Permits & Policies
Permits
Permission for any new driveway, or widening of an existing driveway, that is located within the County’s right-of-way. This requires approval before any work is begun. No Fee.
Permission to transport an oversized/overweight load on county roads to destination. This will require approval before any transportation is permitted. We require at least one business day to process all permits.
Fees:
Single Trip (Valid for 5 days): $35
Round Trip (If returning by reverse route within the same 5 days): $70
Oversized Annual Permit (Valid for 12 months from issue date): $50
Oversized/Overweight Annual Permit (Valid for 12 months from issue date): $400
Individuals wishing to apply their own dust control must annually obtain pre-approval from the Tama County Engineer’s Office. To obtain approval, you must provide us with this signed permit, the correct Certificate of Insurance, and a check made payable to “Tama County Engineer” in the amount of $50.00. You may send the permit and payment to the Tama County Engineer’s Office located at 1002 E 5th Street, Tama, IA 52339. No dust control will be allowed unless prior approval has been given. Any unauthorized material placed on the road will be removed. You may also choose to contact one of the approved vendors listed in the Dust Control section. Please refer to the Dust Control Policy for more information. Fee $50.
Companies wishing to apply dust control for customers in Tama County must annually obtain pre-approval from the Tama County Engineer’s Office. To obtain approval, you must complete the vendor application permit and send all required documents to the Tama County Engineer’s Office located at 1002 E 5th Street, Tama, IA 52339 or by email to cheller@tamacounty.org. No dust control will be allowed unless prior approval has been given. Any unauthorized material placed on the road will be removed. Please refer to the Dust Control Policy for more information. Fee per location $50.
Any tile crossing and work done in the County’s right-of-way. This will require a signature from any adjoining landowner, and approval from the Tama County Engineer before any work is begun. No Fee.
All utilities that will be placed within the County’s right-of-way must have a permit. This will require approval from the Tama County Board of Supervisors and the Tama County Engineer before any work is begun. No Fee.
Permission to cut trees located within the County’s right-of-way. Permit must be acquired annually. This requires approval before any work is begun. No Fee.
Permission to excavate, fill, or make any physical changes within the right-of-way. This will require approval from the Tama County Engineer before any work is begun. No Fee.
Policies
Dust generated by the traffic on gravel roads is a common concern for rural living. Tama County allows the placement of dust control on rock roads. The interest of motorists to have a well-maintained road takes priority over the interest to suppress dust. No dust control will be allowed unless prior approval has been given. Any unauthorized material placed on the road will be removed. Please refer to the Dust Control section on our main page for more information. The details can be reviewed in the Dust Control Policy.
Tama County has about 1,159 miles of roads under its jurisdiction as of January 1, 2006. 92 miles are dirt roads with no surfacing, 893 miles are surfaced with rock, 4 miles are bituminous, and 179 miles are paved. There are occasional requests from individuals to upgrade the surfacing on a road. The details can be reviewed in the Road Improvement Policy.
Each snow or ice storm has its own characteristics and must be dealt with accordingly. The details of the snow removal operations can be reviewed in the Snow Ordinance.
