EXHIBIT A
SECTION 9.10: MICRO-TRENCHING SPECIFICATIONS AND STANDARDS
9.10.1. PURPOSE & BACKGROUND
The City of Fairfield seeks to promote the use of micro-trenching for installation of fiber- optic cable pursuant to Fairfield Municipal Code Title 17 and the standards herein to minimize pavement cuts to City streets. These standards are established to describe the means and methods by which a Company will be permitted to install ducts for fib er-optic cables within the City right-of-way using micro-trenching. This policy incorporates best practices from jurisdictions across the United States to ensure safety, efficiency, and minimal disruption.
9.10.2. DEFINITION
For purposes of this Policy, the following definitions apply:
• City Engineer : The City of Fairfield, Public Works City Engineer , or his/her designer.
• Duct: An enclosed pathway or pipe used for the installation of fiber optic cable, whether installed separately or within a larger conduit. • Excess Capacity: Additional unused ducts available for fiberoptic cable installation in existing duct infrastructure or conduit or installed with Company’s new micro- trenching duct(s) that are not intended to be used by the Company or for the Company's business. Each excess capacity duct shall be no smaller than the largest duct that is reserved for use by the Company.
• Shadow Duct : One excess capacity duct reserved solely for use by the City of Fairfield for the City’s direct benefit.
• Standard Drawings: The City of Fairfield, CA Micro-trenching Standard Drawings • Micro-trench: A narrow excavation, typically 2-4 inches wide and 22 inches deep, for installing conduits.
9.10.3. MICRO-TRENCHING GUIDELINES
a) A Company may perform micro-trenching by entering into Maintenance Agreement with the City of Fairfield . The C ompany shall m ake every commercially reasonable attempt to place fiber in existing duct(s) or traditional conduit(s), before proposing new micro-trenching. b) Fiber-optic cables shall be installed in traditional conduits when placed underground along arterial, collector roads and residential, or as determined by the City Engineer at their sole discretion. Micro-trenching is limited to asphalt local streets to minimize utility conflicts or is approved by the City Engineer.
c) The Company shall make one Shadow Duct of excess capacity available for the City of Fairfield for installation of fiber-optic cable for use by the City for the City's direct benefit. T he cost of the conduit less the installation cost will be reimbursed by the city. The C ompany shall install independent access points (vault) for City’s access to the Shadow Duct, every one thousand five hundred ( 1500) feet , or as otherwise agreed upon by Company and City. Outside the 1 500 feet, any additional vault materials for City use will be provided by the city at no cost to the Company. The Shadow Duct shall be clearly identified within each vault and on the vault lid. All conduits shall be sealed to avoid water intrusion. Vault installation shall comply with these standards and the City specifications.
Shadow conduit shall have a mule tape installed. Any modifications must be approved by the City Engineer.
d) All vaults shall be located behind curb or sidewalk. No street installation. e) The Company may install additional ducts of excess capacity to make available to any telecommunications Licensee for installation of fiber-optic cable to serve the telecommunications Licensee's business or customers . f) No more than two (2) micro-trenches will be permitted longitudinally along any street (regardless of micro -trench ownership). Up to two (2) vertically staked conduits can be placed in a micro -trench. No more than two utility companies may be in the street with each being on opposite side of the road. g) The Company shall apply for an encroachment permit and comply with all applicable City permit requirements . Applicant shall submit plans showing location of new conduits, vaults, details and associated install work with micro - trenching.
h) Micro-trenching will not be permitted on streets that are under a moratorium unless approved by the City Engineer.
i) The Company shall provide a funded draw-down account for inspection and overtime. Draw down accounts shall be determined by the project schedule.
Funds to be placed before issuing the Encroachment Permit. The account is to be replenished when balance hits 20%.
j) No use of above ground pedestals to be used, all connections and splicing to be done in ground vaults unless approved by the city. Location of vaults to be shown on plans and approved by the City Engineer.
k) Micro-trenches shall not be installed in parallel alignment above any publicly owned utility
l) Micro-trenching shall not be used with 350 feet signalized intersections to avoid damaging to advance and present signal loops. Other methods such as boring may be
employed with approval of the City Engineer.
m) The Company should provide pre-construction photos and video of areas of work to receive micro-trenching.
n) The Company shall provide a project schedule with their encroachment permit application. During construction the Company shall provide a three-week schedule update at the end of each week and a daily schedule 24 hours in advance for the City Engineer.
o) The applicant shall employ a Geotechnical firm for testing materials, compaction, concrete, asphalt, aggregate base and compliance with city specifications. p) Use of trench plates to be approved the City Engineer. q) Temporary asphalt patch to be approved by the City Engineer. r) The Company shall provide a map in CAD or GIS file format showing the street location of the duct(s) including the side of the street the ducts are on, the beginning and ending points of the ducts, the number of ducts, and the number of ducts of excess capacity. In addition, map shall show locations of all vaults and any other features installed per the project. The map is for internal, City of Fairfield uses only, but may be made public, by itself or in aggregation with other maps, pursuant to State Public Records Law.
