Page 156 - Civil Engineering Project Management, Fourth Edition

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Site surveys, investigations and layout
Contract state that the employer will obtain this licence, but that the con-
tractor must comply with all other requirements of the Act and any conditions
attached to the licence (Clause 27). The contractor has to give notices as
required by the Act and the Street Works (Registers, Notices, Directions
and Designations) Order 1992. Notice to start work must be given at least
7 working days in advance, and the work must be started within 7 days of the
notified starting date. The Street Works (Qualifications of Supervisors and
Operative) Regulations 1992 require a qualified supervisor and at least one
qualified operative to be full time on site. Road reinstatement requirements
are set out in the Street Works (Reinstatement) Regulations 1992 and a Code
of Practice issued by the Secretary of State.
A highway authority can direct the timing of works, require safety meas-
ures and stipulate avoidance of unnecessary delay or obstruction. A standard
charge for inspections can be made and the authority can also charge for the
occupation of a highway where works are unreasonably prolonged, and for
the cost of temporary traffic regulation.
The highway authority is required to keep a register of street works; this
can be of use to the contractor but, in the nature of things, it may not show
every service that lies underground nor provide exact information as to its
position. A highway (termed a ‘street’ in the 1991 Act) normally means all the
land between the boundaries of private properties fronting on a public road,
that is, including the road verges.
The diversion of existing services often requires joint action by the agent and
resident engineer. If need be, the resident engineer should arrange for meetings
with the district engineers of the authorities concerned, for example, county or
district roads department, gas, water, sewerage, electricity, telephone and TV
cable authorities. The resident engineer must see that the reasonable require-
ments of the various authorities are complied with by the contractor; on the
other hand he should help to resist any unreasonable requests being put upon
the contractor. Most authorities prefer to divert their own services; many will
not permit a contractor to undertake diversion of their equipment. Similarly
with respect to final road reinstatement, the road authority has power to do this
and may prefer to do so. A common requirement of a road authority is that a
trench for a pipeline, sewer, etc. laid along a road must be at least 1m away
from the road edge (i.e. fully in the road or fully in the verge), except where it
has to cross below a road edge.

12.15 Site drainage

Difficulty often occurs in draining a site where large scale earthmoving is tak-
ing place. The excavations disturb the natural drainage of the land and large
quantities of mud may be discharged to local watercourses during wet weather.
Complaints then arise from riparian owners and water abstractors down-
stream. If this possibility should occur the resident engineer should advise the