Roads and drains

Overview

Indigo Shire is responsible for the provision of council-owned roads and stormwater drains. We develop and maintain local access roads to provide reasonable access to all properties.

View the Indigo Shire Road Register here(PDF, 686KB) and the Indigo Shire Road Management Plan here(PDF, 726KB).

VicRoads

Gravel roads

We routinely maintain around 1000 kilometres of unsealed gravel road in its maintenance schedule. This is done by road grading, which restores the driving surface with the help of a motor grader. In simple words grading means to repair the potholes or any other damage by either cutting the edges of the roads or filling them with the help of a road grader.

Road users should avoid using gravel roads during wet periods if such use would likely damage the road drainage features. Certain Shire roads which are subject to such damage are marked as ‘DRY WEATHER USE ONLY’.

If you believe your road needs grading, please contact us and we will arrange an inspection time. Note: Grading of private driveways is not done by our staff and a private contractor should be hired.   

Sealed roads

We routinely maintain around 500km of sealed roads in our maintenance schedule.

A percentage of sealed road is re-sealed each year. This is when a new layer of seal is spread across the road to repair the surface.

We have a Roadside Management Plan(PDF, 637KB) in place to protect vegetation on the side of council-owned roads.

Documents

Roadside Management Plan(PDF, 637KB)

Drains

Maintenance of the 'crossover' is the responsibility of the property owner. The pipe or 'bridge' should be kept free of leaf litter and any silt build-up should be removed from the entry and exit to the drainage pipe to ensure the free flow of storm water through the pipe or under the 'bridge'. Guideposts should be maintained either side of the crossover. 

All new buildings are required to be connected to a Legal Point of Discharge for stormwater. To arrange an inspection contact us or fill in the application form.  

Note: Maintenance of stormwater pipes from private dwellings to the Legal Point of Discharge is the responsibility of the property owner. This Legal Point of Discharge may be at the kerb and channel or at a drainage pit or underground pipe within the road reserve. It may also be within the property if there is a council-owned drain within an easement through private land.

Autumn Leaf Collection

During Autumn, Council staff remove leaves from open drains and some urban streets. To assist Council with their collection please consider the following:

• Rake and place leaves into piles that can be easily accessed by Council staff.
• If able to place leaves into your organics bin for collection on normal day.
• There is no specific timeline for the collections during Autumn, however streets will be visited several times each.
• This collection is for leaves from street trees only, all other green waste should be disposed of via your Green lidded organics bin or at the transfer station.
• Please contact Council on 1300 365 003 if you have any concerns and ask for the Operations Department.

Planned road closures

Continue to check back for current road closures.

Working within the road reserve

Under the Road Management Act 2004, Consent from the Responsible Road Authority is required for any works conducted within the Road Reserve, including on the road, shoulder, driveways or nature strip.

For Council Roads, complete the Application Form for Minor Works on Road Reserve(PDF, 301KB) and submit it to any of our Council offices, along with the appropriate fee.

In March 2013, Indigo Shire Council adopted the Infrastructure Design Manual for infrastructure standards. The full manual is available online at http://www.designmanual.com.au/

For driveway works, the following plans show the relevant construction standards.

• SD255 Typical Swale Drain Vehicle Crossing Rural(PDF, 56KB)
• SD260 Typical Swale Drain Vehicle Crossing Fringe Urban Residential Entrance(PDF, 41KB)
• SD235 Retrofit Residential Vehicle Crossing Detail(PDF, 52KB)
• SD240 New Residential Single Vehicle Crossing Detail(PDF, 67KB)

Fees

Fees are updated annually on 1 July and are common across the state. Fees below are expressed in fee units with the equivalent dollar amount in brackets.

Fees are reviewed each financial year and changes (if any) apply from 1 July each year. For further information on your responsibilities relating to works within the road reserve, or for requirements for VicRoads roads, refer to the VicRoads website.