in-20250716-IR-105250150FRA: DIGEST BROADBAND CORRIDOR PROGRAM

Final Rule LSA Document #25-150 DIGEST Sec. 1. This rule applies only to the installation of fiber optic communications infrastructure used for providing broadband services and located within the highway rights-of-way of limited access highways. Sec. 2. The following definitions apply throughout this article: Sec. 3. (a) A conduit bank may be installed in the right-of-way while the department is performing certain types of work, such as the following: (b) The installation of a conduit bank in the right-of-way must satisfy the following: (c) Conduit may not be installed in the department's right-of-way at locations that may have a high potential to conflict with proposed construction, highway maintenance, roadway operations, highway safety, or future highway improvements, including the following: Sec. 4. (a) An operator may install conduit if, during the department's construction project, there is space available in the trench to install additional conduit. Conduit installed by the operator must be purple or terracotta in color. (b) If no space is available in the trench for additional conduit, the operator shall install its own conduit at least two (2) feet from the right-of-way fence and not within the department's roadway. (c) If an operator has conduit in the trench that preexisted the department's conduit, and the operator desires to upgrade its conduit, the operator may do so during the department's construction project. (d) An operator may install fiber optic cable in the department's designated conduit if there is space available within the conduit after the department's construction project is finished. The determination will be made solely by the department based on projected future needs for the space, engineering studies, and environmental studies. Sec. 5. (a) A separate application for a permit shall be made for each type of broadband through the department's EPS. The application must be verified and include at least the following information: (b) An incomplete application will not be considered by the department, but minor deficiencies may be remedied promptly after the department requires the applicant to provide additional information or documentation. Additional information or documentation must be provided to the department within fifteen (15) days after notice of the deficiency. Otherwise, the documents included with an incomplete application are returned to the applicant without being processed, along with a written explanation of the reason for its return. If an application is withdrawn or returned for any reason, and the applicant chooses to resubmit the application, the resubmitted application is processed as a new application beginning on the date it is received by the department with a new application number. (c) The department shall review each application based on its qualifications beginning on the date the application is received by the department. If the permit is approved by the department, written notice of this fact shall be sent to the applicant via EPS. A denial of a permit by the department must be in writing, accompanied by an explanation of why the permit was denied, and sent through EPS. (d) Thirty (30) days after providing notice in writing to the permittee, the department shall have authority to revoke any permit issued under this rule where the application for the permit contains false or misleading information, or the permittee has violated any provision of this rule. Sec. 6. A broadband access agreement must include provisions that comply with the requirements outlined in 23 CFR 710.405 and be: Sec. 7. (a) A bond must be obtained by the operator before a permit is issued and the following requirements must be met: (b) For a blanket bond, the lowest required amount is five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) or an amount that is sufficient to cover the sum of the cost of the open permits, whichever is greater. Bond recipients are responsible for increasing the blanket bond value to cover the sum of the cost of the open permits. If the cost exceeds the blanket bond amount at any time, no new permits will be issued until the surety amount is increased or some of the permits are closed. Sec. 8. (a) Conduit must have a depth of cover of at least four (4) feet, including under ditches. The lines must be at least two (2) feet below any buried drainage structure or improvement. Conduit must be stubbed out at least two (2) inches into each handhole. (b) Conduit must be installed under the approved permit plans and specifications. (c) Conduit must be installed underground by trenching or directional drilling. (d) Warning tape must be furnished and installed in trenches containing conduit, as shown on the approved permit plans. (e) Conduit must be placed at least two (2) feet from the department's right-of-way fence line, unless otherwise approved by the department, and within the right-of-way. Sec. 9. (a) In a common open trench, the ITS conduit is colored orange, blue, and green and placed first at the bottom of the trench. The limited access highway conduit is colored red, black, white, and grey and placed above the ITS conduit. If there is space available in the trench, an operator may place conduit in the trench, and