Darlington Borough Council is a Highway Authority and as such maintains all adopted roads and footpaths within its area - (these are A, B, C, & unclassified roads, together with back lanes). Exceptions are the A1(M) and A66 which are the responsibility of the Highways Agency
When housing estates have been completed, generally, the developer hands over the roads and footpaths to the Council to maintain at public expense. This is known as adoption.
The Council operates a comprehensive system of highway safety inspections as recommended by the national code of practice. Shopping areas are inspected every month & residential areas every three months. As well as minor repairs following routine highway inspections & reports received from members of the public the Council carries out a programme of schemeworks to improve the highway network.
The Council also carries out surveys to assess the overall condition of roads and footpaths. This road condition information is processed by a computer system known as the United Kingdom Pavement Management System. The results are used to assist engineers to identify those streets most in need of improvement.