Roads Department

When you find a dream site for your project there are a whole lot of things you have to do immediately and simultaneously. Which is impossible of course but if you are determined you will manage it somehow. One thing is talk to your local council roads department.

Our site is along a single track road which goes over a little old hump back bridge and through a narrow gap between two farm buildings. It’s a very quiet road and we are concerned neither to cause any damage nor nuisance with our construction work or our subsequent visitors. The roads department was mercifully unconcerned about us adding maybe 30 cars per day to the traffic on the road, perhaps because it currently averages 2 cars per hour, sometimes 6 at rush hour.

That left the very serious subject of ‘access’. Don’t think just because you have an existing entrance to your site that it will be suitable. Regulations cover the design of access off a public road. We had to find a position where approaching traffic could see our access, and we could see them, from 150m in each direction.

On a very cold day in March I assembled on site our architect, civil engineer, environmental consultant and the head of the roads department (Tech Services).

We walked up and down trying to figure out where to put the new access track. In true Highland fashion, pelting horizontal hail started as people commented from their various professional perspectives. In the teeth of the gale, our architect paced out the 150m sight lines to show his proposed position would work and then driving freezing sleet hastened our agreement that a handy tree marked the centre of suitable proposed access. We retreated to warm cars and flasks of coffee and I considered how such permanent marks upon the surface of the land can sometimes be decided so rapidly.

Don’t let anyone leave until you have marked on a plan what you just agreed whilst shouting in a winter storm and if there is no handy tree, do remember to put in posts to mark positions. (It’s a young tree, hopefully we can relocate it successfully).

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