9.10.4. CONSTRUCTION
a) A copy of all required construction permits must be kept on the job site during construction.
b) The Company shall identify all existing utilities, including service connections in the field. The Company shall contact Underground Service Alert (U.S.A.) at least 48 hours in advance prior to work. The Company shall further supplement the findings of U.S.A. to determine the exact locations by potholing all crossing utilities and parallel utilities within 24 -inches of the proposed alignment to a depth of 6 - inches below the bottom of the micro -trench, to determine the existing utility alignment and elevations.
c)
The C ompany shall solely be responsible for the work performed. The City Engineer will contact the Company for required adjustments or corrections regardless of whether the Company performed the work itself or subcontracted and assigned the work. The Company shall provide a 24 -hour contact and Company personal responsible for the project. d) Micro-trenching shall be located (5) five feet from face of curb. For Arterial and collectors’ streets, the Company shall grind from the gutter lip to the outer edge of the micro-trench and replacement pavement thickness as specified in
these specifications. Traffic and bike striping plans shall be submitted and approved by the city. All striping to be replaced shall comply to the C ity Standard Specifications
e) Inspections for all work shall be done in accordance with Section 6 herein. f) Any micro-trenches that damage striping shall restore the striping in kind per City Standards
g) Any damage resulting from the installation of micro-trenches or created by restoration shall be the responsibility of the Company to repair. If existing utilities are damaged, the Company shall immediately notify the City Engineer and utility owners to perform the repairs promptly according to their requirements per associated city specifications
h) The C ompany shall ensure that all micro-trench repair will be done by conventional repair methods, or, if done by alternate methods and repaired by using a method as shown in the attached Standard Drawings, then the Company must warrant the repair for no less than three (3) years i) The conduit shall be installed at depth of cover 18" below the existing AC pavement surface with the maximum depth of 22”.
j) Micro-trenching shall only be considered for use in asphalt paved public streets and is not permitted in concrete or specialty paved areas. These include, but are not limited to concrete roadways, stamped/decorative paved areas, alleyways, sidewalks, gutters, curbs, valley gutters, driveways, ADA ramps, bus pads, traffic calming features, roundabouts, islands, or similar
k) Minimum vertical separation of 12” shall be maintained between crossings of new conduits and existing utilities. Minium horizontal separations of (3) feet between new conduit and existing water and power utilities parallel and (5) feet between new conduit and existing sanitary sewer and storm drain utilities that run parallel shall be maintained. Such minimum separation shall be maintained unless otherwise pre - approved in writing by the city.
l) Micro-trench is not permitted to fall within the wheel path. m) Conduit shall be anchored or secured in the trench to maintain the required depth to top of conduits and ensure conduits do not rise during backfilling every 10 feet
If the micro-trench requires repair before the remainder of the roadway qualifies for resurfacing, then the Company will be responsible for making subsequent repairs per the attached drawings. Should Company fail to maintain, repair, or reconstruct any such surface within 10 days after receiving written notice from the City Engineer, the City Engineer may have such surface repaired or reconstructed and will charge the cost of repair,
including any costs associated with the use of any like materials used in restoration, to Company.
n) The Company must maintain the condition of the surface over the repair area in as good or better conditions as the remainder of the street, alley, sidewalk, or right- of-way, and must repair or reconstruct the surface as often as may be necessary by conventional patch repair methods or approved alternative repair methodology as shown in the attached Standard Drawings.
