Colbert County Road Department
Access Management Policy
Includes Access Permit
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Access Management Policy
2750 HWY 20, Tuscumbia, Alabama 35674 • Phone (256) 381-2120 • Fax (256) 381-4392
The Colbert County Commission adopts the following access management policy. This policy is deemed necessary in order to accomplish the following objectives:
- Colbert County Commission, acting through its County Engineer and Road Department, is charged with the responsibility to protect the traveling public in Colbert County and maintain the public right-of-ways therein; The County Commission is also charged to protect the general welfare, health, and safety of its citizens and the traveling public using the public highways, roads, rights-of-ways and highway system within Colbert County; and
- The Colbert County Commission has and does hereby find that in order to protect and provide for the general welfare and safety of the traveling public and to protect the public highway and road system within Colbert County, it is necessary to provide criteria and conditions which must be met by any person, firm, corporation, or entity seeking to access or connect roads, streets, highways, or any part thereof, to any Colbert County public road, highway, highway system, to any part thereof, and to prohibit any access or connection to the Colbert County highways, streets, roads or the highway system, which do not meet with and conform to proper engineering design and which do not have approval of the Colbert County Engineer or his designee:
The following guidelines are hereby set forth and adopted by the Colbert County Commission to serve as the Colbert County Access Management policy. This policy shall be administered and interpreted by the Colbert County Engineer, or his/her designee. The policy is as follows:
- No person, firm, corporation, or other entity, public or private, shall construct or cause to be constructed or allow any driveway, highway, road, alley, street, other roadway, or any aspect or part thereof, to connect to or otherwise access or allow motor vehicle traffic on or onto any part of the Colbert County public road system including the Colbert County rights-of-ways, without first applying for and obtaining an access permit from the Colbert County Commission, acting by and through the Colbert County Engineer or his designee;
- All access and access permits to Colbert County maintained roads shall be subject to the approval of the Colbert County Engineer. No access permit will be granted or approved which does not properly address drainage, sight distance and other safety criteria including but not limited to proper lane widths, guardrail, front and back slopes, right-of-way encroachments, or pavement buildup to support anticipated future traffic on the public highway and highway system at affected points, as established and determined to be appropriate by the Colbert County Engineer;
- All subdivisions of real property and all developments, along, adjacent to, or accessing existing paved or unpaved Colbert County public roads, and any person or entity seeking to connect a highway, street, alley, road, or other public or private way, thereto, shall be required to improve and upgrade such existing public road and connecting roads, and associated drainage facilities, to the extent required by the Colbert County Engineer. These improvements may include, but are not limited to, the construction of additional lanes to increase capacity, turn lanes, acceleration and/or deceleration lanes, traffic signals, guardrail, clear zones, or other improvements deemed necessary by the Colbert County Engineer or his designee. The existing road system may be required to be upgraded in order to provide for future anticipated traffic demand and/or traffic volume increases.
