No person shall place, erect or maintain any advertising sign, signboard or device of any character upon or over the right-of-way of or upon any land adjacent to any public highway, outside of an incorporated city, town or village under any of the following conditions:

A. within 300 feet of an intersection of a highway with another highway, at a point where such sign, signboard or device would obstruct the line of sight between vehicles on either of said intersecting highways when such vehicles are at any point within a distance of 300 feet from such intersection;

B. where such sign, signboard or device is so located that it obstructs the line of sight, not otherwise obstructed, of a train at any point within 1,200 feet of an intersection of a highway with a railroad from any point on such highway within 500 feet of such intersection;

C. in or near any stream or arroyo where such sign might be deluged by freshet and swept on to the roadway or spillway of such public highway or under a highway structure crossing the stream or arroyo or against the supports of any highway structure;

D. if placed upon a hill above a highway in such manner that there is a reasonable danger that such sign, signboard or device might fall or be blown or propelled by the forces of erosion upon such highway;

E. if such sign carries a directional warning or light or reflector information legend of a type which is carried by standard highway marker system signs;

F. if such sign is in the general shape of a railroad crossing sign or in imitation of any warning or danger sign;

G. if such sign, signboard or device is on the inside of a curve of a highway at such location as to obstruct the line of sight from one vehicle on such highway to another vehicle on such highway when such vehicles are within a distance of 1,200 feet of each other;

H. if such sign, signboard or device, together with one or more other advertising signs, signboards or devices in a series advertising the same business, place of business or establishment, or advertising products, commodities, exhibits or services, sold or exhibited at the same place or places of business, and are in such proximity to each other, and are of such continuity of context, distinctive copy catchlines (not trademarks), art or shape as to naturally direct the attention of the traveling public from one such sign to another;

None of the provisions of Subparagraphs A, B, C or G of this section shall apply to any sign or other device which is erected upon or is attached to a building.

History: Laws 1929, ch. 123, § 3; C.S. 1929, § 64-2003; 1941 Comp., § 58-710; Laws 1953, ch. 92, § 2; 1953 Comp., § 55-7-10.

Regulation of signboard curves. — Regulation prohibiting signboards in vicinity of 25 degree curves or greater, if determined to be dangerous to public safety, would be upheld as a reasonable exercise of the police power. 1950 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 50-5293 (rendered under prior law).

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 39 Am. Jur. 2d Highways, Streets and Bridges § 288.