There’s a Section 278 agreement under the Highways Act that lets you fund highway alterations, but you must navigate statutory approvals, technical standards and agreement terms to avoid delays; ensure your contracts and bonds cover financial liabilities and programme risks and that works meet safety inspections to protect the public and your project value while delivering improved access and planning compliance.
Key Takeaways:
- Developers must secure a Section 278 agreement with the local highway authority before carrying out works on the public highway; the agreement defines design standards, approvals, traffic management and statutory consents required for adoption.
- Expect financial obligations including bonds, deposits and commuted sums, plus specified insurance cover – these are often prerequisites to starting works and to handover for adoption.
- Design, construction and inspections follow adoptable standards: provisional and final inspections, remedial works and a defects/maintenance period are required before the authority issues a completion certificate and adopts the highway.
Overview of Section 278 Works
Definition and Purpose
Section 278 agreements under the Highways Act 1980 let you fund alterations to the public highway-junctions, crossings, footways and access-so your scheme can connect to the adopted network. You must submit detailed designs to the highway authority, pay for the works and usually provide a bond; once built to the authority’s standards the new elements can be adopted for future maintenance.
Key Legislation and Guidelines
The legal framework centres on the Highways Act 1980, with design standards drawn from the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges for trunk routes and Manual for Streets for local streets. You’ll also follow local highway authority design guides, national guidance on road safety audits and environmental requirements; timeframes vary, typically 4-16 weeks for approvals, longer where TROs or major utility works are needed.
Agreements commonly include design approval, a programme, third‑party coordination for utilities and a performance bond or commuted sum for maintenance (often 10-20 years). You must factor in TROs, road safety audits and temporary traffic management; these can add weeks to months to delivery. Local authorities regularly request drainage verification and detailed construction phasing, so allow contingency in both cost and programme to avoid delays and cost overruns.
Process for Implementing Section 278 Works
You should expect a phased programme: pre-application meetings, detailed design approval, signing the Section 278 agreement, temporary traffic management and construction supervision through to handover and adoption. Typical delivery for small to medium schemes is 3-12 months, but complex junction works can exceed a year. Consult What is the S278 process? – Link Engineering for a practical timeline and tasks checklist.
Application Procedures
You’ll start by requesting a pre-application meeting with the local highway authority, then submit engineering drawings, a design summary and a fee; statutory reviews often take 6-12 weeks. After technical approval you sign the S278 legal agreement, provide any performance bond and arrange an insurance certificate. Do not commence on-site works until the agreement is signed and the authority has issued the required licences-starting early exposes you to enforcement and financial risk.
Required Documentation
You must supply scaled engineering drawings with levels, drainage and surfacing specifications, a Traffic Management Plan (Chapter 8 compliant), a Road Safety Audit (stages 1/2 as applicable), method statements, CDM information, insurance evidence, a performance bond and a commuted sum for future maintenance (commonly calculated for 20 years). Authorities will refuse incomplete packs.
Drawings should be to the highway authority’s standard, clearly dated and referenced, showing existing services, kerb alignments and signing/lining. The RSA must follow recognised guidance and highlight mitigation you’ll implement. Financials typically include a bond set as a percentage of works (often 10-20%) and a commuted sum formula; omitting itemised cost breakdowns delays legal sign-off and on-site starts.
Design and Planning Considerations
When preparing designs you must align with the local highway authority standards and, where relevant, DMRB or Manual for Streets; your technical pack should include detailed S278 drawings, staging plans, and temporary traffic management. For example, a typical junction alteration will need topographical surveys, drainage modelling and utility searches, and you should budget for design fees of around 5-10% of construction cost and allow for statutory approvals that can add weeks to the programme.
Infrastructure Requirements
You’ll need to specify carriageway construction, footway widening, kerb realignment, drainage upgrades, street lighting, signing, and any traffic signal amendments; utility diversions commonly drive cost and delay. Often a medium scheme demands £50,000-£500,000 and a commuted sum or bond is required for future maintenance. Engage utility companies early, because diversion lead times can exceed six months and working adjacent to live traffic creates heightened safety risk.
Environmental Impact Assessments
Screening and scoping will determine if an EIA is required under the EIA Regulations 2017; you should expect assessment of noise, air quality (NO2, PM10/2.5), surface water flood risk, biodiversity, and heritage. Prepare for a scoping report and, if needed, an Environmental Statement; inadequate assessment can trigger planning delays or legal challenge, so allocate resources for baseline surveys and mitigation measures from the outset.
Ecological surveys are seasonal-bat surveys typically need visits between May and September and rare species surveys may require up to a year of monitoring-so you must programme surveys early. Air quality modelling should use current traffic data and receptor locations and construction-phase noise limits often force restricted working hours; if designated sites (SSSI, SAC, SPA) are within the zone of influence you will also face Habitat Regulations requirements and potentially significant mitigation costs and legal scrutiny.
