Safety inspections on carriageways shall be carried out as shown below.
Category Frequency
Strategic roads 1 month
Main distributor roads 1 month
Secondary distributor roads 1 month
Link roads 3 months
Local access roads Annual
Safety inspections are carried out at the frequencies set out above to identify and deal with defects that require prompt attention because they represent an immediate or imminent hazard, or because there is a risk of short-term structural deterioration of the footway.
During safety inspections, the following defects shall be identified and temporary repairs carried out within 24 hours.
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Strategic and main distributor roads - potholes vertically sided, 20mm or deeper with an area of greater than 0.1sq m and are sufficiently far from the edge to be surrounded by bituminous material.
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Secondary distributor, link and local access roads - potholes vertically sided, 50mm or deeper with an area of greater than 0.1sq m and are sufficiently far from the edge to be surrounded by bituminous material.
- Missing, damaged or defective ironwork.
- Kerbing, edging and channel defects.
- Excessive standing water and water discharging onto/or overflowing across the highway.
- Missing or damaged safety fencing and other barriers.
- Debris or spillage in traffic lanes or any part of the running surface.
- Damaged, defective, displaced or missing traffic signs, signals or lighting columns.
- Dirty or otherwise obscured traffic signs/signals.
- Trees, shrubs and hedges, which by virtue of their position or condition constitute a hazard.
- Displaced road studs lying in the road.
- Blocked gully, piped grip or grating, obscured channels, grips or slot drains.
Where edge overrun occurs 75mm or deeper, that is in excess of 150mm wide and over three metres in length, repairs shall be carried out within seven days.
During safety inspections for carriageways, any overhead wires in a dangerous condition shall be reported to those responsible within 24 hours.