Highway Access Guidelines

Preface

The Monroe County Department of Transportation Highway Access Guidelines have been prepared to assist and guide our customers through the permit review, issuance and inspection phases of the highway permit process. It is our intent to have a process that is efficient, user friendly and responsive to the needs of our customers.

All requirements and policies outlined herein update the Highway Access Guidelines, dated September 1999. These requirements and policies must be complied with at all times in connection with residential and commercial development within Monroe County. They are established to assist developers, engineers and utility companies in the preparation of plans and specifications for work proposed on the County highway system.

All materials used within the right-of-way shall comply with the latest Monroe County Department of Transportation Standard Specifications and Details or, if appropriate, the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) Standard Specifications including any amendments. Specific requirements for individual jobs, not covered herein, will be dealt with on a case by case basis as stated in the permit issued by the Monroe County Department of Transportation.

Interpretation of these requirements and guidelines shall be the responsibility of the County Superintendent of Highways or his/her designee. These requirements may be changed from time to time to reflect updates in County policies. Adherence to these requirements will expedite the review time for plans and permits.

Below is the Department of Transportation Mission Statement. Customer service is our priority. To improve our responsiveness, we welcome and encourage your comments. Thank you.

Mission Statement

We construct, operate, and maintain a safe and efficient highway, bridge, and traffic network to move people and goods throughout the County to enhance community growth, economic well-being, and the quality of life.

Section I: 136 Highway Permits and 239-F Permits

Section 136 of the State Highway Law empowers the County Superintendent of Highways with the authority to issue permits for access to or work within a county highway right-of-way.

136 Permits will only be issued to the owner (utility company, town, village, sewer district, water district, developer, home owner, etc.) of the facility to be installed within the County highway right-of-way. The owner must sign the 136 highway permit as the applicant. Except as permitted by the County Superintendent of Highways, or his/her designee, contractors will not be allowed to sign the permit as applicant.

Section 239-F of the General Municipal Law encourages cooperation between the county, towns and villages. Specifically, the law provides that municipalities shall not issue or approve building permits when proposed buildings have frontage on, access to or be otherwise directly related to any existing or proposed right-of-way or site shown on the county official map, unless an approval is given by the County Superintendent of Highways. The County Superintendent of Highways has 10 working days to respond with approval or disapproval.

Before a municipality approves a subdivision, they must notify the County Planning Board and the County Superintendent of Highways. In this case the County Superintendent of Highways has 30 working days to respond with approval or disapproval.

A 239-F permit must be submitted by the owner when a building permit will be issued by a town or village for a project that has frontage on a county highway. A town or village official must fill out and sign this permit. If the town or village does not sign off on the 239-F permit, no 136 highway permit will be issued for the project. Therefore, the 239-F must accompany all 136 highway permits involving new buildings. No fees are charged for a 239-F permit.

Section II: Project Review and Approval Process

The Permit Office’s primary function is to serve the needs of our customers. Customers are any individual, agency or developer who need to obtain highway permits to perform work within the County highway right-of-way. We recommend that any potential permittee contact the Permit Office to review the scope of the project before design has begun. Doing so will insure the permittee is aware of all the steps that need to be followed to facilitate project approval.

STEPS:

The developer and/or the project engineer submits the project reports, plans, specifications, etc., to the town or village planning board.
The town or village planning board submits copies of the project reports, plans, specifications, etc., to the Monroe County Department of Planning and Development. (MCDOPD) MCDOPD, through its Development Review Committee (DRC), submits the above to all its member agencies for a coordinated review.
Plans are received from the DRC every Tuesday. MCDOT has one week to review the submittals and respond back to DRC. The Permit Office has developed a DRC report check list that contains general comments and room to write-in additional comments. (See Related Documents—Permit Office Forms). Monroe County Department of Transportation submits a DRC report form for each project.
A copy of the Monroe County Department of Transportation DRC comments are also submitted to the engineer by fax or mail.
MCDOPD collects the comments from all member agencies and prepares a DRC response form summarizing all of the comments for each project. These are submitted to the appropriate town or village planning board the following Tuesday.
At the next scheduled town or village planning board meeting, the DRC comments and recommendations are reviewed with the developer and/or project engineer.
From this point on, the Permit Office works directly with the developer or project engineer. (Skip to Step 9).
For projects that are proposed by towns, villages, or utility companies, the approval process starts here. One set of plans is required to be submitted for our review. Our review period is approximately two weeks. Comments are forwarded to the applicant by fax or mail using our DRC report form.
Revised plans are submitted for projects from Steps G and H. If there are any additional comments, the project engineer will be notified of them. This step is repeated until the plans are acceptable and project approval can be granted.
The consultant should submit a set of reproducible plans and a set of prints for approval. Project approval is granted by the Permit Office by placing an approval stamp and signature on the appropriate reproducible original plan sheets for the project.
The type of permits, special conditions of the permit, fees and security deposits (if applicable) that are required are determined. Monroe County Department of Transportation provides a listing of the permit fees and security deposits (if applicable) to the engineer. Any unusual special conditions will be identified that the permittee may be required to adhere to.
The 136 Highway Work Permit applications will be accepted any time after project approval.

