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Statutes of Newfoundland and Labrador 2009


CHAPTER 9

AN ACT TO AMEND THE HIGHWAY
TRAFFIC ACT

(Assented to May 28, 2009)

Analysis


        1.   S.2 Amdt.
Definitions

        2.   S.10 Amdt.
Registration of vehicle required

        3.   S.11 Amdt.
Application for registration

        4.   S.12 R&S
Registration and exemptions

        5.   S.16 Amdt.
Registrar to register vehicle

        6.   S.20 Amdt.
Conditions of use of vehicle

        7.   S.23 Amdt.
Dealer's plate transferable

        8.   S.28 Amdt.
Licence, etc. property of Crown

        9.   S.30 R&S
Attachment of plates

      10.   S.34 R&S
Identification markers

      11.   S.41 Amdt.
Suspension of registration

      12.   S.45 Amdt.
Application for licence

      13.   S.46 Amdt.
Registrar shall issue licence

      14.   S.48 Amdt.
Registrar shall not issue licence

      15.   S.49 Amdt.
Licence to be signed

      16.   S.50 Amdt.
Licence property of Crown

      17.   S.56 Amdt.
Rental prohibited

      18.   S.65 Amdt.
Suspension or cancellation

      19.   S.65.1 Rep.
Registrar's Advisory Committee

      20.   S.79 Amdt.
Garage, etc. policy

      21.   S.81 Amdt.
Registrar shall suspend licence

      22.   S.96 Amdt.
Overtaking another vehicle

      23.   S.138 Rep.
When engine and person astride a horse meet

      24.   S.173.1 Added
Information release- non-reportable accidents

      25.   S.174.1 R&S
Report required

      26.   S.174.2 Rep.
Report of optometrist

      27.   S.178 Amdt.
Seat belts

      28.   S.178.1 Amdt.
Child seat restraint systems

      29.   S.186 Amdt.
Regulations

      30.   S.195 Amdt.
Regulations respecting equipment

      31.   Sch. Amdt.

      32.   Commencement


Be it enacted by the Lieutenant-Governor and House of Assembly in Legislative Session convened, as follows:

RSNL1990 cH-3
as amended

        1. (1) Paragraph 2(q) of the Highway Traffic Act is repealed and the following substituted:

             (q)  "department" means the department presided over by the minister;

             (2)  Paragraphs 2(aaaa) and (bbbb) of the Act are repealed.

 

        2. Paragraph 10(1)(d) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

             (d)  there is affixed to the motor vehicle and a trailer drawn by the motor vehicle, in the manner prescribed in this Act or the regulations, valid identification plates or markers issued under this Act or the regulations in respect of the motor vehicle and trailer.

 

        3. (1) Subsection 11(2) of the Act is amended by deleting the phrase "and shall sign the application with pen and ink".

             (2)  Subsections 11(5) and (9) of the Act are repealed.

 

        4. Section 12 of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

Registration and exemptions

      12. (1) An owner or operator of a passenger vehicle, other than a commercial motor vehicle, who is a resident of the province shall register it as required under section 11.

             (2)  A non-resident who owns or operates a passenger vehicle, other than a commercial motor vehicle, that is registered in a jurisdiction outside the province in which the non-resident lives and which the person operates for private use, may operate that vehicle in the province without registering it under this Act.

             (3)  Notwithstanding subsection (1), a person who enters the province to take up residence may operate a vehicle in the province for a period of not longer than 90 days before registering the vehicle as required by this Act.

 

        5. (1) Subsection 16(1) of the Act is amended by deleting the word "and" at the end of paragraph (b), by deleting the comma at the end of paragraph (c) and substituting a semi-colon and the word "and", and by adding immediately after that paragraph the following:

             (d)  the person is not, due to non-payment of fines, subject to an action listed under section 16.1,

             (2)  Paragraph 16(2)(b) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

             (b)  one or more identification plates as determined by the registrar, and the identification plates shall be distinctive and numbered as the registrar may determine.

 

        6. Subsection 20(2) of the Act is repealed.

 

        7. (1) Subsection 23(1) of the Act is amended by deleting the phrase "and the dealer shall keep a written record of a vehicle upon which a dealer's plate is used".

             (2)  Subsection 23(2) of the Act is repealed.

 

        8. Subsections 28(2) and (3) of the Act are repealed and the following substituted:

             (2)  Where a person finds an identification plate or vehicle licence that was not issued in respect of a vehicle that person owns and the period for which the identification plate or vehicle licence was issued has not expired, the finder shall return the plate or licence to the registrar or nearest traffic officer.

             (3)  A traffic officer who receives an identification plate or vehicle licence under subsection (2) shall return the identification plate or vehicle licence to the registrar.

 

        9. Section 30 of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

Attachment of plates

      30. (1) A driver, owner, or a person having care or control of a vehicle shall ensure that identification plates are securely fastened at all times to the vehicle for which they are issued so as to prevent the plates from swinging and are at a height of not less than 30 centimetres from the ground measured from the bottom of each plate and in a place and position so that the plate is clearly visible.

             (2)  In addition to the requirements of subsection (1), a driver, owner or a person having care or control of a vehicle shall ensure that

             (a)  where one plate is issued, that the plate is clearly visible from the rear of the vehicle; and

             (b)  where 2 plates are issued, one plate is clearly visible from the front of the vehicle and the other plate is clearly visible from the rear of the vehicle.

