Transportation, Inc. v. City of Falls Church
| Decision Date | 20 April 1979 |
| Docket Number | No. 771203,771203 |
| Citation | 254 S.E.2d 62,219 Va. 1004 |
| Parties | TRANSPORTATION, INC. v. CITY OF FALLS CHURCH. Record |
| Court | Virginia Supreme Court |
H. Wise Kelly, III, Fairfax (Kelly, Louk, Lawson & Kelly, Fairfax, on brief), for appellant.
Benjamin T. Trichilo, Fairfax (Brault, Lewis, Geschickter & Palmer, Fairfax, on brief), for appellee.
Before I'ANSON, C. J., and CARRICO, HARRISON, COCHRAN, HARMAN, POFF and COMPTON, JJ.
The question presented in this case is whether a municipality enjoys governmental immunity from liability for negligence in failing to repair a malfunctioning traffic signal. Ruling that a municipality is immune in such a situation, the trial court entered summary judgment in favor of the defendant, the City of Falls Church, in a property damage action brought against it by the plaintiff, Transportation, Inc.
The incident giving rise to the litigation occurred at a city intersection when a westbound taxicab owned by the plaintiff and operated by Armond Klein collided with a northbound automobile operated by Dorothy Woy. At the time the vehicles entered the intersection, the traffic signal facing Klein was not functioning and displayed no light, while the signal facing Mrs. Woy was green. On the previous day, the city had been notified that the signal was malfunctioning.
The test for determining a municipality's immunity in this type of situation is well established:
Fenon v. City of Norfolk, 203 Va. 551, 555, 125 S.E.2d 808, 811 (1962).
A city has the duty to maintain its streets in repair and in safe condition for travel, free from defects and obstructions; in discharging this duty, a municipality acts in its proprietary capacity. Accordingly, it may be held liable for injuries caused by such defects as dangerous holes or depressions in city streets. City of Richmond v. Branch, 205 Va. 424, 428-29, 137 S.E.2d 882, 885 (1964); City of Norfolk v. Hall, 175 Va. 545, 551-53, 9 S.E.2d 356, 359-60 (1940).
But not every municipal activity related to street maintenance is proprietary. Notably, in Fenon v. City of Norfolk, supra, a city work crew, engaged in removing fallen trees from city streets following a hurricane, left a large tree trunk extending into the street. The plaintiff was injured when the vehicle in which he was riding struck the tree trunk. We held that the city...
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