Chapter 20

As used in this Article, the following terms have the following meanings: (1) "Bicycle" means a human-powered vehicle with two wheels in tandem designed to transport, by the action of pedaling, one or more persons seated on one or more saddle seats on its frame. This term also in…

With regard to any bicycle used on a public roadway, public bicycle path, or other public right-of-way: (a) It shall be unlawful for any parent or legal guardian of a person below the age of 16 to knowingly permit that person to operate or be a passenger on a bicycle unless at al…

(a) The Board of Transportation, with reference to State highways, and local authorities, with reference to highways under their jurisdiction, are hereby authorized to erect or install, at intersections or other appropriate places, special pedestrian control signals exhibiting th…

(a) Where traffic-control signals are not in place or in operation the driver of a vehicle shall yield the right-of-way, slowing down or stopping if need be to so yield, to a pedestrian crossing the roadway within any marked crosswalk or within any unmarked crosswalk at or near a…

(a) Every pedestrian crossing a roadway at any point other than within a marked crosswalk or within an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection shall yield the right-of-way to all vehicles upon the roadway. (b) Any pedestrian crossing a roadway at a point where a pedestrian tunnel o…

(a) A person who willfully stands, sits, or lies upon the highway or street in such a manner as to impede the regular flow of traffic is guilty of a Class 2 misdemeanor. (b) Repealed by Session Laws 2024-16, s. 4(a), effective December 1, 2024, and applicable to offenses committe…

(a) A municipality or a county may adopt an ordinance regulating the time, place, and manner of gatherings, picket lines, or protests by pedestrians that occur on State roadways and State highways. (b) Nothing in this section shall permit a municipality or a county to impose rest…

(a) No person shall stand in any portion of the State highways, except upon the shoulders thereof, for the purpose of soliciting a ride from the driver of any motor vehicle. (b) No person shall stand or loiter in the main traveled portion, including the shoulders and median, of a…

It shall be unlawful for any person, except one who is wholly or partially blind, to carry or use on any street or highway, or in any other public place, a cane or walking stick which is white in color or white tipped with red. (1949, c. 324, s. 1.)

The following definitions apply to this Part: (1) Agent. - A director, officer, employee, or other person authorized to act on behalf of a business entity. (2) Business entity. - A corporation, limited liability company, partnership, sole proprietorship, or other legal entity aut…

(a) A business entity may operate a personal delivery device in a pedestrian area or on a highway, with the rights and duties applicable to a pedestrian under this Chapter, subject to the requirements and restrictions of this Part. Except as authorized in this Part, no person may…

For the purpose of assuring the safety of persons using highways and sidewalks, a local government having jurisdiction over public streets, sidewalks, alleys, bridges, and other ways of public passage may by ordinance prohibit operation of personal delivery devices within its jur…

A business entity that operates a personal delivery device under this Part shall maintain an insurance policy that includes general liability coverage of not less than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) per claim for damages arising from the operation of the personal deliver…

At any street, road or highway crossing or intersection, where the movement of traffic is not regulated by a traffic officer or by traffic-control signals, any blind or partially blind pedestrian shall be entitled to the right-of-way at such crossing or intersection, if such blin…

Nothing contained in this Part shall be construed to deprive any blind or partially blind person not carrying a cane white in color or white tipped with red, or being accompanied by a guide dog, of any of the rights and privileges conferred by law upon pedestrians crossing street…

While a person with a mobility impairment as defined in G.S. 20-37.5 operates a motorized wheelchair or similar vehicle not exceeding 1000 pounds gross weight in order to provide that person with the mobility of a pedestrian, that person is subject to all the laws, ordinances, re…

(a) Electric Personal Assistive Mobility Device. - As defined in G.S. 20-4.01(7b). (b) Exempt From Registration. - As provided in G.S. 20-51. (c) Use of Device. - An electric personal assistive mobility device may be operated on public highways with posted speeds of 25 miles per …

(a) Violation of a provision of Part 9, 10, 10A, or 11 of this Article is an infraction unless the violation is specifically declared by law to be a misdemeanor or felony. Except as otherwise provided in subsection (a1) of this section, violation of the remaining Parts of this Ar…

Any person who shall be convicted of a violation of any of the provisions of this Article herein or by the laws of this State declared to constitute a felony shall, unless a different penalty is prescribed herein or by the laws of this State, be punished as a Class I felon. (1937…

When any person, firm, or corporation shall tender to the Division any uncertified check for payment of any tax, fee or other obligation due by him under the provisions of this Article, and the bank upon which such check shall be drawn shall refuse to pay it on account of insuffi…

(a) Procedure. - A person who is assessed a civil penalty under this Article by the Department of Public Safety must pay the penalty within 30 calendar days after the date the penalty was assessed or make a written request within this time limit to the Department for a Department…

(a) Sentencing Hearing Required. - After a conviction under G.S. 20-138.1, G.S. 20-138.2, a second or subsequent conviction under G.S. 20-138.2A, or a second or subsequent conviction under G.S. 20-138.2B, or when any of those offenses are remanded back to district court after an …

When a person has been convicted of an offense involving impaired driving, the trial judge may request a presentence investigation to determine whether the person convicted would benefit from treatment for habitual use of alcohol or drugs. If the person convicted objects, no pres…

(a) Definition of Limited Driving Privilege. - A limited driving privilege is a judgment issued in the discretion of a court for good cause shown authorizing a person with a revoked driver's license to drive for essential purposes related to any of the following: (1) The person's…

(a) Payment of Costs. - The costs incurred in order to comply with the ignition interlock requirements imposed by the court or the Division pursuant to this Chapter, including costs for installation and monitoring of the ignition interlock system, shall be paid by the person orde…

Conviction of offenses described in G.S. 20-181 shall not be cause for the suspension or revocation of driver's license under the terms of this Article. (1939, c. 351, s. 2; 1955, c. 913, s. 1; 1979, c. 667, s. 41.)

