Road cut

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How to apply for a road cut permit

Information for residents

Cuts into roads, sidewalks and pathways as part of development construction, or by the City or utility companies maintaining water, sewer, gas, hydro and telecommunications infrastructure have a serious impact on the City’s transportation network, in some instances quickening the need for replacement. For example, cuts in roads, sidewalks and pathways increase the potential for water to enter and damage infrastructure. It is important the City manage when, where and how such works are occurring as part of its comprehensive asset management, and that repairs following this work are done to City standards.

When work occurs within the right-of-way (ROW), it has an impact on mobility within communities and around the city, including disruption to morning and afternoon commutes as well as access to local businesses and residences. It is vital that the City coordinate work within the right-of-way to minimize these impacts.

The City’s Road Activity By-law is one of the tools that the City uses to:

  1. Regulate work within the right-of-way to control and minimize disruptions to traffic
  2. Provide rules for how the City’s roads, sidewalks, pathways and boulevards must be restored following this work
  3. Ensure people doing the work are insured and bonded

Under the Road Activity By-law, anyone needing to excavate the right-of-way must obtain a road cut permit. The by-law also requires that before any work within the right-of-way occurs, surrounding residents and businesses are notified.

Accessing geoOttawa

The City of Ottawa geoOttawa map tool contains information about the City’s road network, including road classifications and the age of road pavement. This tool can also be used to determine who the Ward Councillor is in any given area, as well as the Right-of-Way in any given area.

The following provides instructions on how to access and view information on geoOttawa.

Once you have launched the geoOttawa application type the name of the street you want to view, or navigate to it using the map.

Turning on the Right-of-Way Inspector layer

  • Select Layers List in the top menu bar
  • Select the layer checkbox marked Staff Geographical Assignment Maps
  • Select the layer checkbox marked Right-of-Way Inspector Zones 
  • With these boxes checked the Right-of-Way Inspector zones will be shown and in each zone the applicable Inspector name and phone number will also be shown

Turning on the Traffic Management Inspector layer

  • Select Layers List in the top menu
  • Select the checkbox marked Administrative Areas  
  • Select the checkbox marked Traffic Management Inspectors 
  • Traffic Management Inspector zones will be shown and in each zone the applicable inspector will also be shown

Turning on the Road Classification layer

  • Select Layers List in the top menu bar 
  • Select the layer checkbox marked Road Information
  • With these boxes checked, all roads will appear in different colours, representing the different classifications
  • To find out the Road Classifications represented by each colour, follow the steps below to turn on the map legend

Tips:

  • Both the Road Information and Roads – Classification checkboxes must be selected for the information to appear.
  • If you can’t see the colours of the roads:
    • look to see if you have other checkboxes selected that are displaying information overtop of the Road Classification.
    • Zoom in closer
  • To turn on the map legend, select Legend in the top menu bar. Once selected, the map legend will appear on the screen.

Turning on the Pavement Age

  • Knowing the age of the pavement on a street segment or at an intersection can be used to determine:
    • What the applicable Pavement Degradation Fee rate will be
    • Whether or not restrictions on cuts into new pavement apply
  • Select Layers List in the top menu
  • Select the checkbox marked Road Information 
  • Select the layer checkbox marked Roads – Pavement Age 
  • Select the layer checkboxes marked Pavement Age and Road Segment – Pavement Age
  • With these boxes checked information on each road segment and intersection will appear, identifying the road classification of the segment, as well as one of the following age categories, in years: 
    • 1 year (shown in red)
    • 2 year (shown in red)
    • 3 year (shown in red)
    • 4 year (shown in red)
    • >4 to 7 years (shown in green)
    • >7 to 10 years (shown in yellow)
    • >10 years (shown in black)
pavement age for the area around the intersection of Baseline Road and Fisher Avenue
  • The screenshot above shows the area around the intersection of Baseline Road and Fisher Avenue.
    • Fisher Avenue is classified as Arterial (shown as Road Class: Arterial) and the pavement age is not more than one year old (shown as Pavement Age: 1 year in red).
    • Baseline Rad is classified as Arterial (shown as Road Class: Arterial) and the pavement age is between the range of between five and seven years (shown as >4-7 years in green).
    • The pavement at the intersection of Fisher Avenue and Baseline Road is not more than one year old (shown as Int. Age: 1 Year in red).

Turning on the Ward Councillor layer

  • Select Layers List in the top menu
  • Select the layer checkbox marked Wards
  • Select the layer checkbox marked Wards
  • All the Ward boundaries will be shown, and the Ward name, Ward number and Councillor will appear within each

Reinstatement Standards

City of Ottawa Standard Tender Documents for Unit Price Contracts

In accordance with the Road Activity By-law No. 2003-445, as amended, the reinstatement of all road cuts must be done to the current Ontario Provincial Standard Specifications & Drawings (OPSS & OPSD) & City of Ottawa Standard Tender Documents for Unit Price Contracts.

The OPSS and OPSD are available on the Ministry of Transportation website.

The City of Ottawa Standard Tender Documents for Unit Price Contracts are comprised of three (3) volumes:

  • Volume 1: General conditions of contract (section C), special provisions (sections D and F – specs based on OPSS)
  • Volume 2: Material specifications and standard drawings
  • Volume 3: Parks

The below list of standards from the City of Ottawa Standard Tender Documents for Unit Price Contracts represents the most commonly applicable standards for works done under a Road Cut Permit, and has been prepared for convenience only.

The City of Ottawa makes no representation that this list includes all standards applicable and relevant to work being done by a Road Cut Permit holder, or anyone doing work on their behalf.

