Georgetown, Del., Aug. 19, 2008: Better streets are just down the road for Sussex County’s motorists.

County Council, at its Tuesday, Aug. 19, 2008, meeting, approved new standards for private roads that will require a thicker, stronger surface in subdivisions and commercial complexes. The standards will raise the quality of private roads – those not maintained by the State of Delaware – to a level more in line with State standards.

“With these new standards, the lifespan of private roads in the county will be increased while reducing the cost burden to homeowners’ associations, which sometimes have to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to repair their streets,” County Engineer Michael Izzo said.

Mr. Izzo earlier this year began drafting updated standards for private roads in response to constituent concerns made to State legislators about the quality of the private roads and their durability to traffic and the elements.

County regulations previously required a 2-inch minimum for all private roads, a standard set in 1980. The new standards will raise that thickness to a 3-inch minimum, depending on the number of lots within a development. That standard can increase to a minimum of 5.5 inches thickness for larger projects. The new standards will take effect Jan. 1, 2009.

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