Devon County Council

Highway Maintenance Objective

The objective is to meet the County Council’s statutory duty as the Highway Authority in maintaining the Highway network.

The Council as local highway authority maintains all the roads in the County of Devon, with the exception of motorways and trunk roads, that is, the M5, A38 expressway and the A30/303, which are maintained by the government’s Highways Agency

The main purpose of highway maintenance is to maintain the highway network for the safe and convenient movement of people and goods. The core objectives of highway maintenance are to deliver a safe, serviceable and sustainable network, taking into account the need to contribute to the wider objectives of asset management, integrated transport, corporate policy and continuous improvement.

Devon County Council has determined  policies for Highway Maintenance with the aim of maintaining an appropriate level of service to the people of Devon and its visitors.  The policies have been determined by reference to the UK Roads Board’s Code of Practice for Highway Maintenance Management which is endorsed and recommended by the Department of Transport, the Local Government Association and other bodies associated with the administration of road networks in the UK.  There are, however, local variations to the practices recommended by this code according to the particular circumstance in Devon. This level of service works to maintain the fabric of the highway and ensure safe movement around the network for all road users and to maintain and enhance the environment for the benefit of all.

Network Hierarchy

The generally used road classifications, (‘A’, ‘ B’  & ‘C’ class roads and unclassified roads) do not necessarily correspond to the categories for road maintenance.  All routes in Devon have been assigned a maintenance category. Table A Road classification (20KB - pdf help)

Highway Inspections

Highway inspections are necessary to identify defects, the need for routine/planned maintenance work and unlawful obstruction/interference with the highway. To ensure a consistent countywide approach a system of inspections, assessment methodology, recording and actioning of highway defects has been adopted.There are four ypes of highway inspections carried out on Devon’s highways. These are:

• Scheduled Inspections carried out to identify highway defects, obstruction or interference that are deemed to be a danger to highway users and so require immediate attention to protect the highway user and keep the highway safe. Table B. Scheduled inspection chart (23KB - pdf help)
• Condition Inspections carried out to assess the condition of the network and the need for planned structural maintenance.
• Specific Inspections undertaken following a particular request, need or demand, where there are exceptional circumstances or in response to claims being made against the Highway Authority.
• Random Inspections undertaken on an ad hoc basis.

Category 1 Highway Safety Defects general description. Table C (17KB - pdf help)

General Maintenance Standards by road categories. Table D (22KB - pdf help)