Any person operating a motor vehicle on the highways of this State, who shall fail to shift, depress, deflect, tilt or dim the beams of the headlamps thereon whenever another vehicle is met on such highways or when following another vehicle at a distance of less than 200 feet, ex…

(a) It shall be the duty of the law-enforcement officers of the State and of each county, city, or other municipality to see that the provisions of this Article are enforced within their respective jurisdictions, and any such officer shall have the power to arrest on sight or upo…

The permanent weigh stations to be established pursuant to the provisions of this Article shall be operated by the State Highway Patrol, who shall assign a sufficient number of sworn and nonsworn personnel to the various weigh stations. Sworn personnel of the State Highway Patrol…

The Vehicle Equipment Safety Compact is hereby enacted into law and entered into with all other jurisdictions legally joining therein in the form substantially as follows: VEHICLE EQUIPMENT SAFETY COMPACT Article I. Findings and Purposes. (a) The party states find that: (1) Accid…

The General Assembly finds that: (1) The public safety necessitates the continuous development, modernization and implementation of standards and requirements of law relating to vehicle equipment, in accordance with expert knowledge and opinion. (2) The public safety further requ…

Pursuant to Article V(e) of the Vehicle Equipment Safety Compact, it is the intention of this State and it is hereby provided that no rule, regulation or code issued by the Vehicle Equipment Safety Commission in accordance with Article V of the Compact shall take effect until app…

The Commissioner of this State on the Vehicle Equipment Safety Commission shall be the Secretary of Transportation or such other officer of the Department of Transportation as the Secretary may designate. (1963, c. 1167, s. 4; 1975, c. 716, s. 5.)

Within appropriations available therefor, the departments, agencies and officers of the government of this State may cooperate with and assist the Vehicle Equipment Safety Commission within the scope contemplated by Article III(h) of the Compact. The departments, agencies and off…

Filing of documents as required by Article III(j) of the Compact shall be with the Secretary of State. (1963, c. 1167, s. 6.)

Pursuant to Article VI(a) of the Compact, the Vehicle Equipment Safety Commission shall submit its budgets to the Director of the Budget. (1963, c. 1167, s. 7.)

(a) Safety. - A motor vehicle is subject to a safety inspection in accordance with this Part if it meets all of the following requirements: (1) It is subject to registration with the Division under Article 3 of this Chapter. (2) It is not subject to inspection under 49 C.F.R. Par…

Pursuant to Article VI(e) of the Compact, the operations of the Vehicle Equipment Safety Commission shall be subject to the oversight of the State Auditor pursuant to Article 5A of Chapter 147 of the General Statutes. (1963, c. 1167, s. 8; 1983, c. 913, s. 6.)

The term "executive head" as used in Article IX(b) of the Compact shall, with reference to this State, mean the Governor. (1963, c. 1167, s. 9.)

(a) Safety. - A safety inspection of a motor vehicle consists of an inspection of the following equipment to determine if the vehicle has the equipment required by Part 9 of Article 3 of this Chapter and if the equipment is in a safe operating condition: (1) Brakes, as required b…

The following definitions apply in this Article: (1) Automatic license plate reader system. - A system of one or more mobile or fixed automated high speed cameras used in combination with computer algorithms to convert images of license plates into computer readable data. This te…

(a) Any State or local law enforcement agency using an automatic license plate reader system must adopt a written policy governing its use before the automatic license plate reader system is operational. The policy shall address all of the following: (1) Databases used to compare…

(a) Captured plate data obtained by an automatic license plate reader system, operated by or on behalf of a law enforcement agency for law enforcement purposes, shall not be preserved for more than 90 days after the date the data is captured. (b) Notwithstanding subsection (a) of…

Any person who violates the provisions of this Article by obtaining, accessing, preserving, or disclosing data obtained in accordance with this Article in a manner other than that allowed by the provisions of this Article is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor. (2023-151, s. 5(g).)

(a) License Required. - A safety inspection must be performed by one of the following methods: (1) At a station that has a safety inspection station license issued by the Division and by a mechanic who is employed by the station and has a safety inspection mechanic license issued…

(a) License Required. - An emissions inspection must be performed by one of the following methods: (1) At a station that has an emissions inspection station license issued by the Division and by a mechanic who is employed by the station and has an emissions inspection mechanic li…

(a) Application. - An applicant for a license issued under this Part must complete an application form provided by the Division. The application must contain the applicant's name and address and any other information needed by the Division to determine whether the applicant is qu…

(a) Inspection. - A vehicle that is subject to a safety inspection, an emissions inspection, or both must be inspected as follows: (1) Except as otherwise provided in this subdivision, a new vehicle must be inspected before it is delivered to a purchaser at retail in this State. …

(a) Receipt. - When a safety inspection mechanic or an emissions inspection mechanic inspects a vehicle, the mechanic must give the person who brought the vehicle in for inspection an inspection receipt. The inspection receipt must state the date of the inspection, identify the m…

(a) Requirements. - The Division may issue a waiver for a vehicle, excluding a vehicle owned or being held for retail sale by a motor vehicle dealer, that meets all of the following requirements: (1) Fails an emissions inspection because it passes the visual inspection but fails …