Lane County asks residents to clear roadside obstructions before mowing season

Lane County asked property owners to clear signs, fencing, decorative lights, rocks larger than 3 inches and other obstructions from public rights-of-way before mowing crews move into their spring route across rural roads.

The county said the work is meant to reduce wildfire risk, improve sightlines at curves and intersections and keep maintenance crews safer as they cut tall grass and brush. Vegetation supervisor Chad McBride said obstructions make the job harder and less safe, and Lane County said it will remove unauthorized items from road rights-of-way before mowing begins.

That cleanup matters across a big system. Lane County Road Maintenance Division manages vegetation along about 1,400 miles of county roads, from the Pacific Coast to the Cascade Mountains. Its mowing program usually includes a spring and summer safety-strip mow, followed by a summer and fall full-width mow, with most of the work done by tractors fitted with flail or brush mower attachments.

The county also warned that election season often brings a burst of illegally placed signs along rural roads. Lane County said signs belong on private property and behind utility poles, sidewalks or other public infrastructure. Any signs taken out of the right-of-way will be stored at Lane County Public Works for 30 days before disposal.

Lane County said roadside boundaries are not always obvious. In rural areas, the right-of-way generally runs from the pavement edge to the property line. In unincorporated parts of Eugene and Springfield, it typically runs between the curb or sidewalk and the road. The county also said ornamental plants in the right-of-way may be mowed low.

The safety rules go beyond mowing clearance. Lane County said visual clear zones at intersections must stay open, with no obstructions between 30 inches and 10 feet above the road surface. Over public property, no obstruction is allowed lower than 15 feet above a road or 9 feet above a sidewalk. The county said property owners are required by code to keep those zones clear because blocked sightlines raise crash risk.

Lane County’s prohibited-activities rules also give the county enforcement tools. If an object or activity hinders normal operation, maintenance, safety or general use of a public road right-of-way, the county may remove it and bill the responsible party or impose a civil penalty. The list includes fixed objects, fences, signs, unpermitted landscaping, hazardous vegetation, trash bins, illegally parked or abandoned vehicles and unauthorized speed bumps.

Crews may begin as early as 5 a.m., and the county urged drivers to watch for equipment and yield. Lane County said the Bridge Projects Crew and Vegetation Crew are headquartered at Delta, with satellite shops in Cottage Grove, Dexter, Veneta and Florence, underscoring the scale of the seasonal effort now underway across the county.