Section III: Permit Issuance Process

Provided the project review and approval process has been followed and project approval is granted, permit issuance time will be greatly reduced. Refer to the Flow Chart of the process. The following items must be submitted for permit issuance:

Four copies of the 136 Highway Permit for each type of operation to be performed in the County highway right-of-way.
Five copies are required for traffic signal permits.
Six copies are required for permits for capital improvement projects. The permits must be filled out completely and signed by the property owner or the owner of the utility for work within the right-of-way. Please include the telephone number of the owner and the emergency phone number of the resident engineer and contractor. See Related Documents: Permit Office Forms.
Depending on the project type, permit applications are distributed to the following individuals after approval:
- Permittee
- Town Highway Superintendent
- County Permit Inspector
- County Permit Office Main File
- Signal Section
- Project Manager
- Resident Engineer
A 239-F permit signed by a town official, (usually the building inspector), if a building permit is also to be issued. See Related Documents, Permit Office Forms.
A Completed Permit Fee Work Sheet with the type of operation(s) to be performed checked off. The fees are recorded in the boxes on the right and totaled at the bottom. See Related Documents, Permit Office Forms. Checks should be made payable to the Director of Finance, County of Monroe. Mastercard and VISA are also acceptable forms of payment. Cash will not be accepted.
Four copies of approved plans. Five copies for traffic signal projects. Six copies for capital improvement projects.
If security deposits are required, they must accompany the 136 Highway Work Permit. Security deposits will be accepted in the form of a cashier’s check, bank check, certified check, Mastercard or VISA. (See Appendix A for the appropriate security deposit according to the Security Deposit Policy.)
Issue permit and attach special conditions and details.

Section IV: Permit Inspection

The County reserves the right to perform inspection of all work performed in the County right-of-way as a condition of all permits issued. A representative of the Monroe County Department of Transportation Permit Office will visit the site and inspect the work on a regular basis. This representative’s responsibilities include the following:

Provide interpretation and make decisions based on design and construction aspects of the approved plans.
Ensure that the work is being performed in accordance with Monroe County Department of Transportation standards and details.
Ensure that the conditions of the permit(s) are adhered to.

It is strongly recommended that the permittee read the conditions and restrictions on the back of the 136 Highway Work Permit and any special conditions and details that are attached to the permit. Highlights of the standard special conditions include:

The permittee is required to give the Permit Office forty-eight (48) hours or two (2) working days, (whichever is greater), advance notice before work within the County right-of-way is to begin.
If a reconstruction meeting for the project is to be held, we request one week advance notification so that a representative from the Permit Office can be present.
For construction operations where traffic on a County highway will be affected, we require that a site meeting be held prior to performing this operation with the permittee, the Contractor, the Permit Office Senior Engineering Aide, and any additional Monroe County Department of Transportation personnel required, to determine the appropriate maintenance and protection of traffic measures required to perform the work safely.

NO WORK SHALL BEGIN IN THE COUNTY RIGHT-OF-WAY UNTIL THE 136 HIGHWAY WORK PERMITS HAVE BEEN ISSUED.