Before beginning work under a Road Cut Permit, a Road Cut Permit holder and anyone doing work on their behalf must ensure they are using the most recent version of the Standard Tender Documents for Unit Price Contracts and any accompanying Technical Bulletins. It is the responsibility of the Road Cut Permit holder to ensure they comply with all requirements of the Road Activity By-law No. 2003-445, as amended including complying with the most recent version of the Standard Tender Documents for Unit Price Contracts.

The most recent version of the City of Ottawa Standard Tender Documents for Unit Price Contracts is dated March 2019, which includes the following Technical Bulletins (amendments to the current version of the standards):

  • ISTB-2019-01 (dated May 3, 2019)

To obtain a copy of the latest version of the City of Ottawa Standard Tender Documents for Unit Price Contracts, as well as accompanying Technical Bulletins, email StandardsSection@ottawa.ca.

Road cut work must also be done in accordance with Section 2.11 of the City of Ottawa Accessibility Design Standards, which addresses pedestrian accessibility during construction. The Accessibility Design Standards are available on Ottawa.ca.

All Road Cuts must be reinstated in accordance with the City of Ottawa Standard Tender Documents for Unit Price Contracts. To obtain a copy of the standards email StandardsSection@ottawa.ca.

Category Volume Spec Type Number Title
Bench Pad 2 Detail Drawing SC11.2 Concrete Bench Pad Adjacent to Sidewalk
Bus Pad 2 Detail Drawing SC11 Concrete Shelter Pad Adjacent to Sidewalk
Bus Pad 2 Detail Drawing SC11.4 Typical Elevated Bus Pad Without Pedestrian Facilities with Depressed Curb at Mid-Block
Cap 2 Detail Drawing SC10 Monolithic Median Cap
Curb and Cap 2 Detail Drawing SC10.1 Curb and Cap Median
Curb 2 Detail Drawing SC1.1 Concrete Barrier Curb for Granular Base Pavement (Modified OPSD 600.110)
Curb 2 Detail Drawing SC1.2 Concrete Barrier Curb with Gutter for Granular Base Pavement
Curb 2 Detail Drawing SC1.3 Concrete Mountable Curb with Gutter for Granular Base Pavement
Curb 2 Detail Drawing SC1.4 Concrete Barrier Curb with Sidewalk
Curb 2 Detail Drawing SC1.5 Modified Concrete Mountable Curb with Gutter for Roundabout Truck Apron
Curb 2 Detail Drawing SC2 Monolithic Concrete Curb and Sidewalk
Curb 2 Detail Drawing SC3 Concrete Curb and Gutter with Sidewalk
Curb 2 Detail Drawing SC11.1 Steel Faced Curb and Platform Detail
Curb 1 Special Provision F-3531 Concrete Curb and Gutter
Landscaping 1 Special Provision F-8011 Tree Protection
Paving 1 Special Provision F-3110 Asphalt sidewalk, multi-use pathways, medians, boulevards, islands, private walks and driveways
Paving 1 Construction Specification F-3130 Construction Specification for Hot Mix Asphalt – End Result
Paving 2 Detail Drawing R17 Pavement Widening Existing Urban & Rural Roads
Paving 2 Detail Drawing R26 Asphalt Paving at Unit Paving
Road 2 Detail Drawing R1 Subdrain Installation Detail
Sewer 1 Special Provision F-4080 Adjusting or Rebuilding Maintenance Holes, Catch Basins, Ditch Inlets and Valve Chambers (Iron Adjustments)
Sidewalk 2 Material Specification MS23.2 Tactile Walking Surface Indicators (TWSIs)
Sidewalk 1 Special Provision F-3510 Concrete Sidewalk, Medians, Boulevards and Islands
Sidewalk 1 Special Provision F-3512 Tactile Walking Surface Indicators
Sidewalk 2 Detail Drawing SC4 Typical Concrete Sidewalk in Boulevard
Sidewalk 2 Detail Drawing SC5 Sidewalk Construction Joints
Sidewalk 2 Detail Drawing SC6 Pedestrian Curb Ramp Without Boulevard
Sidewalk 2 Detail Drawing SC7 Pedestrian Curb Ramp With Boulevard
Sidewalk 2 Detail Drawing SC7.1 Curb Return Entrances
Sidewalk 2 Detail Drawing SC7.2 Pedestrian Curb Ramp at Intersection with Boulevard and Adjacent Sidewalk
Sidewalk 2 Detail Drawing SC7.3 TWSI Detail
Sidewalk 2 Detail Drawing SC8 Traditional Vehicle Access Crossing
Sidewalk 2 Detail Drawing SC8.1 Traditional Vehicle Access Crossing Transitions for Various Distances Between Accesses
Sidewalk 2 Detail Drawing SC9 Unit Paving on Granular Base
Sidewalk 2 Detail Drawing SC9.1 Concrete Curb and Gutter with Unit Paver Sidewalk
Sidewalk 2 Detail Drawing SC9.2 Sidewalk with Unit Paver Boulevard
Sidewalk 2 Detail Drawing SC9.3 Concrete Barrier Curb with Unit Paver Sidewalk
Sidewalk 2 Detail Drawing SC10.2 Pedestrian Ramps
Sidewalk (Access) 2 Detail Drawing SC13 Ramp Style Vehicle Access Crossing
Sidewalk (Access) 2 Detail Drawing SC13.1 Continuous Vehicle Access Ramp
Sidewalk 2 Detail Drawing SC14 Sidewalk Joints
Trench Reinstatement 2 Detail Drawing R10 Standard Trench Reinstatement in Paved Surface
Walkway (Asphalt) 2 Detail Drawing SC20 Asphalt Walkway
Walkway (Asphalt) 2 Detail Drawing SC21 Asphalt Walkway/Service Access Heavy Duty
Walkway (Stonedust) 2 Detail Drawing SC25 Stonedust Path