the conduit is colored terracotta or purple. (b) Conduit may be trenched or plowed at the operator's discretion and as allowed by the site conditions. (c) Flexible roadside delineators disturbed during trenching operations must be restored or replaced at no additional cost to the department. (d) The conduit type, number, and size must be shown on the permit plans. (e) Hand trenching is required in areas where sensitive existing crossing utilities or broadband have been identified and will likely require positive identification of the existing utility or broadband before trenching above or below the existing utility line, or where surface features, such as riprap, inhibits trenching. The method of positive identification of the existing utility line is at the discretion of the operator and accomplished at no additional cost to the department. Any material that is removed to accomplish hand trenching shall be restored or replaced in kind by the operator at no additional cost to the department. (f) Conduit may be installed by directional drilling at locations specified as hand trenched or offset trench on the permit plans at no additional cost to the department. (g) Offset trench is required in areas where the trench is located behind obstructions. This type of trenching uses a long reach hydraulic driven trenching machine to reach over and beyond the obstruction to finish the trench. (h) Trenches, bedding, and backfill must comply with this subsection as follows: *This document is incorporated by reference. Copies of the 2024 Standard Specifications can be found at https://www.in.gov/dot/div/contracts/standards/book/sep23/sep.htm or may be obtained at the Indiana Department of Transportation, 100 North Senate Avenue, Room N730, Indianapolis, IN 46204. Sec. 10. (a) Utility locations, including the depth of each utility, determined by the Indiana Underground Plant Protection Service, to be near the path of the proposed drill, must be identified before any drilling. The utilities and underground fiber must be exposed before any drilling. (b) The diameter of a drilled hole must conform to the outside diameter of the conduit or conduits as closely as practical. The operator shall pressure grout to fill any voids that develop during the installation operation. (c) The operator is responsible for removing and replacing any conduit damaged in the directional drilling operations at no additional cost to the department. (d) The use of water and other fluids in connection with the drilling operation is allowed only as needed to lubricate cuttings. Jetting is not allowed, and the use of water alone as a drilling fluid may not be used. The operator shall use a drilling fluid or slurry consisting of at least ten percent (10%) high grade processed bentonite to consolidate excavated material, seal the walls of the hole, and furnish lubrication for the later removal of material and immediate installation of the conduit. (e) The operator shall use a means of collecting and containing drilling fluid or slurry that returns to the surface, such as a slurry pit. The following procedures are used: (f) A digital walkover locating system must be used to track the drill head during the bore. The locating system must at least be capable of determining the pitch, roll, heading, depth, and horizontal position of the drill head at any point along the bore. During each drilling operation, the drill head must be located every ten (10) feet along the bore and before crossing an underground utility or a structure. After the drilling operation and conduit installation is complete, the operator shall furnish an as-built profile drawing and plan drawing for the drilled conduit, showing the horizontal and vertical locations of the installed conduit. (g) The following actions on bridges or bridge structures is not allowed: Sec. 11. HDPE conduit splices must be done mechanically or be fusion spliced. Sec. 12. (a) Construction and maintenance operations must be planned to reduce closing intersecting streets, road approaches, traffic lanes, or other access points. Construction operations, which interfere with traffic, are not permitted during periods of peak traffic flow. Under the INDOT Design Manual, Chapter 503*, effective January 1, 2013, a traffic control plan must be prepared and submitted with the permit application. (b) The operator shall maintain a safe work site at all times, secured against any safety hazard to the public at all times, until the work is completed. All pipe, conduit, wire, poles, crossarms, or other materials located within the right-of-way before installation must be placed outside any ditches and at least thirty (30) feet beyond the edge of the traveled way or behind existing guard rails. The department may require construction or maintenance operations on the department's right-of-way to be discontinued during periods of inclement weather or when soil conditions cause the work to result in extensive damage to the right-of-way or creates an unsafe traveling condition. (c) The operator shall make every effort to minimize the areas disturbed by the work conducted. The operator shall promptly restore those areas disturbed to their original or better condition before the work conducted. Restoration of disturbed areas must comply with the requirements of