A Section 278 agreement is a legal agreement under Section 278 of the Highways Act 1980 that lets a developer fund and carry out permanent alterations to the existing public highway, such as a new junction, crossing or road widening, with the consent of the local highway authority, where those works are needed to support a development that has planning permission.
It sits at the point where a development meets the road it connects to. If a scheme needs a new site access, a signalised junction or a footway alteration on a road the public already uses, none of that work can lawfully begin until a Section 278 agreement is in place. For a developer, that makes it one of the items most likely to sit on the critical path, and one of the most costly to get wrong.
This guide explains what a Section 278 agreement is, how the process actually runs, how it differs from the Section 38, Section 106 and Section 184 agreements it is routinely confused with, what the bond and commuted sums cover, and how long the whole thing takes. The physical works themselves, the junction build, the kerbing, drainage and surfacing, are highway construction and reinstatement in their own right, delivered to the highway authority’s specification.
What a Section 278 agreement is, and how it really works
Section 278 sits in Part XIII of the Highways Act 1980, under the heading “agreements as to execution of works”. In its own words, the Act lets a highway authority enter into an agreement with any person for the execution of works, provided the authority is satisfied the works will be of benefit to the public, on terms that that person pays the cost.
Read literally, the Act puts the highway authority in charge of executing the works, with the developer paying for them. In practice it works the other way round. The authority uses Section 278 to delegate its powers, allowing the developer and their appointed contractor to carry out the works on the authority’s behalf, to the authority’s design and under its supervision. That delegation matters more than it first appears: neither a developer nor their contractor has any inherent right to work on the adopted public highway, so the agreement is the thing that grants that right in the first place.
The highway authority is whoever maintains the road being altered. For most roads that is the local council in its role as local highway authority. For trunk roads and motorways it is National Highways. In Greater London, works on the red routes fall to Transport for London.
When a Section 278 agreement is required
A Section 278 is triggered when a development with planning permission needs changes to a road the public already uses. The requirement usually arrives as a planning condition attached to the consent: the local planning authority grants permission on the basis that the developer will deliver specific highway improvements before the site can be occupied.
Typical triggers are a new or altered site access, a priority or signalised junction, a new roundabout, a right-turn lane, a pedestrian or signal-controlled crossing, footway works, or road widening to carry the extra traffic the development creates. If the work touches the existing public highway, it needs a Section 278. If it does not, it usually does not.
Section 278 vs Section 38, Section 106 and Section 184
These four “section” agreements are constantly bundled together and just as constantly confused, partly because they are not even all from the same Act. Getting them straight matters for procurement, programming and legal responsibility.
Three of them are Highways Act 1980 provisions. Section 278 covers alterations to the existing highway. A Section 38 agreement covers the adoption of new roads a developer builds inside a site. Section 184 covers vehicle crossings, the accesses that cross a footway or verge. The fourth, Section 106, is not a highways provision at all: it is a planning obligation under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, used to secure contributions and commitments that make a development acceptable in planning terms.
The four agreements compared
| Agreement | Act | What it covers | Who it binds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Section 278 | Highways Act 1980 | Alterations to the existing public highway | The named developer, as a personal contract |
| Section 38 | Highways Act 1980 | Adoption of new roads built inside a development | The named developer, until adoption |
| Section 184 | Highways Act 1980 | Vehicle crossings over a footway or verge | The frontager or applicant |
| Section 106 | Town and Country Planning Act 1990 | Planning obligations and developer contributions | The land, binding future owners |
Two distinctions do most of the work in practice. The first is Section 278 against Section 38. A Section 278 is for the existing road; a Section 38 is for new roads that will be handed over for adoption. Larger schemes routinely need both, and the sequence matters: the Section 278 junction that ties the site into the existing network often has to be built before the Section 38 estate roads behind it can be connected and adopted. If the Section 278 slips, the roads and sewers programme behind it slips with it.
The second is the mandatory-versus-voluntary line. A council has no power to force a developer into a Section 38 agreement, because adoption is something the developer chooses to pursue. A Section 278 is different. If the approved scheme requires work on the existing highway, entering into the agreement is effectively unavoidable, because there is no other lawful route to carry out that work.
How the Section 278 process works
The process runs from technical submission through to adoption, and most of the elapsed time is spent in design approval rather than on site.
It starts with a technical submission to the highway authority. A full submission typically includes proof of planning permission and land title, a detailed design of the proposed works, capacity calculations for every junction, set of signals or roundabout, drainage design, geotechnical information, a highway construction specification, street lighting and highway structures, and a road safety audit of the proposal. Design is assessed against the authority’s standards, which for major works follow the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges, and against the authority’s Road Safety Audit protocol.
The Road Safety Audit runs in stages alongside the design, and a Stage 3 audit is carried out before the works are adopted. Once the design is approved, the agreement is drawn up and has to be signed and sealed, with the bond in place, before anything happens on site. Work can only begin once every pre-commencement requirement listed in the agreement has been met and approved, and the works themselves have to be carried out by a contractor the authority has approved to work on its network.
During construction the authority inspects the works against the approved design, and any change from that design has to be agreed in writing. When the works are finished they are inspected and, if satisfactory, a certificate of substantial completion is issued. A maintenance period follows, commonly at least twelve months, during which the developer remains responsible for the works. Once that period ends and any defects are made good, the works pass into the authority’s maintenance.