Should the condition of the restoration become such that additional pavement is in jeopardy of failure, then Company may be held responsible for an area larger than the original repair.
o) Restoration shall conform to the details provided or City standards. Should conflict arise, the most restrictive shall apply.
p) Minimum depth of grind and repave shall be 4” on collectors and 5” on arterial roadways. Where existing asphalt thickness is less than 4", grind and repave depth shall be the full depth of the existing asphalt.
q) All micro-trenches must be completely backfilled with a cement sand slurry 3000 psi to finished grade by the end of the workday - no trenches will be permitted to remain open. This backfill is interim condition until backfill material has been cured, and asphalt restoration commence.
r) Not more than 30 calendar days from placement of CLSM , asphalt restoration grind and repaving shall be complete.
s) Where the road section is unknown, it is the micro-trench owner's responsibility to core to determine the road section and provide the city final depth of grind. t) Where the edge of the restoration grind is within 12' of the wheel path, the grind area shall be extended beyond the wheel path to the satisfaction of the City u) Where the edge of restoration grind is within 24" of another restoration area, the limits shall be extended to that area.
v) All potholes for utility location, exploration, or otherwise must be cored, jackhammering will not be permitted.
w) Areas where coring is performed shall be treated as part of the micro-trench and the restoration grind in those areas shall extend a minimum of 12' beyond the edge of the pothole/core.
x) Where micro-trenching is within a bike lane, the asphalt restoration grind and repaving shall extend the full width of the bike lane and any affected pavement markings shall be replaced in kind. Where micro-trenching crosses a bike lane, it shall cross perpendicular and shall follow the standard asphalt restoration grind and repaving requirements
y) Trench spoils shall be removed as excavated by use of a vacuum truck or other approved methods by the City.
z) Good housekeeping always. At the end of the day sidewalks/driveways shall be swept and the work area cleaned with a street sweeper. Construction equipment and employee parking shall be in the contractor’s yard. No storage of equipment or materials is allowed outside the construction hours
aa) The contractor/owner shall provide a traffic control plan and public notifications as deemed necessary in advance of work and during the project for approval. The use of a CMS board(s) should be applied seven days in advance of work (locations to be determined). A 24-hour emergency contact information should be provided to the city.
bb) The c onstruction hours are 7am to 5:00pm M -F or 9:00am-2:00pm in scho ol district location unless approved otherwise by the city 24 hours in advance. No weekend or holiday work is allowed.
cc) The contractor shall remove all painted U.S.A and project markings associated with the project by power washing or an approved alternative.
9.10.5. MICRO- TRENCH SPECIFICATIONS
a) Micro-trenching must follow these specifications , City Standards, current building and electrical codes and the details attached. Any deviation from these engineering specifications and details will be considered on a case-by- case basis by the City Engineer and must be approved in writing prior to commencing construction.
b) All materials and installation shall comply with these standards, City Standards Specifications and building and electrical codes.
c) The City shadow conduit and vaults shall comply with City’s Standards. City vault shall be independent of the Company vault.
d) The micro-trenching Contractor must acquire an Encroachment Permit e) If requested in writing, City of Fairfield will notify all micro -trench-installed Utility Owners of the upcoming years paving and infrastructure maintenance plans at least thirty (30) days prior to commencing work to allow the Utility Owner ample time to relocate or protect its utility prior to construction. f) All micro-trench installed ducts must be able to be located per current location standards. No more than two utility companies may be in the street with each being on opposite side of the road.
g) At no cost to City of Fairfield, the Company must provide permanent on -going maintenance to the fiber routes in the project areas . Maintenance must
include providing materials and labor to properly maintain, in good condition, pavement, sidewalks, curbs, curbs and gutters, shoulders, and softscape areas (dirt and landscaping), vaults and covers affected by Company’s micro- trenching and facilities, per City Standards.
h) At no cost to City of Fairfield, the Company must replace any fiber/duct that is damaged or destroyed due to any infrastructure maintenance or installation activities performed by any/all City departments. This also includes those activities necessary to maintain stormwater infrastructure, water distribution, sanitary sewer, sidewa lk, roadway, paving, signal installation, or other activities that may commence at the sole discretion of City.
i) At no cost to City of Fairfield, the Company must replace all existing fiber/duct damaged or destroyed in the shoulder of the roadway or ditch lines within the city right-of-way.
j) The City of Fairfield will not be responsible for any damage to, or resulting from, the installation of duct construction activities by Company, its contractors, and/or others within project areas.
k) The Company agrees to conform to the City of Fairfield, CA standard specifications and these specifications. Any changes will be at the sole discretion of the City. The City Standard Specifications supersede all other specifications.
l) If at any time the City of Fairfield, CA determines that a micro-trench is found to be failing or in disrepair, Company will be contacted and will be required to make subsequent repairs.
m) Prior to placement of any backfill, the Department must be notified, and an inspection of the trench will be conducted by a representative of the Department. At the completion of the backfill, the Department must be notified, and an inspection of the location will be conducted to ensure compliance with this and all standard details, specifications, and procedures.
n) Company’s Contractor must notify City of Fairfield, CA inspection personnel to request inspectors’ overtime 5 days in advance of work or as agreed by the inspector.