Stakeholder Engagement
Engage stakeholders early to prevent late-stage delays: highways, utilities, landowners and residents can add months to programmes, with approvals commonly taking 3-12 months. You should set a single point of contact, agree reporting cadences and share technical packs; for guidance on road adoption and matching S38/S278 obligations see Road Adoption Explained | Section 38 & 278 Works for …, which illustrates typical adoption steps and liabilities.
Involvement of Local Authorities
Expect that you will liaise directly with the local highway authority and planning officers for technical approvals, bond values and commuted sums; maintenance commuted sums are commonly calculated for 20 years. Staged inspections, adoption checklists and a Section 278 agreement specifying works, bonds and certification are normal; keep detailed audit trails of design changes and inspection records to avoid adoption refusals and extended retention periods.
Public Consultation Processes
Statutory consultations typically run 21-28 days; you must notify affected residents and statutory consultees and log objections and support, since significant objections can force design revisions. Use exhibitions, online portals and targeted leaflets to capture issues early and feed responses into your technical note for the highway authority.
When you manage consultations, collate all responses into a formal consultation report and map concerns to specific design amendments, including safety audit outcomes, drainage and noise mitigations. Pre-application engagement with the highway authority, emergency services and school travel planners reduces later objections. If a Traffic Regulation Order is required for waiting restrictions or temporary closures, plan for a separate process that can take typically 6-9 months; document how each issue was addressed to expedite final certification for adoption.
Financial Implications
When budgeting Section 278 works you must allow for construction costs ranging widely – small footway or visibility improvements can be £10,000-£50,000, junction alterations typically £100,000-£1,000,000+, and major signal or bridge works often exceed £1m. Also factor design fees (often 8-12%), commuted sums for maintenance (commonly 10-20% of capital), performance bonds (typically 5-10% of contract value) and contingency of 10-20%. Underestimating contingency or omitting commuted sums is a frequent, costly error.
Cost Estimation and Budgeting
Get a chartered quantity surveyor to prepare detailed estimates and obtain at least three tenders to verify rates; include provisional sums for utility diversions and traffic management. Allocate design fees of 8-12%, set a minimum 10% contingency, and budget for inspection and supervision fees of 2-5%. For example, a £250,000 works package could need £25,000 for design, £25,000 contingency and a £37,500 commuted sum (15%).
Funding Sources and Contributions
Funding commonly comes from developer contributions via S106 obligations, CIL receipts, direct developer funding or third‑party agreements; highway authorities rarely fund developer‑led works. You can negotiate staged payments, but many authorities expect a portion up front – sometimes 100% before works commence. Pooling contributions across multiple developments is possible for strategic schemes, while grants or Local Growth Fund support may be available for large infrastructure.
For example, a 150‑unit mixed‑use development required a £450,000 S278 payment and a £75,000 commuted sum; the council accepted staged payments (50% before start, 50% on completion). Factor in 20% VAT on applicable contractor invoices, the cost of performance bonds (5-10%) and legal/administration fees. You should consider escrow arrangements or payment into an agreed account to satisfy the highway authority and protect both parties during construction.
Common Challenges and Solutions
Practical obstacles commonly arise on S278 projects: highway authority approvals, utility diversions and unexpected ground conditions. You should allow an extra 8-12 weeks for approvals and build a 5-15% contingency into budgets. Typical safeguards include performance bonds of 10-20%, commuted sums for maintenance and temporary traffic orders to manage programme risk. Phasing works and agreeing construction windows with the authority often prevents costly rework and programme overruns.
Delays and Approvals
Delays frequently result from incomplete submissions or uncoordinated utilities; you must submit full drainage, swept‑path, CTMP and combined utilities reports to streamline checks. Local authority approval times vary widely – 6-26 weeks is common depending on complexity and council capacity – so front‑load your pre‑application meetings and secure early agreements on commuted sums and bonding to avoid late conditions.
Conflict Resolution Strategies
Disputes over scope, adoption or cost should be managed by a contractual ladder: negotiations, mediation, then adjudication; mediation typically resolves issues in 4-12 weeks and is far cheaper than litigation. You should also specify an independent technical expert for binding determinations on design or workmanship disputes to limit delay and cost exposure.
Preventing disputes starts with strong site governance: keep a detailed decision log, record all site instructions, hold weekly stakeholder meetings and circulate signed minutes. You should tie retention and bond releases to certified defects periods (commonly 12 months), ensure utility diversion liabilities are documented and, if escalation is needed, appoint an adjudicator experienced in highways works to protect your programme and cashflow.
To wrap up
As a reminder, when you undertake Section 278 Works you must secure a formal S278 agreement with the highway authority, adhere to their technical standards, obtain design approvals, arrange traffic management and utilities diversion, provide bonds or commuted sums, programme works to satisfy your planning conditions and inspections, and manage contractor liabilities and insurance to ensure eventual adoption.