- In the event any person or entity shall gain, establish, allow access to or otherwise connect or allow connection of any public or private highway, street, alley or road or other public or private way/facility to any part of the Colbert County maintained road system, in violation of any part of this resolution or without first obtaining an access permit as herein provided and without the express written permission of the Colbert County Engineer. The Colbert County Engineer, acting on behalf of the Colbert County Commission, shall have the additional right to place impassable barricades between the traveled portion of the county road or right-of-way and the point of unpermitted access, thus preventing entry onto the Colbert County Road System and ingress and egress thereto. The Colbert County Commission also realizes that the County Engineer may in some cases be required to remove items placed on the right-of-way without permission that pose a safety threat to the traveling public;
- Any person, firm, corporation or entity who or which violates any part or portion of this resolution or otherwise connects or allows the connection to any Colbert County public road or right-of-way of any portion of the Colbert County Road System in violation of the aforementioned requirements, or any portion, section or aspect thereof without first obtaining a written access permit to access the same as provided herein, shall in addition to all other remedies available to Colbert County, including but not limited to injunction and assessment of damages, be subject to and liable for the payment of civil penalties and reimbursement to Colbert County in an amount equal to all costs or damages incurred by Colbert County, the Colbert County Road Department or the Colbert County Engineer in order to bring said access point and use of the Colbert County public road system into compliance with the provisions hereof and the costs, including, but not limited to, the cost of design, construction and installation of all necessary improvements to comply with the requirements herein, and for the cost of physically preventing ingress and egress to and from the Colbert County Road System. Nothing contained herein shall, however, be interpreted to limit Colbert County to any one or more available legal remedies, and the provisions herein providing for remedies shall be cumulative to all other remedies available now or in the future;
- The provisions of this resolution are severable. If any portion hereof shall be declared invalid by any court of competent jurisdiction, such declaration shall not affect the remaining portions hereof;
- The provisions hereof shall become effective immediately upon the adoption by the Colbert County Commission, and all municipalities in Colbert County shall be advised of the adoption hereof and be requested to withhold any and all permits for developments accessing Colbert County public highways and roads until such Access Permits have been issued by Colbert County acting by and through the Colbert County Engineer or other designee of the Colbert County Commission.
- If a pipe is required to gain access to County Right of Way, the pipe shall be 15” diameter or larger (size determined by County) and a minimum of 20’ long and shall be of an approved material such as: Concrete, Corrugated Metal (Minimum 14 ga.), or double wall plastic pipe. Any used pipe must be in like new condition and be pre-approved. Installation schedule shall be responsibility of person requesting approval.
Access Permit
Colbert County Highway Department • 2750 Hwy 20, Tuscumbia, AL 35674 • Phone: (256) 381-2120 • Fax: (256) 381-4392
- Date
- ____________________________
- Applicant Name
- ____________________________
- Applicant Mailing Address
- ____________________________
- Applicant City
- ____________________________
- Applicant State
- ____________________________
- Applicant Zip
- ____________________________
- Applicant Phone
- ____________________________
- Applicant Fax
- ____________________________
- Applicant E-Mail Address
- ____________________________
- Contractor Name (if different)
- ____________________________
- Contractor Mailing Address
- ____________________________
- Contractor City
- ____________________________
- Contractor State
- ____________________________
- Contractor Zip
- ____________________________
- Contractor Phone
- ____________________________
- Contractor Fax
- ____________________________
- Property Address
- ____________________________
- Landowner Name (Print)
- ____________________________
Type of Access Requested
- ☐ Residential
- ☐ Multi – Family Residential
- ☐ Commercial
- ☐ Agricultural
- ☐ Other
A sketch showing the location of requested access on property, including dimensions from nearest features, may be required along with this application.
Requested access location shall be marked with flagging prior to application being turned in for approval.
Please allow 2 weeks turnaround time for the application to be processed.
By signing below applicant agrees they have seen and understand the Access Management Policy, the attached drawing, and agree that driveway grade will be constructed and maintained in accordance.
- Signature of Applicant
- ____________________________
- Signature of Landowner (if different from Applicant)
- ____________________________
For County Use Only
- Driveway Pipe Required (YES / NO)
- ____________________________
- If yes, size
- ____________________________
- Adequate sight distance (YES / NO)
- ____________________________
- Permit Approved By Colbert County
- ____________________________
- Date
- ____________________________
- Permit Number
- ____________________________
Typical Profile Required for Driveway Connection
The original PDF includes a typical driveway-connection profile drawing. The drawing shows the existing pavement and centerline, edge of pavement, the county right-of-way line, a 20-foot minimum dimension, a 2% slope recommendation, and a roadway ditch with pipe if required.
- County can only perform work on right of way and work may be performed to access requirements as determined by engineer.
- All water must drain away from roadway.
- All installation work will not comply unless drainage must be pre-approved by the County Engineer.
Because exact dimensions and slopes in the engineering drawing are visual, consult the original PDF for the authoritative drawing.