m) Company’s Contractor must notify City of Fairfield, CA inspection personnel at
(707) 428-7558 no less than one (1) day prior to the request for inspection. n) Existing pavement, bases, curbs and gutters, and sidewalks must be cut and brought to a neat line by use of a saw, or other approved equipment. All expansion joints removed must be replaced with like materials or approved
mastic.
o) The Company is responsible for submitting the standard encroachment permit application to the City of Fairfield’s online portal. p) The Company will be liable and responsible for all micro-trenching excavations in the roadway that are not filled, which may be a hazard to the pedestrian, bicycle, and non-vehicular community.
q) Micro-trenched are required to be installed in the following locations:
i) If available, the micro -trench must be installed at the back of curb in a native area. Where no sidewalk exists, the micro-trench must be at the edge of the softscape abutting the curb. See AT DWG No. 102-D1. ii) In rural preservation areas, where no curb or gutter exists, the micro- trench must be within 6 - 22 inches of the edge of pavement. See AT DWG No. 104-D3.
iii) Any micro-trenching proposed for alternate locations, because none of the above options are available, will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and must be approved in writing at the sole discretion of the City Engineer.
r) All micro-trenching must be linear in nature and have a shape consistent with the roadway’s horizontal alignment. It is incumbent on each Utility Owner to work with future Utility Owners that wish to install in the same manner.
Micro-trench alignments shall consist of runs parallel to the centerline of the street, with crossing done perpendicular to the street centerline to the extent possible to avoid wheel paths.
s) All micro -trenching must meet minimum separations from wet utilities per Uniform Design and Construction Standards for Potable Water Systems (UDACS) 2010 and Design and Construction Standards for Wastewater Collection Systems City of Fairfield, CA 2019 (DCSWCS 2019), and the current City of Fairfield Title 24, CA UDACS Addendum and DCSWCS Addendum. t) Lateral street crossings shall be at a 90 -degree angle to the street centerline and are limited to one per block or a minimum spacing of every 500 feet.
Company shall place crossings at the edge of valley gutters where available in the vicinity of any proposed crossing. All street crossings shall have a tee grind over the trench. Grind width shall be 24 inches , either alongside the trench or centered over the trench . The depth of grind shall be as specified in these specifications.
u) The Company shall be responsible for determining any utility conflicts prior to construction, according to local standards. Use mobile ground penetrating radar capable of locating metallic and non-metallic utilities to 24 inches depth.
v) Micro-trench width shall be a minimum of 2 inches and a maximum of 4 inches. Trenches wider than 2.5 inches.
Backfill: All micro-trenches shall be completely backfilled with cement sand slurry (3000-psi minimum) or approved CLSM to finish grade by the end of the workday.
As soon as backfill is cured (not exceeding 30 days), all roadway restoration must be completed.
9.10.6. INSPECTIONS
The City Engineer shall be notified of a minimum of one working day prior to potholing within the city right of way. The City Engineer shall be kept informed with a three-week lookahead project schedule and a daily work schedule in writing.
The Company shall notify City Engineer a minimum of 48 hours prior to any work occurring near or around buried traffic signal loops. Signal loops cut or damaged shall be replaced by the contractor by city specifications at no cost the city. The contractor shall locate all traffic signal circuits and interconnect conduits prior to any trenching or being bored. All traffic signals and interconnect conduits shall be maintained and protected during all contractors’ work. Micro trenching shall maintain (12”) one -foot separation between new conduit and traffic signal and interconnect.
The Company must notify City of Fairfield inspection personnel at (707) 428-7558 as noted above.
All street crossings shall comply with depth and backfilling requirements per this specification. In addition, a tee grin d will be required 24” alongside or centered of the micro-trench at the depth per the requirement of these specifications .
9.10.7. REMOVAL OF DUCTS
If the Company no longer intends to maintain the duct in working order and good repair, the Company must notify the City Engineer and either transfer the duct to another Company, or the City of Fairfield, CA.
9.10. 8. MEASUREMENT AND PAYMENT
Micro-Trenching shall be measured by the lineal foot for conduits (from center of vaults/pull box to vaults/pull box, parallel to grade). Payment shall include all labor, materials, equipment, testing, and incidentals necessary to complete the installation as shown on plans and specified herein.
All Micro-Trenching work materials, equipment, and appurtenance furnished under these specifications shall be subject to the warranty and guarantees per the City of Fairfield Standard Specifications. Where a specific warranty period is not otherwise stated, the minimum warranty period shall be (1) year from City acceptance, and all applicable manufacturer warranties shall be assigned to the City.