Sterling Site Services Civil Engineering · Ltd
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S278 & S38 Highway Works

Section 278 and Section 38 highway works contractor

We build S278 and S38 highway works to the highway authority's specification — junction improvements, site accesses, estate roads, kerbing, drainage and surfacing — self-delivered by our own plant and crews, from setting out to final inspection.

Price a Highway Works Package → What We Build
Constructionline Gold accredited · Trusted by Galliford Try, Costain & BP · Est. 2002
Completed carriageway resurfacing and new kerbing on a Sterling Site Services highway scheme
20+ Years building adoptable highway works

The Two Routes

What is the difference between a Section 278 and a Section 38 agreement?

A Section 278 agreement covers works to an existing public highway — a new junction, site access or carriageway widening — paid for by the developer. A Section 38 agreement covers a new road built to adoptable standard and then offered to the highway authority for adoption. Large developments commonly need both.

We are the contractor, not the highways consultant. The agreement, the technical approval submission and the bond sit with the developer's consultant and the authority. We price and construct the works to the approved drawings.

What We Build

Highway works, self-delivered

One contractor for the civils package — the same crews lay the drainage, set the kerbs and surface the road, so there is no interface to manage between trades.

Under a Section 278

Works to the existing adopted highway, funded by the developer.

  • Bellmouth and priority junctions, ghost islands and right-turn lanes
  • Site accesses, vehicle crossings and dropped kerbs
  • Carriageway widening, reconstruction and resurfacing
  • Kerbing, footways, cycleways and tactile crossings
  • Highway drainage — gullies, connections, carrier drains and outfalls
  • Ducting for signals, street lighting and statutory undertakers
  • Road markings, signing, street furniture and reinstatement

Under a Section 38

New roads built for adoption by the local highway authority.

  • Estate and spine roads from formation level to surface course
  • Sub-base, binder course and surface course to the authority's specification
  • Kerbing, footways, service margins and turning heads
  • Highway drainage laid and tested to adoptable standard
  • Street lighting and service ducting
  • Defect rectification through the maintenance period to adoption

Recent Work

Manchester bridge reconstruction and resurfacing

Full bridge refurbishment — excavation and deck breakout, temporary structural support, new reinforced concrete, kerbing and footway, through to carriageway resurfacing and reinstatement.

Excavation and deck breakout during bridge reconstruction
New reinforced concrete and kerbing on the bridge deck
Completed carriageway resurfacing and reinstatement

Common Questions

Section 278 and Section 38 — the questions we get asked

Do you work for the highway authority or for the developer?

We are engaged by the main contractor or developer delivering the scheme, not by the authority. We price and build the works to the approved drawings and specification, and work to the authority's inspection regime so the scheme reaches adoption without abortive work.

Can you carry out the drainage inside a Section 278 or Section 38 scheme?

Yes. Deep drainage is one of our core disciplines, so gullies, connections, carrier drains and attenuation are self-delivered by the same crews building the carriageway. That keeps the drainage and the road surface under one contractor and one programme.

What is a commuted sum and who pays it?

A commuted sum is a one-off payment to the highway authority towards the future maintenance of anything non-standard it is being asked to adopt — block paving, special surfacing, structures or street furniture that costs more to maintain than the standard detail. It is agreed between the developer and the authority, and it is not part of the construction price.

Can you work under traffic management on a live road?

Yes. Most Section 278 work is on highway that stays open, so the traffic management regime the authority permits — lane closures, temporary signals, convoy working or night shifts — shapes the programme as much as the construction does. We price the works around the permitted regime rather than assuming full closure.

Do you carry out defect works during the Section 38 maintenance period?

Yes. A Section 38 road is adopted only after a maintenance period, and anything the authority lists at inspection has to be put right before adoption and bond release. We stay responsible for the works we built through that period.

How long does a Section 278 take?

The construction programme depends on the scope and the traffic management the authority permits. The agreement and technical approval stage runs ahead of construction and is set by the highway authority and the developer's consultant, not by the contractor.

Have a S278 or S38 package to price?

Send us the approved drawings, the specification or the tender pack — we'll come back with a competitive, deliverable price.

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