Section 305.10  Policy

 

The purpose of this Part is the practical safeguarding of persons during the installation, operation, or maintenance of electric supply and communication lines and their associated equipment.  It contains minimum requirements considered necessary for the safety of employees and the public.

 

Section 305.20  Scope and Incorporation by Reference of Portions of the National Electrical Safety Code (NESC)

 

a)         This Part shall apply to electric utilities and those telecommunications carriers subject to Section 8-505 of the Public Utilities Act [220 ILCS 5/8-505].

 

b)         The Illinois Commerce Commission adopts as its rules the following portions of the National Electrical Safety Code C2-2017 (2017 edition, approved April 26, 2016, published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc., 3 Park Avenue, New York NY 10016-5997):

 

1)         Section 2 (Definitions of Special Terms);

 

2)         Section 9 (Grounding Methods of Electric Supply and Communications Facilities);

 

3)         Part 2 (Sections 20-27:  Safety Rules for the Installation and Maintenance of Overhead Electric Supply and Communication Lines); and

 

4)         Part 3 (Sections 30-39:  Safety Rules for the Installation and Maintenance of Underground Electric Supply and Communication Lines).

 

c)         No incorporation in this Part includes any later amendment or edition.

 

(Source:  Amended at 45 Ill. Reg. 3148, effective February 10, 2022)

 

Section 305.30  General Rules

 

All electric supply and communication lines and equipment shall be designed, constructed and maintained to meet the requirements of this Part to enable service to be safe, adequate and dependable.  For all particulars not specified in this Part, construction and maintenance should be done in accordance with accepted engineering practices for the given local conditions.

 

Section 305.40  Application

 

a)         New Installation and Extensions

            These rules shall apply to all new installations and extensions, except that they may be waived or modified by the Illinois Commerce Commission.  Instances of waiver or modification would include, but not be limited to, space limitations, temporary construction, or changes in technology.  When the Commission waives or modifies these rules, it shall approve equivalent safety measures, including special working methods.

 

b)         Existing Installations

 

1)         Existing installations including maintenance replacements which comply with the Commission's rules which were in effect at the time of original installation need not be modified to comply with this Part except as may be required for safety reasons as directed by the Commission.

 

2)         Where an existing installation meets, or is altered to meet, the requirements of this Part, such installation is considered to be in compliance with this Part and is not required to comply with any previously adopted rules of the Commission that have been superseded by this Part.

 

3)         Where conductors or equipment are added, altered, or replaced on an existing structure, the structure or the facilities on the structure need not be modified or replaced if the resulting installation will be in compliance with:

 

A)        The rules which were in effect at the time of the original installation.;

 

B)        The rules in effect at the time of a previous modification; or

 

C)        The rules currently in effect.

 

c)         Effective Date.  This Part shall apply to new installations and extensions where design was started and approval given by the company after October 1, 1984.

 

(Source:  Amended at 17 Ill. Reg. 22043, effective December 15, 1993)

 

Section 305.50  Certificates of Public Convenience and Necessity

 

An application for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity to construct, operate and maintain a new electric supply line or communication line shall be accompanied by a plat of suitable scale to clearly show:

 

a)         The location of the proposed line along its entire length.

 

b)         The location of railroad tracks, and electric supply and communication lines which will be crossed by the proposed new lines.

 

c)         The location of all other electric supply and communication lines that are located within one-half mile of the route of the proposed new line.

 

d)         The names of the utilities owning or operating railroad, electric supply and communication lines, shown on the plat in conformance with subsections (b) and (c) above.

 

Section 305.60  Notification Procedure for Applications

 

Notice of the filing of an application for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity to construct new line facilities or an application for authority to reconstruct, alter or remove existing line facilities shall be given by the applicant at the time of filing its application with the Commission to all other utilities whose lines will be crossed by the proposed new or reconstructed line facilities, or whose lines will be paralleled within 200 feet by such new or reconstructed line facilities.  A list of all utilities to whom such notice were sent, including their addresses, shall accompany the application.

 

Section 305.70  Advance Notice and Cooperation

 

a)         Railroad Crossings.  An electric or communication utility planning to cross the tracks of a railroad, either overhead or underground, shall give notice of its intention to do so.  Unless other mutual arrangements are made in conformity with Section 305.80, such notice shall be given by registered mail at least 20 calendar days in advance of the commencement of construction.  Such notice shall include information regarding the location and general plan for the crossing, planned clearances, and such other pertinent information in sufficient detail to determine whether the proposed construction conforms with the requirements of this Part.  In a case of emergency where the required notice would work a hardship on the company planning the crossing, the involved parties shall cooperate so as to avoid unnecessary delay in construction of the crossing.

