HB162.html

To amend Part 2 of Article 6 of Chapter 6 of Title 32 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to railroads, so as to authorize counties and municipalities to seek injunctions and damages, including attorney´s fees, for a railroad´s violating its duty to permit passage at certain railroad crossings; to amend Article 5 of Chapter 8 of Title 46 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to construction, improvement, and repair of rail lines, depots, and roads, so as to change certain provisions relating to obstructions located at crossing, disrepair of crossing, and removal of obstruction or repair of crossing by county or municipality upon failure of company to remove obstruction or repair crossing; to provide an effective date; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.

Part 2 of Article 6 of Chapter 6 of Title 32 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to railroads, is amended by striking Code Section 32-6-190, relating to the duty of railroads to maintain grade crossings, and inserting in lieu thereof a new Code Section 32-6-190 to read as follows:
"32-6-190.
(a) Any railroad whose track or tracks cross a public road at grade shall have a duty to maintain such grade crossings in such condition as to permit the safe and convenient passage of public traffic. Such duty of maintenance shall include that portion of the public road lying between the track or tracks and for two feet beyond the ends of the crossties on each side of such crossing.
(b) The county or municipality in which a grade crossing subject to subsection (a) of this Code section is located shall have a cause of action for damages for the railroad´s failure or refusal to permit the safe and convenient passage of public traffic at such crossing, including reasonable attorney´s fees, and may also seek an injunction to prohibit the railroad´s continuing failure or refusal to permit such passage."

Article 5 of Chapter 8 of Title 46 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to construction, improvement, and repair of rail lines, depots, and roads, is amended by striking Code Section 46-8-128, relating to obstructions located at crossing, disrepair of crossing, and removal of obstruction or repair of crossing by county upon failure of company to remove obstruction or repair crossing, and inserting in lieu thereof a new Code Section 46-8-128 to read as follows:
"46-8-128.
(a) Whenever any railroad over which a crossing is required is obstructed or is not in good order at such crossing, a county commissioner or ~~an agent of the Public Service Commission~~ the mayor or a member of the municipal governing authority where the crossing is located may notify in writing the clerk of the superior court of the county who shall notify the nearest agent or employee of the company in writing to remove the obstruction or to put the crossing in proper order within 15 days from the date of such notice.
(b) If the agent or employee of the company does not remove the obstruction or put the crossing in proper order as required by subsection (a) of this Code section, the obstruction shall be removed or the necessary repairs made by the agent of the ~~Public Service Commission~~ county or city. Within five days after the agent has discharged such duty, he or she shall report under oath, in writing, to the board of county commissioners or the municipal governing authority the extent and value of the services performed. The board of county commissioners or the municipal governing authority shall then issue execution, under ~~their hands and seals~~ hand and seal thereof, directed to any lawful officer, for the amount of such value and the costs of the proceeding against such defaulting railroad company. The amount, when collected, shall be paid to the persons who performed the labor, pro rata, and according to the labor performed by each and shall be used for other expenses of the work, if any.
(c) The defendants may defend against such fi. fas. as provided by law."