“Under the general requirements of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, I would be grateful if you would provide the following information in relation to the highway that runs from Cherry Tree Cottage and Uppacott Cross for the two years preceding the incident date of 12th January 2018:-
Dates of all safety inspections undertaken on the carriageway in the two years preceding 12 January 2018:
30 June 2016 and 23 June 2017.
Details of all carriageway defects identified during safety inspections in the two years preceding your incident
Please see inspection report provided here
Details of how carriageway safety inspections are undertaken, including whether walked or driven, the speed of the inspection vehicle and the number of persons in the vehicle.
Carriageway safety inspections are undertaken on a driven basis, with a driver and inspector, at a speed enabling the inspector to observe road surface condition and other associated defects.
The intended frequency of carriageway safety inspections.
| Carriageway | ||
| Maintenance Category | Frequency | |
| 3 | National Primary route | 1 month |
| 4 | County Primary route | 1 month |
| 5 | Secondary County route | 1 month |
| 6 | Local distributor | 6 month |
| 7 | Collector road | 6 month |
| 8 | Minor collector road | annual |
| 9 | Service road | annual |
| 10 | Minor service road | annual |
| 11 | Minor lane | Every 2 years |
This road is a maintenance category 9 road, inspected annually.
Details of all complaints and/or enquiries relating to the carriageway, received in the two years preceding your incident.
Please see report provided here
The hierarchy classification. This is a Maintenance Category 9 Road.
The road/section number. Class Name R
The defect intervention criteria adopted in relation to the identification of all categories of carriageway potholes (in other words, this means how they define a pothole as requiring attention)
The defect investigatory criteria adopted in relation to the identification of carriageway safety potholes on all inspected categories of road during safety inspections is as follows:-
“Carriageway Defect – Pothole – A pothole (sharp edged depression or void) is a safety defect when it is over 40 mm deep and it is greater than 300mm in any horizontal direction.”
The time period adopted between identification and repair (temporary and permanent) of all categories of carriageway defects;
This relates to carriageway potholes:
Maintenance Category 3 to 6
Immediate Action – Record.
Temporary Action – fill within 24 hours.
Permanent repair within 7 days if permanent material has not been used under previous action.
Maintenance Category 7 to 10
Immediate Action – Record.
Temporary Action – None.
Permanent repair within 7 days
Whether or not the authority has formally adopted all or part of the standards contained within the National Code of Practice for highways maintenance management.”
The National Code of Practice for highway maintenance ‘well maintained highways’ was issued by the UK Roads Board in 2005. It contains over one hundred specific recommendations and some the Council follows in full and some in part, with local variations to the practices recommended according to the particular circumstance in Devon.