(1) A person may operate a wheeled all-terrain vehicle upon any public roadway of this state, not including nonhighway roads and trails, having a speed limit of thirty-five miles per hour or less subject to the following restrictions and requirements:

(a) A person may not operate a wheeled all-terrain vehicle upon state highways that are listed in chapter 47.17 RCW; however, a person may operate a wheeled all-terrain vehicle upon a segment of a state highway listed in chapter 47.17 RCW if the segment is within the limits of a city or town, or if the county in which the segment is located has first consulted with the department of transportation, and then adopted an ordinance approving the operation of wheeled all-terrain vehicles on that segment, and the speed limit on the segment is thirty-five miles per hour or less;

(b)(i) A person operating a wheeled all-terrain vehicle may not cross a public roadway, not including nonhighway roads and trails, with a speed limit in excess of thirty-five miles per hour, except as follows: A person operating a wheeled all-terrain vehicle may cross a public roadway with a speed limit of sixty miles per hour or less, but more than thirty-five miles per hour, at an intersection of approximately ninety degrees if the roadway that intersects the public roadway with a speed limit of sixty miles per hour or less, but more than thirty-five miles per hour, is a roadway upon which the operation of wheeled all-terrain vehicles has been approved or is otherwise allowed under this section.

(ii) A county, city, or town may by ordinance prohibit a person operating a wheeled all-terrain vehicle from crossing a public roadway with a speed limit of sixty miles per hour or less, but more than thirty-five miles per hour, at specific intersections or along the entirety of the route within the jurisdiction.

(iii) The operator of a wheeled all-terrain vehicle may not cross at an uncontrolled intersection of a public highway listed under chapter 47.17 RCW;

(c)(i) A person may not operate a wheeled all-terrain vehicle on a public roadway within the boundaries of a county, not including nonhighway roads and trails, with a population of fifteen thousand or more unless the county by ordinance has approved the operation of wheeled all-terrain vehicles on county roadways, not including nonhighway roads and trails.

(ii) Except as otherwise provided in (a) of this subsection, the legislative body of a county with a population of fewer than fifteen thousand may, by ordinance, designate roadways or highways within its boundaries to be unsuitable for use by wheeled all-terrain vehicles.

(iii) Any public roadways, not including nonhighway roads and trails, authorized by a legislative body of a county under (c)(i) of this subsection or designated as unsuitable under (c)(ii) of this subsection must be listed publicly and made accessible from the main page of the county website.

(iv) This subsection (1)(c) does not affect any roadway that was designated as open or closed as of January 1, 2013;

(d)(i) A person may not operate a wheeled all-terrain vehicle on a public roadway within the boundaries of a city or town, not including nonhighway roads and trails, unless the city or town by ordinance has approved the operation of wheeled all-terrain vehicles on city or town roadways, not including nonhighway roads and trails.

(ii) Any public roadways, not including nonhighway roads and trails, authorized by a legislative body of a city or town under (d)(i) of this subsection must be listed publicly and made accessible from the main page of the city or town website.

(iii) This subsection (1)(d) does not affect any roadway that was designated as open or closed as of January 1, 2013;

(e) Any person who violates this subsection commits a traffic infraction.

(2) Local authorities may not establish requirements for the registration of wheeled all-terrain vehicles.

(3) A person may operate a wheeled all-terrain vehicle upon any public roadway, trail, nonhighway road, or highway within the state while being used under the authority or direction of an appropriate agency that engages in emergency management, as defined in RCW 46.09.310, or search and rescue, as defined in RCW 38.52.010, or a law enforcement agency, as defined in RCW 16.52.011, within the scope of the agency’s official duties.

(4) A wheeled all-terrain vehicle is an off-road vehicle for the purposes of chapter 4.24 RCW.

Finding—Intent—2013 2nd sp.s. c 23: See note following RCW 46.09.442.

Effective date—2013 2nd sp.s. c 23: See note following RCW 46.09.310.