Frequently Asked Questions - Public Works
Select a question link to open the answer.
If the dead animal is on private property, it is the landowner's responsibility to dispose of the animal properly.
If the dead animal is on public property and is domesticated (cat, dog or other pet), call the Animal Control Office: 540-437-2671.
If the dead animal is on public property and a non-domesticated (wild) animal, call the Public Works Department Office: 540-434-5928.
The snow plow trucks run on a primary route system, which includes approximately 60% of the lane miles in the City. The trucks remain on these primary routes until the snow/precipitation has ended then they begin on the remaining streets. It is important to remember that the number one concern is to clear the main streets for emergency traffic.
The Department of Public Works has an ongoing replacement/repair program, in which they annually take inventory of all city curb and sidewalks and determine their condition. Public Works then fixes the structures depending on the condition and usage.
The driveway entrance is the responsibility of the individual property owner. A permit will be required for construction activities and is available through the Department of Planning and Community Development.
Please submit a service request to the Public Works Department or call Public Works at 540-434-5928. After hours (7:30am-4:00pm), please call the Harrisonburg Police Department at 540-434-4436.
Please call the Public Works office at 540-434-5928 to make a request. They will review the request and forward acceptable requests to the Harrisonburg Electric Commission.
Neighborhoods with speeding traffic and cut through traffic concerns are encouraged to participate in the Neighborhood Traffic Calming Program.
The Public Works Department no longer offers composted leaves.
The Public Works Department curbside recycling program has been discontinued. This change in process is due to significant changes in the type of items now accepted for recycling. All recycling for the City of Harrisonburg is now collected at either the Recycling Convenience Center on Beery Rd or at the Mobile Recycling Unit.
Please call the Public Works Department at 540-434-5928 if you would like any additional information.
These are "Shared Lane Markings", aka "Sharrows", which are intended to guide bicyclists to the best place to ride on the road, avoid car doors, and remind drivers to share the road with bicyclists.
Although it is the motorist's responsibility to check before opening their door, riding too close to parked cars (in the "door zone") is still a common mistake that can lead to serious injury.
Not always.
According to Virginia State Code Section 46.2-905, bicyclists are to stay to the right when riding less than the normal speed of traffic except to pass other bicyclists or vehicles, to prepare to make a left turn, when necessary to avoid conditions (including fixed or moving objects, surface hazards, or substandard width lanes too narrow for a bicycle and vehicle to travel side by side) that make it unsafe to continue along the right.
Moving to the left in the lane to avoid car doors, for instance, even if it means taking the entire lane, is permitted by the State Code.
No.
This marking is used for shared lanes; lanes that are used by bicyclists and motorists.
Shared lanes are different than bike lanes which are set aside for bicyclists and are marked by a solid white line and a different symbol.
No, bicyclists can ride on any roadway, except for those designed as limited access highways with signs explicitly prohibiting bicyclists (such as Interstate 81).
Cyclists are allowed on every street regardless of whether there is a marking or sign for them unless stated otherwise.
In 2009, the Federal Highway Administration approved the use of Shared Roadway Markings ("Sharrows") in their Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD). Many cities around the country are using sharrows on streets that are both popular with bicyclists but may be too narrow for conventional bike lanes.
The overall goals are: to improve the position of bicyclists on roads without bike lanes, reduce bicycling on sidewalks, assist bicyclists with lateral positioning in a shared lane with on street parallel parking in order to reduce the chance of a bicyclist's impacting the open door of a parked vehicle, encourage safe passing of bicyclists by motorists, and reduce the incidence of wrong-way bicycling.
No, these markings will be on streets that are designated in the City of Harrisonburg Bicycle & Pedestrian Plan.
The MUTCD states that "if used, the shared lane markings should be placed immediately after an intersection and spaced at intervals not greater than 250 feet thereafter."