Setting Out for Highway and Infrastructure Projects
Setting out surveys for highways and infrastructure.
Highway Setting Out Scope
| Element | Description | | --- | --- | | Centre line | Road alignment | | Edge of carriageway | Road boundary | | Kerb lines | Kerb positions | | Drainage | Road drainage | | Service crossings | Utility positions | | Levels | Formation and finished |
Highway Tolerances
| Element | Tolerance | | --- | --- | | Centre line | ±20mm | | Edge of carriageway | ±20mm | | Kerb line | ±10mm | | Drainage | ±15mm | | Formation levels | ±20mm | | Finished surface | ±15mm |
Standards for Highway Setting Out
| Standard | Application | | --- | --- | | BS 5606 | Accuracy | | DMRB | Design manual for roads | | HA methodology | Highways Agency | | AutoCAD Civil 3D | Drawing production |
2025 Highway Setting Out Costs (ex VAT)
| Project | Cost | | --- | --- | | Small road | £1,500–£3,000 | | Junction | £2,000–£4,000 | | Major highway | £5,000–£15,000+ |
How Setting Out for Highway and Infrastructure Projects Works
The setting out for highway and infrastructure projects covers the transfer of the design to ground with precision, using the tolerances for the highway or infrastructure element. The six highway setting out scope elements are centre line (the road alignment, typically with GPS for long linear corridors or total station for detail and cross-sections), edge of carriageway (the road boundary, with kerb positions, footway widths, and verge widths), kerb lines (the kerb positions for straight runs, transitions, and junctions, typically with the plus or minus 10 mm tolerance), drainage (the road drainage, including pipe runs, manholes, gullies, and catchpits, with the plus or minus 15 mm tolerance), service crossings (the utility positions, with any agreed clashes identified and resolved before construction), and levels (formation and finished levels, with the plus or minus 20 mm tolerance for formation and plus or minus 15 mm for finished surface). The six highway tolerances (typical for UK highway setting out) are centre line plus or minus 20 mm, edge of carriageway plus or minus 20 mm, kerb line plus or minus 10 mm, drainage plus or minus 15 mm, formation levels plus or minus 20 mm, and finished surface plus or minus 15 mm. The four standards to be aware of are BS 5606 (the British Standard for setting out accuracy), DMRB (the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges, the standard for UK highway design and assessment), HA methodology (the Highways Agency methodology for highway construction), and AutoCAD Civil 3D (the standard drawing production environment for highways work, with the digital engineering workflow for the BIM coordination and the DTM and 12D model formats). A typical site visit for a small road project takes one to three days; a junction improvement takes one to two weeks; a major highway takes two to four weeks. The cost bands are typical ranges for UK highway setting out: small road (1,500 to 3,000 pounds ex VAT), junction (2,000 to 4,000 pounds ex VAT), and major highway (5,000 to 15,000+ pounds ex VAT). A signed accuracy statement is the QA evidence for downstream design, planning, and construction use, and all icelabz setting out work is undertaken to the accuracy bands defined by the RICS Measured Surveys of Land, Buildings and Utilities standard (3rd edition) and is issued with a signed accuracy statement at handover.