the approved work plan and the terms and conditions of the permit. (d) The operator shall maintain existing drainage patterns during the installation, maintenance, or removal of their facilities. Trenches and bore pits for underground facility installations must be backfilled. Outlets or under drains may be installed as needed to avoid entrapped water. (e) The operator shall contact the Indiana Underground Plant Protection Service two (2) days before any excavation or survey so that underground utilities may be located and marked. (f) Facilities must be maintained in good repair both structurally and aesthetically. (g) A permit is required for the trimming, cutting, spraying, or removal of trees, shrubs, or other vegetation located within the right-of-way, and these activities may not occur without the specific written permission of the department. Tree removal includes removing the stump and backfilling the hole. Debris, refuse, and waste must be removed from the right-of-way as follows: (h) The applicant shall obtain the required environmental permits to support installing or relocating its facilities. The applicant shall carry out erosion control, sediment control, and storm water management measures under the Indiana Storm Water Management Field Guide*, effective January 1, 2018, and the Indiana Design Manual Chapter 205*, effective January 1, 2013. These measures shall be carried out both during and after work operations until replacement vegetation is established or the area is disturbed by another party. (i) If an emergency that requires access to the site is not covered under an issued permit, notice shall be given telephonically to the department at 1 (855) 463-6848 within one (1) hour after accessing the site. If a live departmental employee is not available, a telephonic or voicemail message will be enough notice. Within five (5) business days after the emergency, the operator shall submit a permit application for the work performed and for any work yet to be completed within the site. The operator shall ensure proper maintenance of traffic controls is followed. (j) Before entering the site, the operator shall apply for a broadband access permit each time it enters the site, including for routine maintenance, construction, and repair activities. *These documents are incorporated by reference. Copies of the Design Manual can be found at https://www.in.gov/indot/design-manual/. Copies of the Design Manual and the INDOT Storm Water Management Field Guide may be obtained at the Indiana Department of Transportation, 100 North Senate Avenue, Room N730, Indianapolis, IN 46204. Sec. 13. (a) If space exists in the limited access highway conduit and the operator has not previously installed its own conduit, the operator shall install fiber optic cable in the limited access highway conduit. An operator may populate not more than two (2) limited access highway conduits at each location. If more than two (2) limited access highway conduits are needed, the operator must petition the department for an exception based on availability and feasibility. The limited access highway conduit must be populated in its entirety by the operator or its subsidiary within ninety (90) days after the date of the full execution of the broadband access agreement. (b) Fiber optic cable may not be installed in a ditch line. (c) Fiber optic cable must be located as to not interfere with the department's traffic signals and related equipment. The crossing must be at least ten (10) feet away from the loop detectors on the backside of the loops. (d) Fiber optic cable must be labeled on the plan sheets as follows: (e) Identification signs, not larger than two hundred (200) square inches, identifying the operator's name, telephone number, and the type of buried improvement must be placed within twelve (12) inches from the right-of-way fence, at the line of sight, along the entire occupancy route. Double signs must be used at all manhole or handhole locations, with one (1) sign at each end. Sec. 14. (a) Handholes must be installed under the approved permit plans and specifications. Handhole covers must be bolted into place with stainless steel bolts and washers. The cover frame must be installed in the handhole with a butyl rubber sealant in tape or coil form for a proper seal between the handhole and frame to prevent it from moving out of place. The sealant must comply with ASTM C990 for butyl rubber sealants. (b) The cover for a handhole must be marked with the logo "INDOT F/O Conduit Bank" imprinted horizontally across the cover. (c) Handholes must be located outside ditch lines, sidewalks, trails, roadways, and shoulders. (d) Handholes must be strong enough to withstand external design pressures, including superimposed loads of soil, roadway, traffic, and construction equipment. If the handhole is installed in a way that allows a vehicle or piece of maintenance equipment to drive over the lid, it must be traffic rated. (e) A readily identifiable and suitable marker must be placed immediately above any underground communication lines where it crosses the right-of-way line. (f) Handholes must be located at least three (3) feet off the edge of the right-of-way unless the handhole is to be installed in the utility strip along a curb and gutter roadway. (g) Handholes