To be considered for adoption, road works should be designed in accordance with the “Design Layout” and “Materials and Construction” sections of the LHDG. Designs must undergo a Technical Approval process before they will be considered for adoption by the Council. You should discuss any possible deviations from LHDG guidance with the approvals team.
Initial section 38 fees
The council will require an initial payment for administration, approval and inspection fees prior to commencing the design review. An indicative administration, approval and inspection fee will be calculated at the technical approval stage. However, the final administration, approval and inspection fees are calculated immediately prior to entering into the legal agreement. On entering into a Section 38 agreement, these initial payment costs will be deducted from the final administration, approval and inspection fees.
Obtaining approval for section 38 road works
Technical approval will be issued when:
- all design checks are complete, including the review and approval of ground conditions on site
- structural approval is obtained, where required
- the stage 1 and 2 road safety audits have been satisfactorily completed
- any required amendments have been provided.
- where required, Ordinary Watercourse Consent is granted
- existing carriageway and drainage surveys and investigations have been submitted.
Validation period
Technical Approvals are valid for 12 months from the date of the technical approval letter notification. If a legal agreement has not been signed by both parties at the point at which the technical approval expires, then the approval documents will need to be resubmitted to the council for review and the bond/ fees recalculated. Additional fees will be incurred charged for any subsequent reviews of approval documents submitted following a lapse in the validation period. References may be requested for the developer’s proposed consultant. LCC reserves the right to approve the design consultant.
Submission information
As soon as possible after confirming the intention to enter into a Section 38 agreement, and before construction on road works has begun, all relevant information must be sent in line with the standard checklist.
All plans submitted must be in accordance with the council’s plan requirements.
Road safety audits
Where required (see RSA Policy), road safety audits must be submitted prior to technical approval. A design statement must be provided by the developer for the safety auditor to support the proposed layout, which covers the aspects within the Road Safety Audit (RSA) Brief.
RSAs must be carried out by an accredited safety audit team (see Road Safety Auditor Suitability Checklist), independent from the designers. Commissioning the road safety audits is the responsibility of the developer.
As required under the council’s Road Safety Audit (RSA) policy a stage 1 and stage 2 RSA must be submitted to the approvals team and any subsequent required amendments applied before works can be approved.
Standard conditions for construction
The issuing of technical approval alone does not mean that constructing the works can start. Please refer to the Standard Conditions document and follow the guidance provided before commencing any works.
The council’s Standard Conditions document provides detailed requirements relating to construction activities on roads that are intended for adoption, such as:
- Vehicular accesses within the existing highway
- Arrangement of consents or wayleaves
- Traffic safety and management
- Road closures
Supplementary fees
If, following four technical approval submissions, the design is still considered to be unacceptable or requires further amendments, then the council will charge an additional fee for each subsequent submission.
Post technical approval, changes to the design that are submitted for approval will incur an additional fee, this includes sub-division of submissions into multiple phases.