Best bet
Massachusetts streets and ways for surveyors, by F. Sydney Smithers, Esq., 2011.
This 78-page document provides a lengthy discussion of public & private ways in Massachusetts, including establishment and maintenance of ways, installation of utilities, easements, paper streets, discontinuance and subdivision control. Includes detailed references to cases and statutes.
Road defects & reporting
Visit our webpage for information on how to report road defects and hazards to authorities: Massachusetts law about potholes and road defects.
Massachusetts laws
Private ways
MGL c. 40, § 6C and MGL c. 40, § 6D Snow removal on private ways
MGL c. 40, § 6N Temporary repairs to private ways
MGL c. 83, § 3A Repairs of sewers on private ways
MGL c. 187, § 5 Installation of public utility services for abutting owners on private ways authorized
Public ways maintenance
MGL c. 40, § 16 Street sprinkling and cleaning
MGL c. 82, § 21 Authority to lay out ways
A city may lay out, relocate or alter town ways and private ways, or they may order specific repairs to be made; and a town, at a meeting, or the city council of a city, may discontinue a town way or a private way.
MGL c. 82, § 32A Abandonment of public ways
A city or town may, after holding a public hearing, upon finding that a city or town way or public way has become abandoned and unused for ordinary travel, shall declare that the city or town shall no longer be bound to keep such way or public way in repair.
MGL c. 84 Repair of ways and bridges
MGL c. 164, § 34A Municipal street lighting service
Scenic roads
MGL c. 40, § 15C Scenic roads
Sidewalks
MGL c. 83, § 25 Sidewalks, established by municipalities
MGL c. 83, § 26 Assessment for the construction or reconstruction of sidewalk
A municipality may assess the abutting property owner a portion of the cost.
State highways
MGL c. 81, § 13 Definition of state highway
Trucks (commercial)
For state laws and regulations about trucks and trailers, including size and weight limits on roadways, see Massachusetts commercial trucking regulations
Massachusetts regulations
700 CMR 3.00 Control and restriction of billboards, signs, and other advertising devices along roads and highways
700 CMR 5.00 Regulation of certain roadways and bridges including parking
Selected cases
Barry v. Planning Board of Belchertown, 96 Mass. App. Ct. 314 (2019)
Discusses the use of collateral estoppel (a doctrine that prevents a party from relitigating an issue) to prevent a town from arguing that a given way is not a public way.
Brennan v. DeCosta, 24 Mass. App. Ct. 968 (1987)
"As a general rule, the title of persons who acquire land bounded by a street or way runs to the center line of the way, G. L. c. 183, § 58 , and carries with it the right to use the way along its entire length... To that general rule, however, there are limitations."
Manor Avenue LLC v. Fontanella, 74 Mass. App. Ct. 155 (2009)
Discusses circumstances under which rights in a paper street may be eliminated.
Myer v. Veolia Energy, N.A., 482 Mass. 208 (2019)
Don't need 30 days' notice to private party. "[T]he road defect and notice statutes apply to governmental and quasi governmental actors responsible for the public duty of maintaining the public way, and not to a private party such as Veolia that has created a particular defect in the way...Consequently, Veolia may be sued for its own negligence without providing thirty days' notice."
Web sources
Highway Division resources
Mass. Department of Transportation, Highway Division
The MassDOT Highway Division designs, constructs, maintains and operates the state’s highways, bridges and tunnels, and also assists cities and towns with their road and bridge needs. The Division's website includes data, publications, and information on crash rates, highway construction projects, traffic flow and speed management, bicycle and pedestrian transportation, and more.
- Commercial truck permits - height and weight limitations
Permits are necessary if your truck exceeds certain size and weight limitations. Use this page to quickly check if you need a permit. - Construction standard details
Standard construction drawings and details for work performed by MassDOT. - Crash rate information
The "most current crash rates available for use in Massachusetts, as well as the procedures for calculating crash rates and the standard crash rate form to be used for all submissions to MassHighway." - Learn about speed management
Wide assortment of information on speed management on public roads including safety statistics and information on tools such as speedbumps, rotaries, and road diets. - MassHighway manuals
Extensive list of manuals, primarily on construction, including bridges, speed zoning, surveying and more. - MassDot project development and design guide
"This guide serves as a national model for developing context-sensitive, community-friendly road and bridge projects." Includes standard road design elements, as well as aesthetic and wildlife considerations. - Traffic signs
"MassDOT oversees the installation, maintenance, inspection, and replacement of all traffic signs….These signs may be used on state highways or locally-owned streets and highways, both through MassDOT projects or at the discretion of the city or town." - Utility accommodation policy on state highway right of way
Includes information on location of utility poles and other utility structures relative to the roads, with reference to federal and state laws and regulations.
Additional resources
DCR street sweeping and leaf removal, Mass. Department of Conservation and Recreation.
Information on the Department of Conservation & Recreation’s annual program of monthly street-sweeping along selected roadways in the Boston area to clean those roadways and improve the quality of storm water runoff.
Manual on uniform traffic control devices (MUTCD), Federal Highway Administration, 11th ed. (2023)
MUTCD defines the standards used nationwide to install and maintain the signs, signals, and pavement markings on all streets and highways.
- For state-specific updates: Massachusetts amendments to the MUTCD, which "modifies the federal standards where necessary to cover local requirements. It incorporates MassDOT's most recent traffic engineering recommendations."
Mass. Appeals Court highlights workaround for identifying a public way, National Law Review, November 9, 2019.
Discusses using estoppel to establish that property fronts onto a public way.
Private & public ways
Private ways, public access, Boston Globe, February 10, 2008.
When can the public access a private way and what rights do the residents on that private way have?
Public vs. private ways, City of Boston.
Example of the differences between public and private ways. Check your town’s bylaws for specific local rules.
Print sources
Discontinuing town and county roads, by Lynn Rubenstein and Alexandra Dawson, 2003.
Massachusetts municipal law, 3rd ed., MCLE, 2024.
Chapter 20: Streets and ways.
Municipal law and practice, 5th ed. (Mass. Practice v.18B), Thomson/West, 2006 with supplement. Section 23.5.
Discusses all aspects of private ways.
Road and access law: Researching and resolving common disputes, NBI, [August] 2012.
Road and easement law from A to Z, NBI, 2013.
Rules of paper roads & ancient ways & how they impact title, MCLE New England, 2022.
Understanding paper streets, Chicago Title Insurance Company.
Paper streets. A paper street is defined as, a "street shown on a recorded plan but never built on the ground." This article discusses people's rights regarding paper streets, their creation, parameters, and termination in Massachusetts, with a focus on easements.
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| Last updated: | June 11, 2025 |
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