Road Permits

You must have a permit to work along or on County roads. 

All applications must be submitted to transportationdept@northumberland.ca

View our new online application for oversize/overweight permits!

Entrance and setback forms

If you want to construct a building or access a property adjacent to a County road, you will need these forms:

Please note that if you are doing both, we offer a package deal.

Open cut or bore permit

If you are requesting permission to place a utility within the Right-of-Way (ROW), you may need the following form:

Please note that open cut of the road surface or shoulder of the roadway is not permitted between November and April.

Special road use application

Our Special Event application is to ensure safety for the traveling public and participants as well as make sure there is no conflict with the road use. You must hand in your application at least six weeks in advance. This ensures presentation of the application to Council for approval.

Please note that liability insurance is required with the application.

Oversize/overweight permit applications

Apply, pay fees and receive permit approvals for oversize/overweight use on County roads using our online portal. Please note, you will be required to register as a new user if you have not already done so.

Permission to enter permit

To carry out work within the road allowance of a County road, you will need to get permission from the County and you may need to submit a Permission to Enter Form.

Municipal Consent submission standards and requirements

A Municipal Consent (MC) is the municipality's authorization for a utility to occupy and work within a specific location within the Municipal Rights-Of-Way (ROW). Application and design standards have been created to avoid conflicts between existing, proposed and future utility and municipal infrastructure. MCs are only issued to companies or persons who have the authority to construct, operate and maintain their infrastructure within the ROW.

When do I need Municipal Consent?

Most proposed new utility installations within the Municipal ROW require a MC with the exception of emergency work. For more information, please contact the County Transportation Department.

All projects that require a MC must also obtain Open Cut/Bore permits, which will not be granted until the MC is obtained.

Municipal Consent application drawing requirements

Only after the Applicant provides a complete submission, as per the below noted standards, will the County commence the review process. Any applications that are incomplete will not be reviewed and will returned. The submissions will be marked and returned as either:

  • Does not meet drawing requirements
  • Missing information/incomplete 
  • Revise and re-submit, or
  • Approved

Once finalized, a copy of the approved submission will be returned to the Applicant who will then be required to have their sub-contractor complete and submit appropriate Road Occupancy permits prior to work commencing.

The issuance of a Municipal Consent (MC) does not relieve the Applicant of the responsibility to obtain locates, ensure all notification requirements are carried out, and all stakeouts and clearances are obtained prior to the installation of the proposed work.

Drawing requirements

All drawings must:

  1. Be accurate
  2. Be in metric and use one of the following scales:
    1. For low density utility– 1:500 horizontal (plan)
    2. For high density utility – 1:200 horizontal (plan)
  3. Page size be no larger than ARCH D (24”x36”) 4. Submission sections not to exceed 10km in length, and no more than one (1) submission per two-week cycle
  4. Note and identify utility depths based on existing surface elevation
  5. Be in greyscale
  6. Have distinct line types and abbreviations that make it easy to distinguish between all existing surface features and types of proposed utility, including but not limited to: 
    • Centerline (CL)
    • Property Line (PL)
    • Edge of Pavement (EOP)
    • Sidewalks (SW)
    • Edge of Shoulder (EOS)
    • Ditch Centerline (DL)
    • Top of slope (TS)
    • Fence line (FL)
    • Mature Trees with dripline
  7. Identify all existing Northumberland County infrastructure within the right-of-way, including but not limited to:
    • Driveways and entrance culverts
    • Cross culverts & Box culverts
    • Guiderail
    • Catch Basins/Maintenance Holes/Ditch Inlets
    • Storm Sewer
    • Traffic Signals and Streetlights
    • To have access to this information, please complete the GIS Data Request Form and Data Sharing Agreement.
  8. Identify all existing utilities including but not limited to:
    • Surface:
      • Poles
      • Pedestals
      • Vaults
      • Gas valves/markers
    • Subsurface:
      • Outlines of adjacent subsurface structures/utilities and adjacent plant that may be impacted by the proposed work or is located less than the minimum clearance distances. These may include:
        • Pipes, cables, conduits etc. including but not limited to:
          • Gas main lines and service connections
          • Bell
          • Fiber optics
          • Hydro
  9. Drawings/plans be cleared by all other utilities, agencies and commissions that could be affected by the work with respect to existing location of their plant, location of proposed Plant by the Applicant and no conflict with future undertakings. It is expected that Planning Locates will be obtained as part of the design process, with Construction Locates being obtained prior to construction.
Additional details to include
  1. An arrow that shows which direction is north
  2. A legend
  3. The drawing's scale
  4. Street names for all streets
  5. Property and building numbers for all properties and buildings
  6. Lot, concession, and township information
  7. Property lines, right-of-way limits and easement limits
  8. Description, location, and dimensions of proposed utility placement within ROW
  9. Reason for any deviation from desired running line location shall be noted on drawings

Running line requirements

Please refer to the Utility Installation in Right-of-Way Standards below as well as Northumberland County Typical Sections for preferred and alternate running line locations within the ROW.

If deviation from the Preferred Location is required, a note on each applicable sheet indicating the reason for the deviation must be included. Please refer to the Typical Sections for approved Alternate Locations within the ROW.

Standards for utility installation in Right-of-Way
General
  • min. 0.5 - 2.0m horizontal clearance from property line
  • min. 2.0m horizontal clearance from entrance culverts
  • min. 2.0m horizontal clearance from steel cross culverts
  • min. 5.0m horizontal clearance from concrete box culverts
  • min. 1.2m horizontal clearance from all roadside safety devices
  • min. 3.0m horizontal clearance from storm sewer systems
  • min. 3.0m horizontal clearance from buildings on property line
Specific to buried utility
  • maintain min. 1.0m cover on buried utility in all areas
  • min. 1.8m vertical depth clearance for all road crossings
  • min. 1.2m vertical depth clearance under all culvert crossings
  • min. 1.5m vertical depth clearance when hdd in gravel shoulders
  • min. 0.3m vertical clearance over storm sewers or
  • min. 0.6m under
  • all driveways are to be directionally drilled; no open-cut/trench/plow permitted 
  • conduits placed in paved shoulders to be hdd 
  • at no time shall a buried utility be installed above the c/l elevation of the roadway (backslopes of ditches, boulevards or behind retaining walls/curb & gutter). Contractors shall maintain a min. 1.0m below existing c/l elevations or 0.6m below the adjacent ditch invert or 1.0m directly below c/l of ditch invert
Other

Written approval must be given from Northumberland County to deviate from any of the above noted standards. See Northumberland County Typical Sections for further detail.