General Laws of Massachusetts - Chapter 81 State Highways
- Massachusetts General Laws - Powers and duties - Chapter 81, Section 1
The division of highways, in this chapter called the department, shall compile statistics relative to the public ways of counties, cities and towns, and make...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Road information; duties of local officials - Chapter 81, Section 2
County commissioners and city and town officers who have the care of and authority over public ways shall, on request, furnish the department with any...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Purchase and maintenance of road machinery; storage quarters - Chapter 81, Section 3
Steam road rollers and other road machinery, purchased by the department and owned by the commonwealth shall be managed and maintained under the direction of...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Petition - Chapter 81, Section 4
If county commissioners, aldermen or selectmen adjudge that public necessity and convenience require that the commonwealth lay out and take charge of a new or...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Filing of highway plan; right to abandon or discontinue; width of highway - Chapter 81, Section 5
If the department determines, after public notice and a hearing of all parties interested, that public necessity and convenience require that a way should be...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Alteration of location - Chapter 81, Section 6
The department may alter the location of a state highway in a city or town by filing a plan thereof and a certificate that the...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Acquisition of land outside limits of existing highway - Chapter 81, Section 7
If it is necessary to acquire land for the purposes of a state highway outside the limits of an existing public way, the department may...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Acquisition of land to alter or relocate ways connecting with state highways - Chapter 81, Section 7A
In connection with the laying out, alteration or reconstruction of a state highway, the department may alter or relocate connecting ways as may be necessary....
- Massachusetts General Laws - Acquisition of slope easement to protect existing ways - Chapter 81, Section 7B
Wherever in this chapter the department is authorized to take land by eminent domain under chapter seventy-nine, in connection with the laying out, widening or...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Limited access ways; definition; acquisition of land; motorist service facilities - Chapter 81, Section 7C
If the department determines that public necessity and convenience require that a limited access way shall be laid out, it shall lay out such way...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Public utility easements and cattle passes - Chapter 81, Section 7D
The department may grant easements within state highway locations for wires, pipes, poles, conduits and cattle passes.
- Massachusetts General Laws - Sale, transfer, lease or rental of excess lands - Chapter 81, Section 7E
The department may sell at public or private sale any land, or rights in land, the title to which has been acquired by the department...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Entry on private land for purpose of surveys, soundings, drillings and examinations - Chapter 81, Section 7F
Whenever the department deems it necessary to make surveys, soundings, drillings or examinations to obtain information for or to expedite the construction of state highways...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Relocation of public utilities; purchase of lands and easements - Chapter 81, Section 7G
Whenever, in connection with the laying out, widening, relocating, constructing or altering of a public way by the department, land or an easement therein owned...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Lease of lands for public parking facility - Chapter 81, Section 7H
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the department may, with the approval of the governor and council, lease land adjacent to, over or under a...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Agreements with railroads, transit authorities or other public authorities or municipalities regarding relocation or other work; advancement of funds - Chapter 81, Section 7I
The department is hereby authorized to enter into agreements with railroad corporations, transit authorities or other public authorities or municipalities for the purpose of performing...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Relocation assistance; acquisition of real property; payments; compliance with federal acts - Chapter 81, Section 7J
In any federally aided program, the department of highways, in this section referred to as the department, is hereby authorized and directed to do all...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Relocation of facilities of public utilities; entry upon lands - Chapter 81, Section 7K
Whenever land or an easement therein is taken by the department by eminent domain for the purpose of relocating certain facilities of a public utility...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Lease of air rights over state highways - Chapter 81, Section 7L
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the department may, with the approval of the governor, lease at one time or from time to time for...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Acquisition of land for parks, historic sites, etc., to replace land required for federal highways - Chapter 81, Section 7M
Whenever a federal-aid highway program or project requires the use of any land which is part of a public park, recreation area or wildlife and...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Construction of state highways; advertising for proposals - Chapter 81, Section 8
The department, when about to construct a state highway, shall advertise in two or more newspapers published in each county in which the highway lies,...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Repealed, 2010, 112, Sec. 22 - Chapter 81, Section 8A
Repealed, 2010, 112, Sec.
