City Council to consider amending traffic ordinance, allow solicitations from medians during daytime | Latest Headlines | #citycouncil


The City Council will consider amending an ordinance in Tulsa’s traffic code to permit solicitations from roadways and medians during the daytime.

The amendment — which had its first reading in the council’s July 20 meeting — comes after a similar ordinance in Oklahoma City was challenged through the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit in McCraw v. City of Oklahoma City.

The court reviewed the Oklahoma City ordinance, which prohibited standing, sitting or remaining for most purposes on certain medians, and found in August 2020 that it violated the First Amendment because medians like sidewalks and streets are considered “traditional public forums.”

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Tulsa’s ordinance could be subject to a similar constitutional challenge. It currently states that no person shall step or stand in a roadway or median or extend into or over the roadway any device, container or sign to solicit a ride, donation, employment or business from the occupant of any vehicle.

In its amended form, the ordinance will permit individuals to sit, lie upon, step or stand on, and reach into — without stepping into a roadway — a median to solicit a ride, donation, employment or business from the occupant of any vehicle without a permit as long as they meet city requirements.

Solicitations are permitted one-half hour before sunrise and one-half hour after sunset by people 16 years old or older. Solicitors must wear high-visibility safety apparel that meets Class 2 or 3 requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, according to the amended ordinance.

The amended ordinance defines roadway medians as the median strip or reserved area separating opposing lanes of traffic on divided roadways. It is either painted or curbed and elevated above the surface of the roadway.

If approved, the fines for those who do not follow the amended ordinance would be not less than $5 or more than $500, plus court fees.

Action will be taken on the amended ordinance during the city council’s next regularly scheduled meeting on Aug. 3.


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