Housing and industrial estate roads
When either a new housing or industrial estate road is proposed highways development control team check the plans to make sure that they comply with our standards.
When a new housing estate is proposed the developer must either pay the Highway Authority a cash deposit, called an 'advance payment' or enter into a section 38 agreement. As part of the section 38 agreement the developer has to provide a bond. A bond is insurance that in the event of the developer failing to finish, the roads monies are available to complete the works.
If you are buying a house on a new housing estate your solicitor will check to see whether an advance payment or a section 38 agreement has been entered into. This is done by means of a land charge search. If you already own a house on a new estate and wish to sell you will need a HIPS pack which will include details of any advance payment or section 38 agreement.
When roads within a new housing estate are to be adopted by the Highway Authority, the works are checked as they progress to make sure that they are being built to established standards.
Design specification for residential and industrial housing estates
A guide for architects and developers has been put together to provide advice on the procedures to be followed to secure the adoption of estate roads and to set down the appropriate standards and criteria to achieve the following objectives:
- To ensure an acceptable quality and standard of construction for adoptable areas which can be satisfactorily maintained at a reasonable cost.
- To allow for the efficient provision of public utilities and other services.
You can view the guide online or download a copy for printing, by opening the attachment on this page. Please also see the attachment named design specification amendments which updates our specification.
