Whether you manage a small regional shire or a large inner-city council, the road opening permit application process presents a complex set of challenges to any local government organisation. Yet, every day, asset managers are tasked with keeping track of permit applications and being aware of who is working within their locally managed road reserves. Not only are they expected to know who is working where and when but are required to manage the process in an efficient, timely and cost-effective manner. With the volume of public works levels increasing at the most rapid rate seen in the past decade it can often feel as if they must achieve the un-achievable, with less resources than ever before.
One way to identify potential road management operational savings is to identify the highest costs incurred within the asset management division – road reinstatement costs. Local Governments across the world are spending billions on reinstatement costs across their road networks. Around 30% of this cost can be attributed to repairing works of poorly repaired sites by contractors who did not request the correct permitting applications prior to commencing the project.
In recent times, and with the development of cloud-based software platforms that can automate the entire process, asset managers can now access real-time data about the planned excavation works occurring within their road reserves. Such systems can be used to reduce the reliance on contractors approaching the municipality to request the permit, cut costs by reducing the resources required to respond to these applications and dramatically improve the turnaround times for permit reviews and approvals.
But that’s not all; the data collected can also be used to further investigate historical data of works conducted when issues arise in the future. Here are four ways a Permitting Automation software solution can help to reduce road management operational costs and provide greater awareness:
Increased Awareness through Notification:
Road Asset Managers for any local government organisation understand at any one point in time, up to 25% of the works being done in their road reserve are conducted without a permit application. In many instances this is due to urgent repair works, or timelines that do not allow for the lengthy permit application process and back and forth review that can follow.
By automating the application, review and approval stages, contractors using a One Call service – such as beforeUdig – for asset plan locations can now automatically have permit applications delivered to participating Councils & Permit Authorities.
Through automatic submission, a municipality now has greater awareness of any planned works and can manage applications to reduce the impact on all road users while having the confidence of knowing who has been working where when issues arise.
Accessibility to Information, Anytime – Anywhere.
Are you finding it difficult to navigate the back and forth of sharing information to have the necessary permits reviewed? It’s a costly exercise in your resources time and effort and often takes weeks to complete.
Cloud-based, fully configurable software places the responsibility back in the hands of the permit applicant. Contractors can view updates on the progress of their Permit applications, as well as share documents and messages with the municipality. They can even pay for their permits online and view a complete history of all permit applications made.
Reduce costs through Accountability:
Road reinstatement costs can add up and are a huge burden on the bottom line for municipalities when the responsible party cannot be found. Should they not be aware of who conducted the works the resulting in the damage the subsequent repair costs must be worn from the Council budget.
When all works are recorded through automatically notified permitting application processes you can track all excavation works within the road reserve. In the instance of damage, the relevant contractor can be identified and held accountable for the reinstatement fees and any additional repair costs.
Reduce the turn around times to review and approve Permit requests:
What if you could reduce the turn around time from an average of 10 business days to only 48 hours for responding to permit applications? A simple workflow process provides both a contractor and the municipality a reduction in the time taken to fully understand an application and be able to make a decision.
If you are ready to take control of your Road Management processes, contact the team at PelicanCorp for more information on how our PermitAccess solution can start reducing your costs today.