Section V: General Requirements

All private and public utility agencies will be required to obtain a permit for utility work in the County right-of-way. They will be responsible for maintaining the pavement in the cut area until such roadway is reconstructed or resurfaced. Open pavement cuts will only be allowed where specified in the Open Cut Policy. (See Appendix A-1,Policy–Open Pavement Cuts). The County requires all utility crossings at highways be performed by boring method unless the conditions of the Policy–Open Pavement Cuts are met.
To guarantee performance for construction within the County right-of-way a security deposit may be required. (See Appendix A-3, Security Deposit Policy, for the amount to be charged). The security deposit will not be released until all County, town and village requirements are met. When storing materials and/or equipment within the right-of-way and using the right-of-way for any purpose to install utilities outside the right-of-way, a right-of-way access permit shall be required.
Monroe County requires an 80’ highway reservation, measured off the centerline of the County highway right-of-way (40’ each side), for all proposed development. The highway reservation is not a permanent easement, rather it reserves this land for future highway purposes. This reservation allows for future utilities and/or highway widening. For a 66’ right-of-way, the reservation width is 7’ on each side, and for a 49.5’ right-of-way, 15.25’ on each side.
If sidewalks are constructed, it is our desire that they be constructed outside the reservation area. However, if this is not practical or feasible, sidewalks may be constructed outside the right-of-way within the reservation area or if special circumstances exist, in the right-of-way. Sidewalks should be built in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
If the subdivision plat map is to be filed at the Monroe County Clerk’s Office, it must conform to the Monroe County Monumentation Law. The Monroe County Department of Transportation Survey Office and Permit Section are responsible for subdivision plat map review. If the subdivision has frontage on a County highway, signatures on the plat map are required from the County Survey Office, then from the County Superintendent of Highways before the map can be filed at the County Clerk’s Office. All official signatures verifying approval must be recorded on the plat map before the County Superintendent of Highways signs off.
It is recommended that the building setback distance be measured from the right-of-way line or 40’ off the centerline of the right-of-way, whichever is greater, to allow for future highway widening and improvements. For single lot subdivisions being built adjacent to existing homes,the setback may be the same as the adjacent homes, to allow for a consistent lot line setback based on town approval.
A standard County highway permit note is required on the plans as follows: “After M.C.D.O.T. approves this project, a 136 Highway Permit and 239-F Permit will be required. Inspection of all construction in the right-of-way will be a condition of these permits.”
A standard County highway drainage note is required on the plans as follows: “Highway drainage along the County highway must be maintained. The applicant will be responsible for all required grading in the County right-of-way. The applicant will place a culvert and/or storm sewer of a type and size determined by the Monroe County Department of Transportation.”
A standard County materials note is required on the plans as follows: “All materials installed in the County right-of-way shall be in accordance with the Monroe County Department of Transportation Standard Specifications and Details in effect when installed.” In instances where a Monroe County Department of Transportation Standard Specification or Detail does not exist, the applicable New York State Department of Transportation Standard Specification or Detail will be adhered to.
It is desirable that all driveways fronting on County roads be paved to the right-of-way line. The driveway grade shall slope away from the outside edge of the pavement at a minimum rate of 1/2 inch per foot to the centerline of drainage. Driveways shall be constructed in accordance with Monroe County Department of Transportation Standard Specifications and Details.
When enclosed drainage systems are being constructed for roadway drainage, existing storm drainage systems from private residences will be connected to the County system provided the runoff is storm drainage only and does not contain household or sanitary runoff.
Monroe County and Federal Law requires that all construction of curbs, sidewalks and other applicable features conform to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 Accessibility Guidelines (Sections 4.5, 4.6,4.7, 4.8).
Proposed accesses should be located so that they meet intersection sight distance requirements. Where there is no available location with adequate intersection sight distance along the frontage, the access shall be located such that sight distance is optimized in each direction and the location should be checked to see if stopping sight distance requirements can be met.
Intersection sight distances for all accesses and/or proposed accesses shall be computed in accordance with the latest revision of AASHTO (American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials), “A Policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets.” In general, the 2004 book states that it should be assumed that the driver’s eye is 3.5' above the roadway surface and that the object to be seen is 3.5' above the surface of the intersecting road. Also, offset distance from the edge of the major road should be 14.5' for intersections with stop control on the minor road. See the latest revision of AASHTO, “A Policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets” for more information.
If necessary, stopping sight distance should be checked to determine if it is adequate as required by AASHTO (latest revision). Both the intersection sight distance and stopping sight distance are based on the 85th percentile speed (the speed at which 85% of the motorists surveyed travel at or below) of the particular roadway. It should be noted that the posted speed limit may be different from the 85th percentile speed.
If the stopping sight distance is adequate, but intersection sight distance is less than the AASHTO minimum, we would approve the access, and if needed, install driveway warning signs with advisory speed panels. If both intersection and stopping sight distance are less than required, we will recommend to the town that the access be denied due to inadequate sight distance.

Section VI: Plan Requirements For Single Lot Residential Development

The customer shall submit a scaled drawing (1" = 50' minimum) for the proposed development. The maximum allowable plan sheet size is 22" x 34". The drawing shall include the following:

Development frontage, plus 200' in each direction, on both sides of highway, showing driveways and intersecting roads and adjacent property addresses.
Proposed development on the lot showing driveway width, culvert and location.
Property lines and easements.
Right-of-way lines and width.
Highway reservation where applicable.
Curb lines.
Sidewalk.
Existing trees.
Utilities (Overhead and Underground) showing proposed service connections.
Drainage.
Location map, showing at least two major intersections.
Intersection sight distances for proposed driveway.
Only one access is desired for each residential lot on a County highway. However, additional accesses may be considered based on a review of each site and factors including but not limited to sight distance, speeds, type of highway, number of lanes of the highway, traffic volumes, and the characteristics of the development. If the lot is a corner parcel, it is the County’s recommendation to locate the driveway on the lower volume road. Driveways shall be located as far as possible from the intersection.