2021 Colorado Code
Title 42 - Vehicles and Traffic
Article 4 - Regulation of Vehicles and Traffic
Part 1 - Traffic Regulation - Generally
§ 42-4-111. Powers of Local Authorities

1. Except as otherwise provided in subsection (2) of this section, this article 4 does not prevent local authorities, with respect to streets and highways under their jurisdiction and within the reasonable exercise of the police power, from:
   1. Regulating or prohibiting the stopping, standing, or parking of vehicles, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   2. Establishing parking meter zones where it is determined upon the basis of an engineering and traffic investigation that the installation and operation of parking meters is necessary to aid in the regulation and control of the parking of vehicles during the hours and on the days specified on parking meter signs;
   3. Regulating traffic by means of police officers or official traffic control devices, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   4. Regulating or prohibiting processions or assemblages on the highways, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   5. Designating particular highways or roadways for use by traffic moving in one direction, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   6. Designating any highway as a through highway or designating any intersection as a stop or yield intersection, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   7. Designating truck routes and restricting the use of highways, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   8. Regulating the operation of bicycles or electrical assisted bicycles and requiring the registration and licensing of same, including the requirement of a registration fee, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   9. Altering or establishing speed limits, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   10. Establishing speed limits for vehicles in public parks, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   11. Determining and designating streets, parts of streets, or specific lanes thereon upon which vehicular traffic shall proceed in one direction during one period and the opposite direction during another period of the day, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   12. Regulating or prohibiting the turning of vehicles, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   13. Designating no-passing zones, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   14. Prohibiting or regulating the use of controlled-access roadways by nonmotorized traffic or other kinds of traffic, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   15. Establishing minimum speed limits, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   16. Designating hazardous railroad crossings, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   17. Designating and regulating traffic on play streets, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   18. Prohibiting or restricting pedestrian crossing, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   19. Regulating the movement of traffic at school crossings by official traffic control devices or by duly authorized school crossing guards, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   20. Regulating persons propelling push carts;
   21. Regulating persons upon skates, coasters, sleds, or similar devices, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   22. Adopting such temporary or experimental regulations as may be necessary to cover emergencies or special conditions;
   23. Adopting such other traffic regulations as are provided for by this article;
   24. Closing a street or portion thereof temporarily and establishing appropriate detours or an alternative routing for the traffic affected, consistent with the provisions of this article;
   25. Regulating the local movement of traffic or the use of local streets where such is not provided for in this article;
   26. Regulating the operation of low-power scooters, consistent with the provisions of this article; except that local authorities shall be prohibited from establishing any requirements for the registration and licensing of low-power scooters;
   27. Regulating the operation of low-speed electric vehicles, including, without limitation, establishing a safety inspection program, on streets and highways under their jurisdiction by resolution or ordinance of the governing body, if such regulation is consistent with the provisions of this title;
   28. Authorizing and regulating the operation of golf cars on roadways by resolution or ordinance of the governing body, if the authorization or regulation is consistent with this title and does not authorize:
       1. An unlicensed driver of a golf car to carry a passenger who is under twenty-one years of age;
       2. Operation of a golf car by a person under sixteen years of age; or
       3. Operation of a golf car on a state highway; except that the ordinance or resolution may authorize a person to drive a golf car directly across a state highway at an at-grade crossing to continue traveling along a roadway that is not a state highway;

   29. Authorizing, prohibiting, or regulating the use of an EPAMD on a roadway, sidewalk, bike path, or pedestrian path consistent with section 42-4-117 (1) and (3);
   30. Authorizing or prohibiting the use of an electrical assisted bicycle or electric scooter on a bike or pedestrian path in accordance with section 42-4-1412;
   31. Enacting the idling standards in conformity with section 42-14-103;
   32. Regulating the operation of an electric scooter, consistent with this title 42.

2. 1. An ordinance or regulation enacted under paragraph (a), (b), (e), (f), (g), (i), (j), (k), (l), (m), (n), (o), (p), (q), (r), (v), (x), (y), (aa), or (cc) of subsection (1) of this section may not take effect until official signs or other traffic control devices conforming to standards as required by section 42-4-602 and giving notice of the local traffic regulations are placed upon or at the entrances to the highway or part thereof affected as may be most appropriate. (2) (a) An ordinance or regulation enacted under paragraph (a), (b), (e), (f), (g), (i), (j), (k), (l), (m), (n), (o), (p), (q), (r), (v), (x), (y), (aa), or (cc) of subsection (1) of this section may not take effect until official signs or other traffic control devices conforming to standards as required by section 42-4-602 and giving notice of the local traffic regulations are placed upon or at the entrances to the highway or part thereof affected as may be most appropriate.
   2. Subsection (1) of this section does not authorize a local authority to regulate or authorize the use of vehicles and motor vehicles on the state highway system that is subject to section 43-2-135, C.R.S., except in at-grade crossings where the roadway subject to the local authority's jurisdiction crosses the state highway. The local authority may regulate vehicles within such crossings only to the extent necessary to effect the local authority's power to regulate the roadway under the local authority's jurisdiction and only if the regulation or authorization does not interfere with the normal operation of the state highway.

3. 1. A board of county commissioners may by resolution authorize the use of designated portions of unimproved county roads within the unincorporated portion of the county for motor vehicles participating in timed endurance events and for such purposes shall make such regulations relating to the use of such roads and the operation of vehicles as are consistent with public safety in the conduct of such event and with the cooperation of county law enforcement officials. (3) (a) A board of county commissioners may by resolution authorize the use of designated portions of unimproved county roads within the unincorporated portion of the county for motor vehicles participating in timed endurance events and for such purposes shall make such regulations relating to the use of such roads and the operation of vehicles as are consistent with public safety in the conduct of such event and with the cooperation of county law enforcement officials.
   2. Such resolution by a board of county commissioners and regulations based thereon shall designate the specific route which may be used in such event, the time limitations imposed upon such use, any necessary restrictions in the use of such route by persons not participating in such event, special regulations concerning the operation of vehicles while participating in such event in which case any provisions of this article to the contrary shall not apply to such event, and such requirements concerning the sponsorship of any such event as may be reasonably necessary to assure adequate responsibility therefor.

