83.027 Controlled-access highways.

(1) Authority of county board; procedure. The legislature declares that the effective control of traffic entering upon or leaving intensively traveled highways is necessary in the interest of public safety, convenience and the general welfare. The county board may designate as controlled-access highways the portions of the county trunk system on which, after traffic engineering surveys, investigations and studies, it finds, determines and declares that the average traffic potential is in excess of 1,000 vehicles per 24-hour day, except such controlled-access designation shall not be effective in cities, villages and towns until the decision of the county board has been referred to and approved by the governing body of such city, village or town. Such designation of a portion of any county trunk highway in any county as a controlled-access highway shall not be effected until after a public hearing in the matter has been held in the county courthouse or other convenient public place within the county following notice by publication of a class 3 notice, under ch. 985. If the county board then finds that the average traffic potential is as provided by this subsection, and that the designation of the highway as a controlled-access highway is necessary in the interest of public safety, convenience and the general welfare, it shall make its finding, determination and declaration to that effect, specifying the character of the controls to be exercised. Copies of the finding, determination and declaration shall be recorded with the register of deeds, filed with the county clerk, and published in the newspaper in which the notice of hearing was published, and the order shall be effective on such publication. At the time of designating such controlled-access mileage, the total of such mileage in any county shall not exceed 35 percent of the county trunk mileage in such county on the preceding January 1 as published by the department.

(2) Controlled-access highway defined. For the purposes of this section, a controlled-access highway is a highway on which the traffic is such that the county board has found, determined and declared it to be necessary, in the interest of the public safety, convenience and the general welfare to prohibit entrance upon and departure from the highway or street except at places specially designated and provided for such purposes, and to exercise special controls over traffic on such highway or street.

(3) Construction; other powers of county board. In order to provide for the public safety, convenience and the general welfare, the county board may use an existing highway or provide new and additional facilities for a controlled-access highway and so design the same and its appurtenances, and so regulate, restrict or prohibit access to or departure from it as the county board deems necessary or desirable. The county board may eliminate intersections at grade of controlled-access highways with existing highways or streets, by grade separation or service road, or by closing off such roads and streets at the right-of-way boundary line of such controlled-access highway and may divide and separate any controlled-access highway into separate roadways or lanes by raised curbings, dividing sections or other physical separations or by signs, markers, stripes or other suitable devices, and may execute any construction necessary in the development of a controlled-access highway including service roads or separation of grade structures.

(4) Connections with other highways. After the establishment of any controlled-access highway, no street or highway or private driveway, shall be opened into or connected with any controlled-access highway without the previous consent and approval of the county board, in writing, which shall be given only if the public interest shall be served thereby and shall specify the terms and conditions on which such consent and approval is given.

(5) Use of highway. No person shall have any right of entrance upon or departure from or travel across any controlled-access highway, or to or from abutting lands, except at places designated and provided for such purposes, and on such terms and conditions as may be specified from time to time by the county board.

(6) Abutting owners. After the designation of a controlled-access highway, the owners or occupants of abutting lands shall have no right or easement of access, by reason of the fact that their property abuts on the controlled-access highway or for other reason, except only the controlled right of access and of light, air or view.

(7) Special crossing permits. Whenever property held under one ownership is severed by a controlled-access highway, the county board may permit a crossing at a designated location, to be used solely for travel between the severed parcels, and such use shall cease if such parcels pass into separate ownership.

(8) Right-of-way. Any lands or other private or public property or interest in such property needed to carry out the purposes of this section may be acquired by the county board as provided in ss. 83.07 and 83.08.

(9) Cooperative agreements. To facilitate the purposes of this section, the county board and the governing bodies of a city, town or village are authorized to enter into agreements with each other or with the federal government respecting the financing, planning, establishment, improvement, maintenance, use, regulation or vacation of controlled-access highways or other public ways in their respective jurisdictions.

(10) Local service roads. In connection with the development of any controlled-access highway, the county board and city, town or village highway authorities are authorized to plan, designate, establish, use, regulate, alter, improve, maintain or vacate local service roads and streets or to designate as local service roads and streets any existing roads or streets, and to exercise jurisdiction over local service roads in the same manner as is authorized over controlled-access highways under this section if, in their opinion, such local service roads or streets shall serve the necessary purposes.

(11) Commercial enterprises. No commercial enterprise shall be authorized or conducted within or on property acquired for or designated as a controlled-access highway.

(12) Unlawful use of highway; penalties. It is unlawful for any person to drive any vehicle into or from a controlled-access highway except through an opening provided for that purpose. Any person who violates this provision may be fined not more than $100 or imprisoned not more than 30 days or both.

(13) Vacating. A controlled-access highway shall remain such until vacated by order of the county board. The discontinuance of all county trunk highway routings over a highway established as a controlled-access highway shall summarily vacate the controlled-access status of such section of highway only after a traffic engineer survey investigation and study finds, determines and declares that the vacating of the controlled-access status is in the public interest. Such vacating shall not be effected until after a public hearing is held in the county courthouse or other convenient place within the county, following notice by publication as provided in sub. (1). The county board shall record formal notice of any vacation of a controlled-access highway with the register of deeds of the county wherein such highway lies.

History: 1971 c. 186; 1977 c. 29 s. 1654 (8) (c); 1985 a. 223 s. 5; 1993 a. 246, 490.

This section must be satisfied to create a controlled-access highway. However, a county may adopt an ordinance to control driveway access from private property to a public thoroughfare without creating a controlled-access highway. Mommsen v. Schueller, 228 Wis. 2d 627, 599 N.W.2d 21 (Ct. App. 1999), 98-3095.