33.1-369 - Certain advertisements or structures prohibited.
§ 33.1-369. Certain advertisements or structures prohibited.
No advertisement or advertising structure shall be erected, maintained oroperated:
(1) Within 660 feet of the nearest edge of the right-of-way of the Blue RidgeParkway, the Colonial National Parkway, the Mount Vernon Boulevard, or anyother parkway within this Commonwealth or within 660 feet of any publiccemetery, public park reservation, public playground, national forest orstate forest, outside the limits of any municipality; however, anyadvertisement or advertising structure which is lawfully in place on April 6,1966, and which does not conform to the 660-foot distance requirement may bemaintained for the life of such advertisement or advertising structure;
(2) Which involves motion or rotation of any part of the structure, movingreflective disks, running animation, or displays an intermittent light orlights visible from any highway. The prohibition of this subsection shall notapply to: (a) an advertisement or advertisement structure with messages thatchange no more than once every four seconds and is consistent with agreementsentered into between the Commonwealth Transportation Commissioner and theUnited States Department of Transportation or (b) an on-premisesadvertisement or advertising structure with messages displayed as scrollingwords and/or numbers;
(3) Which uses the words "stop" or "danger" prominently displayed orpresents or implies the need or requirement of stopping or the existence ofdanger on any highway, or which is a copy or imitation of official highwaysigns;
(4) [Reserved.]
(5) Which, within visible distance of any highway, advertises any county,city, town, village, historic place or shrine without the consent, in writingof such county, city, town or village or of the owner of such historic placeor shrine;
(6) Which is mobile and is designed to and effectively does distract theattention of passing motorists on any highway by flashing lights, loud andblatant noises or movable objects;
(7) Which involve red, green or amber lights or reflectorized material andwhich resemble traffic signal lights or traffic control signs and are withinvisible distance of any highway;
(8) Within fifteen feet of the nearest edge of the pavement of any highway;however, the Commonwealth Transportation Commissioner may waive thisrestriction whenever the advertisement or advertising structure is actuallyanchored outside of the right-of-way, and, within his discretion, does notconstitute a safety hazard or conflict with any other restriction containedin this section;
(9) At any public road intersection in such manner as would obstruct theclear vision in either direction between a point on the center line of theside road 20 feet from the nearest edge of the pavement of the main road andpoints on the main road 400 feet distant, measured along the nearest edge ofthe pavement of the main road;
(10) At any grade intersection of a public road and a railroad in such manneras would obstruct the clear vision in either direction within triangularareas formed by (a) a point at the center of the railroad-public roadintersection, (b) a point on the public road 400 feet from the center of therailroad-public road intersection as measured along the center of the publicroad, and (c) a point on the railroad 500 feet from the center of therailroad-public road intersection as measured along the center of therailroad;
(11) At or near any curve in a road in such a manner as to obstruct the clearvision of traffic from any one point on such curve to any other point notmore than 400 feet apart, as measured between each point from the nearestedge of the pavement;
(12) Which advertises activities which are illegal under state or federallaws or regulations in effect at the location of such sign or advertisementor at the location of such activities;
(13) Which is obsolete or inconsistent with this article or regulationsadopted by the Commonwealth Transportation Board pursuant to this article; or
(14) After December 18, 1991, adjacent to any interstate, federal-aidprimary, or national highway system highway in the Commonwealth which hasbeen designated as a Virginia byway or scenic highway, except directional andofficial signs and notices defined in this article and regulations adoptedunder this article, on-premises signs, and signs advertising the sale orlease of property upon which they are located.
(Code 1950, § 33-317; 1954, c. 588; 1956, c. 676; 1958, c. 369; 1960, c. 406;1966, c. 663; 1968, c. 230; 1970, c. 322; 1976, c. 14; 1977, c. 219; 1993, c.538; 1999, c. 290; 2000, c. 140; 2001, c. 285.)