A new all-in-one policy to cover how the City of Coffs Harbour Council classifies its network of 792km of sealed and 95km of unsealed roads – and the maintenance commitment for each – has come into effect.
At its August meeting, Council adopted the new Roads Management Policy and revoked the now surplus policies of ‘Unmade Public Roads’, ‘Construction Works by Private Individuals on Public Roads’, and ‘Roadside Service Signage Policy’.
“The City has a road network of 887 kilometres – if you put that end-to-end it’s longer than the distance between Sydney and Brisbane,” said Acting Mayor, George Cecato.
“The updated Roads Management Policy spells out our commitment to the various grades of roads in that extensive network.”
Cr Cecato said the policy aims to provide best value service to the community through a lens of a risk-based road management framework.
Previously, roads deemed as ‘unmade public roads’ were not considered to be part of the network, however, they will now be classified as ‘4WD access only’ and will be added to the City’s asset register.
“The estimated length of this informal road network is 28km and the condition of these tracks is largely unknown with some significant and challenging renewal works anticipated,” said City Transport and Open Space Services Group Leader, Daniel Noble.
“Based on current values the replacement cost of these 4WD access only roads is estimated at $4.2 million. Work will need to be undertaken to assess the condition of this additional network and to quantify the impact of renewals.”
The Council manages roads using a risk-based, financially sustainable approach which prioritises safety, legal compliance, community benefit and long-term asset performance.
The new policy establishes a framework for maintenance and capital works on roads and road-related infrastructure which includes road pavement and surface, bridges, causeways, footpaths, kerb and guttering, stormwater drainage, signs, safety barriers and any other physical item that has a foreseeable impact on the safety and amenity of road users within the road reserves under the care and control of the City.
Roads are classified based on whether they are sealed or unsealed as well as on traffic volume and usage (for example, if used by heavy traffic or are part of a bus route).
“Road classification is used along with other considerations to determine the level of upkeep applied and the standard to which they are maintained,” Mr Noble said.
The Council’s road classifications:
- Regional Roads (Arterial) – Strategic routes carrying higher traffic volumes and servicing regional movements
- Minor Arterial – Routes connecting suburbs and activity centres
- Collector – Roads distributing traffic between local roads and arterial networks
- Local – Roads primarily providing property access; and
- 4WD Access Only – Unformed or minimally formed roads intended for low frequency access.
Mr Noble said the Council generally determines whether to bitumen seal unsealed roads based on traffic volume.
Where unsealed roads have a traffic volume greater than 250 vehicles per day, the Council will undertake an economic analysis to determine the benefit of sealing the road.
