Temporary traffic restrictions for road and street works

Planned situations

We offer reduced fees for planned situations if you:

• provide at least 3 months notice
• keep the duration of restrictions to a maximum of 5 consecutive calendar days

Emergency situations

Extending or cancelling a Notice or Order

You will be charged £250 if you need to extend or cancel a TTRO or TTRN.

You may incur extra costs, such as for advertising, if this was required - but this will ultimately depend on how far the application has progressed.

Parking suspensions

You will be charged £130 if we need to produce parking suspension signs to accompany a parking restriction.

This fee covers the cost of producing them and setting them out on site for you, so that our Civil Enforcement Officers can enforce any restrictions introduced.

Temporary traffic orders for road and street works are made under Section 14 (1) of the Road Traffic (Temporary restrictions) Act 1991. Any restrictions on traffic and pedestrians which are introduced by anyone other than the Police or Highway Authority, without a TTRO or TTRN, are liable to constitute an obstruction, which is a criminal offence.

Establishing communications with the council at the earliest opportunity means we can manage our road network whilst facilitating essential activities.

Some or all of the following conditions apply, dependant on the individual circumstances and nature of the activity to which the TTRO or TTRN relates:

a. application and licence (general)

1. in the case of planned works, a full and complete application with supporting documentation must be submitted with at least 3 months' notice
2. in the case of planned works where at least 3 months' notice cannot be given, reduced application periods must be pre-approved by the council
3. in the case of emergency situations, an application is made as soon as restrictions are known to be required or at least within the immediate hours after they're introduced - failure to do this will render any interventions on the highway unauthorised
4. any changes to the works activity necessitating amendments to a TTRO or TTRN are communicated to the council at the earliest opportunity
5. any changes to the works activity necessitating the cancellation of an application are communicated to the council at the earliest opportunity (a cancellation fee can be imposed, depending on what notification is received)
6. any changes to the work activity which leads to a material impact on the highway and road users, are communicated to the council at the earliest opportunity
7. contact details for administrative use, advertising, use in public notices and to be used in the event of safety issues are provided and should be manned all the time or at a minimum when restrictions are in force
8. the relevant Permits for road and street works are obtained and conditions attached to a granted Permit are followed
9. any additional terms and conditions for network management needs, on a case-by-case basis, agreed with the applicant
10. a licence for a TTRO and TTRN can be rejected or revoked, at any time, and without notice:
    • where the council needs to exercise network management duties in the event of unforeseen emergency situations elsewhere on the network
    • should the council have evidence of breaches of conditions in isolation, or more wholesale systemic breaches of conditions over time, which have been warned for, but not addressed

b. general traffic management obligations and access during road closures

1. the applicant arranges for qualified operatives to supply, set up and, at very regular intervals, inspect and maintain all temporary traffic management and will cover all associated costs incurred
2. traffic management arrangements are to be proposed and arranged that they comply with codes of practice and regulations, and any deviation from agreed traffic management plans should be communicated to the council
3. both a TTRN and a TTRO provide that restrictions have effect only when traffic signs are lawfully in place
4. maintain reasonable and safe access to properties within the length of a road closure
5. maintain safe access for pedestrians to access premises within the extent of a road closure at all times
6. maintain access for all emergency service vehicles at all times (as a guide - a fire appliance requires 3.25m access width)
7. where deemed necessary, station an operative at road closure points to help advise those affected by restrictions
8. supply, set up and maintain any special signs as and when requested by the council
9. supply, set up and maintain special signs to indicate that businesses affected by restrictions remain open for business as usual, with guidance from which direction access is possible if required

c. stakeholder engagement and advance warning

1. place advance warning signs two weeks prior to the restrictions being introduced at either end of the section being affected
2. notify residents, business and stakeholders directly affected by restrictions, by means of a letter drop. Particular attention should be made to contact any local schools or businesses which may be affected
3. if changes to proposals happen, engagement should reflect this and stakeholders kept informed
4. in the case of urgent, unplanned activities, contact should be made with any premises immediately affected by restrictions and particular attention should be made to contact any local schools or businesses which may be affected

d. diversions if required

1. permissions are obtained from any other highway authority, if a diversion route needed impacts another authority's network, such as National Highways or Network Rail, and neighbouring highway authorities
2. diversion routes are to be signed - unless agreed otherwise
3. diversions to be signed using an equivalent or higher classification of road to the one being restricted - unless agreed otherwise
4. take reasonable measures where required to dissuade motorists from using unsuitable roads which do not form part of a diversion 

e. insurances and costs

1. promptly reimburse the council for any costs incurred arising from any claims made
2. reimburse the council for any strengthening works required on diversion routes or for any damage incurred on diversion routes
3. should there be repeated failures to make prompt payment and where we identify outstanding debt, a total stop on issuing licences to an offending organisation will be introduced

f. privacy policy

1. personal data and contact details contained within an application, will be used by Dorset Council in accordance with our privacy notice
2. if you do not consent to our use of personal data, then we may not be able to fulfil requests

