(a) “Road” means any existing vehicle route established before January 1, 1979, with significant evidence of prior regular travel by vehicles subject to registration pursuant to Article 1 (commencing with Section 4000) of Chapter 1 of Division 3; provided, that “road” does not mean any route traversed exclusively by bicycles as defined in Section 39001, motorcycles as defined in Section 400, motor-driven cycles as defined in Section 405, or off-highway motor vehicles as defined in Section 38012.

(b) Even though nature may alter or eliminate portions of an existing vehicle route, the route shall still be considered a road where there is evidence of periodic use.

Terms Used In California Vehicle Code 527

  • County: includes every county and city and county within this State. See California Vehicle Code 270
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • owner: is a person having all the incidents of ownership, including the legal title of a vehicle whether or not such person lends, rents, or creates a security interest in the vehicle. See California Vehicle Code 460
  • Person: includes a natural person, firm, copartnership, association, limited liability company, or corporation. See California Vehicle Code 470
  • Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
  • Road: means any existing vehicle route established before January 1, 1979, with significant evidence of prior regular travel by vehicles subject to registration pursuant to Article 1 (commencing with Section 4000) of Chapter 1 of Division 3. See California Vehicle Code 527
  • vehicle: is a device by which any person or property may be propelled, moved, or drawn upon a highway, excepting a device moved exclusively by human power or used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks. See California Vehicle Code 670

(c) A vehicle route need not necessarily be a publicly or privately maintained surface to be a road, as defined, for purposes of this section. Nothing contained herein shall pertain to any property in an incorporated area or properties held in private ownership.

(d) This section is definitional only and nothing contained herein shall be deemed to affect, alter, create, or destroy any right, title, or interest in real property, including, but not limited to, any permit, license, or easement; nor shall this chapter be deemed to affect the liability, or lack thereof, of any owner of an interest of real property based upon the use, possession, or ownership of such interest in real property or the entry upon such property by any person.

(e) This section shall only apply in a county where the board of supervisors has adopted a resolution or enacted an ordinance providing for such application.

(Added by Stats. 1980, Ch. 361, Sec. 1.)