may be buried in the department's right-of-way provided a programmable electronic marker system is included with the company name, date of installation, elevation, and depth of the handhold is included. Sec. 15. (a) Vault materials must comply with INDOT Standard Specifications 807.03*, effective September 1, 2024. (b) Vaults must be installed under the approved permit plans and specifications. Vault covers are required to be bolted into place to prevent accidental removal by mowing crews or other unintentional means. The cover frame must be installed in the vault with a butyl rubber sealant in tape or coil form for a proper seal and to prevent the frame from moving out of place. The sealant must comply with ASTM C990 for butyl rubber sealants. (c) Vault rings and covers must be as shown on the plans and under the INDOT Standard Specifications 807.09*, effective September 1, 2024, except the message displayed on the lid must read "INDOT F/O Conduit Bank". Fabrication of these vault covers may not begin until working drawings have been approved by a department engineer. (d) Vaults must be installed at the planned and potential future fiber optic cable splicing locations and additional locations as shown on the plans. (e) Material surrounding the buried conduit splices and vaults must be tamped and added in a way that ensures there are no voids or depressions formed. Conduit entrance and exit points in the new vaults must be sealed watertight. (f) Vaults must be precast. The top of the vault must be flat and level with the surrounding ground. (g) After installation is complete, the disturbed portions of the construction area must be cleaned, and any excess excavation or other materials properly disposed of immediately. *These documents are incorporated by reference. Copies of the 2024 Standard Specifications can be found at https://www.in.gov/dot/div/contracts/standards/book/sep23/sep.htm or may be obtained at the Indiana Department of Transportation, 100 North Senate Avenue, Room N730, Indianapolis, IN 46204. Sec. 16. (a) Tracer wire must be installed to comply with the permit plans and specifications to assist with conduit locates. (b) Tracer wire must be a single conductor, high strength copper clad steel, orange color jacket, HMWPE, insulation, #12 American wire gauge wire. The HMWPE jacket must be at least thirty (30) millimeters in thickness. The wire must have a minimum break load of four hundred twenty-five (425) pounds and be made of fully annealed, high carbon 1055 grade steel. Tracer wires must be rated for use at thirty (30) volts. Wire connectors shall be waterproof. (c) New continuous tracer wire shall be placed into each run of conduit to a handhole and shall be provided in the same conduit with all fiber optic cables. At least three (3) feet of tracer wire must be securely tied off inside a terminating handhole. (d) The tracer wire must be securely fastened inside the handhole or vault. A waterproof wire nut or direct burial connector must be connected to each end of the tracer wire to prevent corrosion. At vaults with splice enclosures, the tracer wire shall be connected to the enclosure and connected to the wire lead for the fiber optic locator post. (e) Tracer wire is not required to be installed in above-ground conduits and empty conduits that are part of a duct bank that contains a nondielectric, conductive cable. When multiple cables are to be installed in a conduit, the cables must be pulled simultaneously to prevent friction damage to the cable insulation. Spare and empty conduits may not be used to install the tracer wire. Sec. 17. (a) Cable duct markers must be installed to comply with the permit plans and specifications. (b) Concrete cable duct markers must be marked "INDOT F/O Conduit Bank" with field-cut arrows identifying the direction of the underground conduits. (c) Flexible cable duct markers must be manufactured of an integrally colored orange, single piece, two (2) sided, UV resistant, fiberglass reinforced composite, to allow installation into compacted soil. Markers must be able to return to vertical and remain functional after being subjected to a head-on vehicle impact. Markers must be at least three and seventy-five hundredths (3.75) inches wide by sixty-six (66) inches long, with raised and reinforced ribs along each side to protect the decal. (d) Decals must be provided on both sides of the markers. Decals must consist of a standard fiber optic warning message, visible from a distance, such as "Warning Fiber Optic Cable and Conduit". The decal must also include the message "Call INDOT Before Digging 855-463-6848". (e) All markers and decals must be from a single manufacturer. (f) Markers must be installed under the manufacturer's recommendations, or to a depth suitable to resist the impact of wind or an errant vehicle without pulling free. Locations of marker installations must be as shown on the plans or determined by the department. Sec. 18. (a) Fiber optic locator post must be installed to comply with the permit plans and specifications. (b) The fiber optic locator post must be made of a nonconductive, high-density polymer, and integrally white in color with an orange cap with black graphic and lettering on two sides. The colors must be stabilized against ultraviolet light so they will not fade