or directly next to it.

Is there an obligation to comply with such signs?

If a road sign in a given place is installed illegally and without permission, then there should be no punishment for non-compliance with it, since in essence the event of violation itself is absent. For example, if someone independently placed a “Brick” in front of the entrance to a residential yard without permission, then in this case a fine for driving under it is illegal, because from the point of view of the Rules this object is not familiar.

On the other hand, if there is a violation of GOST, then when appealing the decision, for example, you will also need to prove that it was this violation of the installation of the sign that led to your violation. For example, the posted speed limit was not visible because the sign was overgrown with branches of a nearby tree. Then you will have to show dashcam video or provide other evidence that you could not see the maximum speed on the road sign.

Is it legal to fine someone for not having a “Spikes” sign?

Climatic conditions in Russia are extremely unfavorable. The winter period is characterized by both increased precipitation and extremely low temperatures compared to Europe. Adhesion to the surface at such times is minimal, which inevitably leads to an accident.

These factors push drivers to use tires with studs, which make driving more predictable.

However, for other participants in the flow, this solution is not so beneficial:

• A car with studded tires brakes much better than with regular tires. If the first car is ahead of the second, then a collision is almost inevitable;
• As the studded wheels rotate, dirt and stones fly off the vehicle and land on the windshield behind the next car.

To avoid possible negative effects, the car owner must stick a warning sign in the form of the letter “Ш” on the rear window.

(“spikes”). The need for placement is indicated in the traffic regulations.

According to the decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated March 24, 2017, traffic police officers have the right to impose a ban on the operation

vehicle without a sticker. In reality, a careless driver can get away with just a warning.