History. Source: L. 94: Entire title amended with relocations, p. 2235, § 1, effective January 1, 1995. L. 97: (1)(aa) added and (2) amended, p. 394, § § 8, 9, effective August 6. L. 2009: IP(1) and (1)(aa) amended and (1)(bb) added, (SB 09-075), ch. 418, p. 2323, § 7, effective August 5; IP(1), (1)(h), (1)(z), and (2) amended and (1)(cc) and (1)(dd) added, (HB 09-1026), ch. 281, p. 1271, § 36, effective October 1. L. 2011: (1)(ee) added, (HB 11-1275), ch. 215, p. 942, § 1, effective July 1. L. 2012: (1)(bb)(II) amended, (SB 12-013), ch. 148, p. 533, § 2, effective May 3. L. 2016: IP(1), (1)(bb)(III), and (2) amended, (SB 16-173), ch. 273, p. 1131, § 1, effective August 10. L. 2017: IP(1) and (1)(dd) amended, (HB 17-1151), ch. 98, p. 296, § 3, effective August 9. L. 2019: (1)(dd) amended and (1)(ff) added, (HB 19-1221), ch. 271, p. 2559, § 4, effective May 23.

1. This section is similar to former § 42-4-109 as it existed prior to 1994, and the former § 42-4-111 was relocated to § 42-4-113.
2. Amendments to the introductory portion to subsection (1) by Senate Bill 09-075 and House Bill 09-1026 were harmonized.

For powers and duties of the Colorado state patrol, see part 2 of article 33.5 of title 24.

Law reviews. For article, “One Year Review of Criminal Law and Procedure”, see 39 Dicta 81 . For article, “One Year Review of Criminal Law and Procedure”, see 40 Den. L. Ctr. J. 89 (1963).

Annotator's note. Since § 42-4-111 is similar to § 42-4-109 as it existed prior to the 1994 amending of title 42 as enacted by SB 94-1, relevant cases construing that provision have been included with the annotations to this section.

State may delegate powers local in nature to local governmental units. In the absence of any constitutional prohibition, there is nothing illegal about a general assembly delegating powers local in nature to local governmental units, provided that the proper constitutional tests are met as to maintaining a separation of powers and nonabrogation of proper responsibility. Asphalt Paving Co. v. Bd. of County Comm'rs, 162 Colo. 254 , 425 P.2d 289 (1967).

Municipal ordinance of local concern supersedes conflicting state statute. Under the home-rule amendment, once a matter is determined to be a matter of local and municipal concern, any local ordinance in a home-rule city addressing the matter will supersede a conflicting state statute. People v. Hizhniak, 195 Colo. 427 , 579 P.2d 1131 (1978).

Authority for home-rule city to regulate traffic speeds and penalize offenders is not found in the laws of the general assembly, but rather, is a matter of state constitutional law, under § 6 of art. XX, Colo. Const.People v. Hizhniak, 195 Colo. 427 , 579 P.2d 1131 (1978).

Regulation of speed is not solely a matter of statewide concern. Wiggins v. McAuliffe, 144 Colo. 363 , 356 P.2d 487 (1960).

This section specifically allows municipalities to regulate bicycles on local streets, but this authority is subject to the mandate in § 42-4-109 that any bicycle prohibition on city streets must be accompanied by suitable alternate bikeways. Webb v. City of Black Hawk, 2013 CO 9, 295 P.3d 480.

Regulation of bicycling on city streets is a matter of mixed state and local concern. The state's interests include consistent application of statewide laws to avoid patchwork bicycle regulations that may frustrate residents statewide as well as potentially affecting tourism, and the interests in improving the state's bicycle transportation infrastructure. On the other hand, municipalities have a valid interest in controlling traffic on their local streets. Webb v. City of Black Hawk, 2013 CO 9, 295 P.3d 480.

This section permits all local authorities to regulate the speed of vehicles even though the state has its own statutes thereon except those highways designated as connecting links in the state highway system. Wiggins v. McAuliffe, 144 Colo. 363 , 356 P.2d 487 (1960).

This section does not give municipality the right to punish. This section recognizes the power of municipalities to regulate in particular areas of traffic and acknowledges the right of a municipality to regulate on subjects such as parking of vehicles, flow of traffic through control signs, creation of one-way streets, regulating speed and traffic at intersections, but it does not specifically approve the right of a municipality to punish the operator of a vehicle who drives without a license. Consequently, we must conclude that this authority has been preempted by the state and has been withheld from a municipality. Davis v. City County of Denver, 140 Colo. 30 , 342 P.2d 674 (1959).

Validity of legislation giving unrestricted discretion to local police. As a qualification of the general rule, where the discretion to be exercised relates to police regulations for the protection of public morals, health, safety, or general welfare, and it is impracticable to fix standards without destroying the flexibility necessary to enable the administrative officials to carry out the legislative will, legislation delegating such discretion without such restrictions may be valid. Asphalt Paving Co. v. Bd. of County Comm'rs, 162 Colo. 254 , 425 P.2d 289 (1967).

The general assembly has specifically excluded implements of husbandry from the scope of powers of local authorities to regulate vehicles on county roads. Bd. of County Comm'rs of Logan County v. Vandemoer, 205 P.3d 423 (Colo. App. 2008).