- Massachusetts General Laws - Statement of qualification of persons bidding on work awarded by division of highways or department of conservation and recreation - Chapter 81, Section 8B
The commissioner of highways or the commissioner of conservation and recreation shall require that any person proposing to bid on any work, excepting the construction,...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Restriction upon hours during which nonemergency work may be performed on certain highways - Chapter 81, Section 8C
Any contract for the resurfacing, maintenance, minor reconstruction or minor repair of any major state highway or numbered route within the city of Boston, between...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Repealed, 1931, 432 - Chapter 81, Section 9
Repealed, 1931,
- Massachusetts General Laws - Contributions by cities and towns - Chapter 81, Section 10
The mayor, selectmen or road commissioners or the board or officer having charge of the maintenance and care of highways, if so authorized by the...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Acquisition of land to supply road materials - Chapter 81, Section 11
The department shall have the same power as aldermen, selectmen or road commissioners in relation to the purchase or taking of land to furnish materials...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Discontinuance or abandonment - Chapter 81, Section 12
The department, with the concurrence of the county commissioners, may discontinue as a state highway any way or section of way laid out and constructed...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Duties of department; definition of state highway - Chapter 81, Section 13
State highways shall be maintained and kept in good repair and condition by the department at the expense of the commonwealth. The department shall keep...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Highway landscaping; acceptance of gifts of easements - Chapter 81, Section 13A
The department may accept in behalf of the commonwealth from owners of lands included in a strip one hundred feet deep bordering on a state...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Restoration, preservation and enhancement of scenic beauty and historic or archeological sites; facilities for traveling motorists - Chapter 81, Section 13B
The department may acquire by eminent domain under the provisions of chapter seventy-nine or by purchase or otherwise land and rights in land within or...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Removal of trees and other obstructions near highways - Chapter 81, Section 14
The department, if it can obtain consent of the owner, shall remove the trees, limbs of trees, shrubbery or any structure or other obstacle from...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Contracts for maintenance and repair - Chapter 81, Section 15
The department may contract with the town in which a state highway lies or with a private person or may make other provision for the...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Repealed, 1931, 349 - Chapter 81, Section 16 17
Repealed, 1931,
- Massachusetts General Laws - Defects in highways; liability - Chapter 81, Section 18
The commonwealth shall be liable for injuries sustained by persons while traveling on state highways, if the same are caused by defects within the limits...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Jurisdiction of local police; snow removal - Chapter 81, Section 19
A town shall have police jurisdiction over all state highways within its limits. It shall forthwith give written notice to the department or its employees...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Repealed, 1928, 357, Sec. 7 - Chapter 81, Section 19A
Repealed, 1928, 357, Sec.
- Massachusetts General Laws - Sidewalks - Chapter 81, Section 20
The department shall from time to time construct sidewalks along such parts of the state highways as it determines public convenience and necessity require. Sidewalks...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Illumination of highways - Chapter 81, Section 20A
The department may illuminate, or cause to be illuminated, by means of highway lighting, traffic circles, traffic underpasses, traffic overpasses, traffic islands and other locations...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Excavations or driveway openings on state highways; conditions; enforcement - Chapter 81, Section 21
No state highway shall be dug up, nor opening made therein for any purpose, nor access granted thereto for any purpose, nor shall any material...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Prescriptive rights of adjoining owners - Chapter 81, Section 22
No length of possession, or occupancy of land within the limits of a state highway by an owner or occupant of adjoining land shall give...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Repealed, 1925, 288, Sec. 2 - Chapter 81, Section 23
Repealed, 1925, 288, Sec.
- Massachusetts General Laws - Authorization - Chapter 81, Section 24
The department may, whenever any money is appropriated by the general court for its use in the construction or improvement of any particular way, expend...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Maintenance - Chapter 81, Section 25
When any public way has been constructed or improved in whole, or in part, with money furnished by the commonwealth, and the way is not...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Maintenance of ways in small towns - Chapter 81, Section 26
There may be expended for the repair and improvement of public ways, other than state highways, in towns having valuations of less than five million...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Maintenance of ways in small towns; contributions by county - Chapter 81, Section 26A
The county commissioners of the county wherein any public way is to be repaired or improved under the provisions of the preceding section may contribute...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Maintenance costs; conditions of payment - Chapter 81, Section 27
Expenditure of state funds under section twenty-six shall be made only upon the written petition of the selectmen, containing such information as the department may
- Massachusetts General Laws - Maintenance of ways in small towns; performance of contract - Chapter 81, Section 28
The said towns may contract with the department for the performance of the work authorized by section twenty-six; or, if the selectmen so request, the...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Maintenance of ways in small towns; determination of town’s contribution - Chapter 81, Section 29
The department shall determine, ad nearly as possible, the number of miles of such public ways in towns entitled to the benefits under section twenty-six,...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Laying out or altering ways; consent, acquisition, funds - Chapter 81, Section 29A
The department may lay out or alter ways other than state highways in any county, city or town provided that the county commissioner of the...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Use of federal aid for highways and rural post roads - Chapter 81, Section 30
The department may make all contracts and agreements and do all other things necessary to co-operate with the United States in the construction and maintenance...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Apportionment of fund; equalizing grant; definitions: notifications of amounts apportioned and to be incurred - Chapter 81, Section 31
The portion of the Highway Fund allocated for reimbursements to cities and towns for costs actually incurred in constructing, maintaining and policing city or town...
- Massachusetts General Laws - Definitions - Chapter 81, Section 32
For the purposes of reimbursing cities and towns for the costs actually incurred in constructing, maintaining and policing city or town streets or roads as...
Last modified: September 11, 2015