Licences can be requested and processed simultaneously, but you must request consents separately. This particular licence requests a TTRO or TTRN, but it does not give consent for the activity itself to take place, for example:

• if you are undertaking private street works to install or repair apparatus in the Highway you also need a Section 50 licence
• if you are installing something like scaffold or hoarding which obstructs the road, you also need to request the relevant licence
• if you are working on behalf of Dorset Council or a Statutory Undertaker (utility company), you also need to check you have the correct street works permits in place

Timescales

Planned activities

Complete applications must be received at least 3 months before the restrictions are due to take effect, whether we issue a TTRO or TTRN.

If you do not give 3 months notice, or if you do not obtain pre-approval for an early start from Dorset Highways with valid reasons, your application is more likely to be rejected. If we agree to accept a reduced notice period, you will pay more for the traffic order.

Emergency situations

"Emergency works" are defined as work that must be completed immediately to fix or prevent situations that are either existing or imminent and are likely to cause danger to people or property

Applications in these circumstances must be made as soon as restrictions are known to be required or at least within the immediate hours after they're introduced.

Check road space availability

If there are other activities planned in the area, your proposed dates could be rejected and you might be asked to replan.

Check our roadworks and events map to see planned activities and their likely impact and check our list of traffic sensitive streets, tourism routes and special considerations.

Consent to divert on to another authority's network

If a diversion route is needed and it impacts another authority's network, you need to contact the other organisations; like National Highways, Network Rail or neighbouring highway authorities, and get the approval. They will need to know proposed dates and times when the diversion is in force, and which roads are being used.

We highly recommend that only someone with experience in applying for temporary traffic orders and/or those with a familiarity of the requirements under Section 14 (1) of the Road Traffic (Temporary restrictions) Act 1991, should apply for this licence. If you are unfamiliar with the process, please contact Dorset Council first, for advice and guidance.

It should take no more than 10 minutes to submit an application, but you will need to register if you're applying for the first time.

When you log in to our highway licence platform, navigate to TTRO applications for roads, parking or countryside.

When you apply, you will need to provide licence details, details of the restrictions to be introduced and supporting documents - including:

• a valid email address which will be used for correspondence, payment and to where the licence approval will be sent
• a purchase order number for your invoice (or you can choose to pay over the phone by credit or debit card)
• the nature of the restrictions to be introduced and the activities being undertaken
• timings and dates when the restrictions will be in force
• an advertising number which will be used for public notices and enquiries (this must be available 24/7 or at least when restrictions are in force)
• access arrangements for pedestrians, cyclists, equestrians, emergency services and public and school buses
• arrangements for any diversions
• illustrative plans which clearly indicate
  • the extent of road subject to restrictions
  • a diversion route (if appropriate)
  • a signing schedule

Register and apply now

You will receive an automated acknowledgement by email usually within 30 minutes. Please make note of the reference number provided which should be used in all correspondence related to the licence.

Due to the nature of these requests, we review applications based on the lead-times given and restriction start dates, not necessarily in the order which they are received.

Planned activities

Assuming adequate notice of restrictions, we will initially assess a request and contact you if we need to seek further clarification. Unless it is agreed otherwise, we will undertake an engagement exercise with primary stakeholders which usually lasts for one month - we will tell you when this starts and give you a date when it will end. It is unlikely that we'll be able to tell you the outcome of your application before the engagement exercise has concluded.

We ask that you contact us if you have not received an update or outcome one month before your restrictions are due to be introduced.

Emergency situations

These applications are flagged as needing attention, but please ensure you contact us (if you haven’t already) on 01305 221854 to tell us what's happening.

Payment

Should we approve your application, we will email you with the total amount payable and directions on how to make payment.

We offer the following methods of payment for this licence:

• purchase order number - we will send an invoice to the address on the application
• credit or debit card payment over the phone - your licence confirmation email will indicate a number for you to call

Please make payment promptly, whichever method you choose.

If things change

If you need to update your application, your licence or cancel it altogether, at any time, you must let us know. Your acknowledgement email will tell you how to do this.

Keeping you informed of progress

You will receive email updates as your application progresses through different stages of assessment.

You can also track progress of all your requests on our licence portal.