under continuous exposure to direct sunlight. The marker must retain dimensional stability in temperatures ranging between negative forty (40) degrees Fahrenheit and one hundred seventy-five (175) degrees Fahrenheit. Each post must be able to withstand a single vehicle impact at forty-five (45) miles per hour and return to within ten (10) degrees of vertical within sixty (60) seconds. (c) A locator post must be installed at each fiber optic splice location. At splice points, the posts must be connected to the fiber splice cases and the armored cable with a #12 tracer wire in innerduct as shown on the plans. (d) Locator posts must be installed at the same time, or immediately after the installation of the underground conduits and vaults for identification of underground infrastructure. Sec. 19. (a) As-built plans must show the exact location and elevation, and actual depth from the recorded elevation, commonly known as X, Y, Z coordinates, on both the plans and profile. (b) As-built plans must be submitted both in hard copies and an electronic format compatible with the department's geographic information systems standards found in IC 4-23-7.3. As-built plans must be submitted within ninety (90) calendar days after construction is completed. (c) The operator shall provide global positioning system coordinates accurate within: (d) Failure to provide as-built plans under this section may result in no additional permits being issued until the as-built plans are provided to the department. Sec. 20. (a) This section applies if the operator's conduit preexisted the department's transportation project and the operator's conduit or broadband facilities conflicts with the project and needs to be relocated. (b) An existing broadband facility that conflicts with a proposed highway improvement project must be relocated at the operator's expense. If the operator fails to relocate its broadband facility, any damage to the broadband facility as part of the highway improvement project is the sole responsibility of the operator. The department shall not be held liable for damage to a broadband facility that conflicts with a highway improvement project where the operator of the broadband facility was required to move the broadband facility and failed to relocate. (c) Interruptions in service resulting from the department's transportation project are the sole responsibility of the operator. (d) Except in an emergency, the department must give an operator not less than eighteen (18) months before a written notice to relocate. (e) An existing broadband facility may remain in place if it does not conflict with the highway improvement project and complies with the following: Sec. 21. This section applies to the installation of conduit and fiber optic cable in the department's limited access highways. Under 23 CFR 710.403(e)*, effective August 23, 2016, fair market value must be charged for use of the right-of-way. *These documents are incorporated by reference and refer to the regulations effective August 23, 2016. Copies may be obtained from the Government Publishing Office, www.govinfo.gov, or are available for review at the Indiana Department of Transportation, Office of Legal Counsel, Indiana Government Center North, 100 North Senate Avenue, Seventh Floor, Indianapolis, IN 46204. Sec. 22. The department may inspect all broadband installations in the department's right-of-way. If any violations or deficiencies are observed, the department shall provide notice of those violations or deficiencies to the operator. The operator shall establish a plan of corrective action with the department not more than fourteen (14) calendar days after the date of notice of the violation or deficiency. The cost of additional inspections may be charged to the operator. Failure to correct the violation or deficiency as directed may result in revocation of the permit and impact pending permit applications until the violation or deficiency is resolved. Sec. 23. No permit may be issued for the installation of broadband as follows: Sec. 24. (a) A broadband access permit may be revoked for the following: (b) If revocation of the broadband access permit is appropriate, the department shall issue a written notice of revocation, accompanied by an explanation of the rationale for the revocation. (c) Broadband or facilities that were installed, repaired, or maintained, or exist in violation of any provision of federal law or state law, including this rule, are illegal. The broadband access permit for illegal broadband or facilities may be revoked at any time by the department under this rule and state law. (d) If the broadband access permit for broadband or facilities is revoked by the department, the broadband or facilities will be removed by the permittee or the department under this rule and state law without payment of compensation to the operator or any other party. Sec. 25. An operator who is sent notice by the department that the broadband access permit is being revoked may appeal that determination under IC 4-21.5. Sec. 26. The terms of this rule are declared to be separable. If a word, phrase, sentence, or section of this rule is declared unconstitutional or otherwise invalid, the remainder of this rule is not affected by that declaration, but remains in full force and effect.