 

      10. Section 34 of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

Identification markers

      34. The registrar may issue other plates or markers that may be prescribed in regulations made under section 195, in addition to the identification plates referred to in section 16, which shall be displayed on the vehicle in the manner that may be prescribed in the regulations.

 

      11. Subsection 41(4) of the Act is repealed.

 

      12. Subsection 45(3) of the Act is repealed.

 

      13. Paragraphs 46(3)(a) and (c) of the Act are repealed.

 

      14. Paragraph 48(1)(g) of the Act is repealed.

 

      15. Subsections 49(1) and (1.1) of the Act are repealed and the following substituted:

Licence to be signed

      49. (1) A licence issued by the registrar is not valid until it is signed, and that signature may be reproduced by photographic or electronic means.

 

      16. Subsections 50(2) and (3) of the Act are repealed and the following substituted:

             (2)  A finder of a valid driver's licence shall return the licence to the registrar or nearest traffic officer.

             (3)  A traffic officer who receives a valid driver's licence under subsection (2) shall return it to the registrar.

 

      17. Subsection 56(3) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

             (3)  A person shall not rent a motor vehicle to another person unless he or she has inspected that other person's driver's licence.

 

      18. Section 65(1.2) of the Act is amended by deleting the phrase and comma "upon considering the recommendation of the Registrar's Advisory Committee," and by deleting the comma immediately before that phrase.

 

      19. Section 65.1 of the Act is repealed.

 

      20. Subsection 79(2) of the Act is amended by deleting the phrase "in handwriting and in ink with the person's usual signature".

 

      21. Subsection 81(1) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

Registrar shall suspend licence

      81. (1) Where

             (a)  a judgment for damages arising out of a motor vehicle accident is rendered against a person by a court in the province or by a court in a jurisdiction outside the province;

             (b)  damages have been assessed against the person; and

             (c)  that person fails, within 15 days from the date upon which the judgment became final, to satisfy the judgment,

the registrar, upon receiving a certificate of that final judgment from the court in which it is rendered, shall suspend the driver's licence and vehicle licence of that person.

 

      22. (1) Paragraph 96(1)(a) of the Act is repealed.

             (2)  Paragraph 96(2)(a) of the Act is repealed.

 

      23. Section 138 of the Act is repealed.

 

      24. The Act is amended by adding immediately after section 173 the following:

Information release- non-reportable accidents

173.1 (1) The registrar may release the information referred to in subsection (2) to

             (a)  a person involved in an accident which was not required to be reported under this Act;

             (b)  a person or insurance company that has paid or may be liable to pay damages resulting from an accident; or

             (c)  a solicitor, agent or other representative of the person or company

where the registrar has received written confirmation of the accident by either of the parties involved in the manner acceptable to the minister.

             (2)  The registrar may, under the authority of subsection (1), release the following information:

             (a)  the identification of vehicles involved in the accident;

             (b)  the name and address of the registered owner; and

             (c)  the name and address of an insurance company that has issued a policy insuring a party to or a person involved in an accident, together with the policy number applicable to that policy.

 

      25. Section 174.1 of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

Report required

174.1 (1) A medical practitioner licensed under the Medical Act, 2005, a nurse practitioner as defined in the Registered Nurses Act, 2008 or an optometrist licensed under the Optometry Act, 2004 shall report to the registrar the name, address, date of birth and clinical condition of a person 16 years of age or older attending the practitioner or the optometrist for medical or optometric services who, in the opinion of the practitioner or optometrist, is suffering from a condition that may make it dangerous for the person to operate a motor vehicle.

             (2)  An action shall not be brought against a medical practitioner, a nurse practitioner or an optometrist for complying with subsection (1).

             (3)  A report referred to in subsection (1) is privileged for the information of the registrar only and shall not be open for public inspection.

             (4)  A report referred to in subsection (1) is not admissible in evidence for a purpose in a trial except to prove compliance with subsection (1).

 

      26. Section 174.2 of the Act is repealed.

 

      27. (1) Paragraph 178(5)(a) of the Act is repealed.

             (2)  Paragraph 178(5)(b) of the Act is amended by

             (a)  deleting the reference "Medical Act" and substituting the reference "Medical Act, 2005"; and

             (b)  deleting the reference "Registered Nurses Act" and substituting the reference "Registered Nurses Act, 2008".

             (3)  Paragraph 178(5)(c) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

             (c)  a person who is actively engaged in the collection of garbage or other waste materials which requires that person to alight from and re-enter a vehicle at frequent intervals and who, while engaged in that work, does not drive or travel in that vehicle at a speed exceeding 20 kilometres an hour;

             (4)  Paragraph 178(7)(b) of the Act is repealed.

 

      28. Paragraph 178.1(4)(a) of the Act is amended by deleting the reference "Registered Nurses Act" and substituting the reference "Registered Nurses Act, 2008"

 

      29. (1) Paragraph 186(f.1) of the Act is amended by deleting the word "stickers" and substituting the word "markers".

             (2)  Paragraph 186(k) of the Act is repealed.

 

      30. Paragraph 195(1)(n) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

             (n)  prescribing the manner in which identification plates and markers issued under subsection 34(1) shall be affixed and displayed, and prescribing those plates, markers or both which may be issued by the registrar in addition to those issued under sections 16 and 34, the conditions under which those plates and markers may be issued and the manner in which those plates and markers shall be affixed or displayed;

 

      31. The Schedule to the Act is amended by deleting the offence and penalty provisions relating to subsections 138(1) and (2).

Commencement

      32. This Act comes into force on a day to be proclaimed by the Lieutenant-Governor in Council.