What actually happens on site
The paperwork is only half of a Section 278. The other half is the construction, and it is where the abstract “highway works” become real. A typical scheme starts with setting out and traffic management, because the works are live alongside moving traffic and pedestrians from day one. Existing surfacing, kerbs and any redundant features are removed, and the ground is excavated to the levels the approved design requires.
From there it is highway construction in the proper sense: forming the sub-base and road base, setting kerbs and edgings to line and level, building drainage and gully connections, and laying the bound surfacing courses to the Specification for Highway Works. New junctions, bell-mouths and crossings are built to the approved geometry, then finished with road markings, signs and, where the design calls for it, traffic signals and lighting. Every layer is inspected and, where required, tested, because the authority will not adopt work it has not been able to check.
These are the disciplines that sit behind everyday highway surfacing and reinstatement: the groundworks, the surfacing to specification, and the making-good a highway authority will accept. On a Section 278 scheme they are what turns an approved drawing into an adoptable piece of road.
The bond, commuted sums and who pays for what
A Section 278 is funded entirely by the developer, and the authority protects itself against the risk of the works being left unfinished. That protection is the bond. Before work starts, the developer provides either an institution-backed surety bond or an upfront cash deposit, sized by the authority against the cost of the works, which the authority can call on to complete the scheme if the developer defaults or goes into liquidation. Once the works reach substantial completion, the bond is usually reduced to reflect what is left outstanding.
On top of the construction cost and the bond, the developer meets the authority’s own charges: the design-check, administration, inspection and legal fees involved in setting up and overseeing the agreement. Where the scheme introduces new features the authority will have to maintain in future, such as traffic signals, lighting or structures, a commuted sum is also payable. This is a one-off contribution towards the long-term maintenance of those features, calculated by the authority on a scheme-by-scheme basis, and often adjusted against final quantities.
Published figures for the authority’s own fees and commuted-sum rates vary between highway authorities and are reviewed regularly, so the right source for any specific number is the authority’s current charging schedule. What can be said generally is that the developer carries all of it: the works, the bond, the authority’s fees and the commuted sums.
How long a Section 278 takes
There is no fixed timescale, and any authority will tell you as much. The commonly quoted range is six to twelve months from first design submission to a signed agreement, with complex schemes, contested transport assessments or anything involving National Highways taking longer.
What actually drives the timescale is design quality and the number of review cycles it takes to get there. Authorities are explicit that they cannot guarantee a completion date, because it depends on the standard of the submitted design, the nature of the works, how quickly the developer turns around Road Safety Audit amendments, and whether a Traffic Regulation Order is needed for any change to speed limits, waiting restrictions or priorities. A clean design that clears technical approval first time moves quickly; one that generates round after round of comments does not.
The practical lesson every experienced developer learns is to start early. Because a Section 278 so often sits on the critical path, getting the design moving before planning permission is even determined, so the agreement progresses in parallel with the main site programme rather than holding it up, is usually the single biggest thing within a developer’s control.
One contractor for the site and the highway works
A Section 278 rarely stands on its own. It usually sits alongside the site civils, the Section 38 estate roads and the drainage, and the interfaces between them are where programmes slip. The Section 278 junction has to be built before the roads behind it can connect. The surfacing has to meet the same specification the authority will inspect. The traffic management has to work for the highway and the site at once.
Where those workstreams are split across separate contractors, the interface risk is nobody’s job in particular, and it tends to surface late. Where the site civils and the highway works sit with a single contractor, that interface is managed directly, which is why the surfacing, groundworks and reinstatement disciplines behind a Section 278 build matter as much as the agreement itself. Understanding the instrument is one thing; delivering the road it produces to an adoptable standard is another.
Questions on the Section 278 agreement
A Section 278 agreement covers alterations to the existing public highway, such as a new junction or crossing needed to serve a development. A Section 38 agreement covers the adoption of entirely new roads a developer builds inside a site and hands over to the highway authority to maintain. Both are made under the Highways Act 1980, and larger schemes often need both, with the Section 278 works usually built before the Section 38 roads behind them can be connected.
The developer funds everything: the construction of the works, an authority-sized bond or cash deposit, the authority’s design-check, administration, inspection and legal fees, and a commuted sum towards the future maintenance of any new features such as signals or lighting. The authority’s fees and commuted-sum rates vary between highway authorities and are reviewed regularly, so the accurate figures for any scheme come from the relevant authority’s current charging schedule.
No. Unlike a Section 106 planning obligation, which runs with the land and binds future owners, a Section 278 is a personal contract between the highway authority and the named developer. Its obligations do not automatically pass to a new owner if the site or a plot is sold, so they need to be dealt with expressly on any disposal rather than assumed to transfer with the title.
A Section 278 is required when a development with planning permission needs works to a road the public already uses, such as a new access, junction, crossing or road widening. The requirement usually comes as a planning condition, and it is an offence to carry out works on the public highway without the highway authority’s consent, so the works cannot lawfully begin until the agreement is signed.
Section 278 works must be carried out by a contractor the highway authority has approved to work on its network, and many authorities keep an approved-contractor list for this purpose. The works are built to the authority’s design and specification and are inspected as they proceed, because the authority will not adopt work it has not been able to check.