 

b)         Overhead Line Crossing.  An electric or communication utility planning a crossing over or under an existing line, or general reconstruction of an existing crossing, shall give notice of its intention to do so.  Unless other mutual arrangements are made in conformity with Section 305.80, such notice shall be given by registered mail at least 20 calendar days in advance of the commencement of construction.  All parties involved in such planned crossing construction or reconstruction shall cooperate in coordinating plans for future construction.

 

c)         Inductive Coordination.

            Although the Commission has no specific rules covering inductive coordination, the Commission retains full jurisdiction of such matters as location, design, construction, operation and maintenance of power and communication circuits, where consideration of these or other conditions may be necessary in order to prevent or eliminate inductive interference.

 

Section 305.80  Interchange Data

 

To assist in promoting conformity with these rules, a procedure or plan should be instituted between all utilities whose facilities may occupy the same territory so that it will provide for the exchange of pertinent data and information, including data relative to proposed and existing construction, and changes in operating conditions which may affect or be likely to affect situations of proximity.

 

Section 305.90  Coordinated Locations of Lines

 

a)         General Location.  Utilization of highways is essential to the economical and efficient extension, operation and maintenance of power and communication services.  To avoid unduly increasing the number or difficulty of proximity situations incident to the use of the same highway by two or  more different types or kinds of facilities, all lines should be located as follows:  Where communication circuits and electric circuits on the same highway are not to occupy joint structures or where either kind of a circuit is alone on a highway, all communication circuits should be placed on one side of the highway and all electric circuits should be placed on the other side, so that one side of any section of a highway will be available as the communication side and one side as the power side.

 

b)         Other Rights-of-Way.  Subsection (a) shall also apply to other rights-of-way.  Situations should also be avoided whereby the reasonable use of parcels of property is restricted by the planned route traversing the property.

 

Section 305.100  Overbuilding or Underbuilding

 

Overbuilding or underbuilding of one pole line by another pole line should be avoided.  Where it is necessary for the lines to occupy the same side of the highway, the use of a single pole line is preferable.

 

Section 305.110  Exceptions and Additions to NESC Provisions

 

a)         Footnotes and notes which reference provisions of the NESC which have not been expressly adopted by the Illinois Commerce Commission shall not be construed to incorporate such provisions into this Part.

 

b)         Table A of this Part provides minimum vertical separation between crossarms for the safety of electric and communication employees.  Said table will be used in conjunction with Rule 238 in addition to Table 238-1 of the NESC.

 

Section 305.120  Intent

 

a)         Statements in this Part which are to be regarded as mandatory are characterized by the use of the word "shall."  Statements in this Part which are advisory in nature, to be followed insofar as practical, are indicated by the word "should."  Statements in the NESC which are advisory in nature, to be followed insofar as practical, are indicated as "RECOMMENDATIONS."

 

b)         Notes contained herein other than footnotes to tables, are for information purposes only and are not to be considered as mandatory or as part of the code requirements.

 

Section 305.130  Exemption

 

If exemption from any of the requirements herein is desired in any particular case, the Commission will consider the application of a public utility for such exemption when accompanied by a full statement setting forth the conditions existing and the reasons why such exemption is desired.  Exemptions will be governed by the same standards applicable to waivers and modifications in Section 305.40(a).  It is understood that any exemption so granted shall apply only to the particular case covered by the application, and exemption shall not be extended to other cases unless specifically granted in the Commission's order.

Section 305.TABLE A   Vertical Separation of Crossarms Carrying Conductors

 

1.          BASIC SEPARATION.

The separations given in the following table are for crossarms carrying conductors of 0 to 50,000 volts attached to fixed supports.

 

2.          INCREASED SEPARATION FOR VOLTAGES EXCEEDING 50,000 VOLTS.

For voltages greater than 50,000 volts the clearances in the table below shall be increased at the rate of 0.4 inch per 1,000 volts of the excess.

 

									Supply conductors: preferably at higher levels 6
									Open wires, 0 to 750 volts; cables, having effectively grounded continuous metal sheath, or insulated conductors supported on and cabled together with an effectively grounded messenger, all voltages						15,000 to 50,000 volts
		Conductors usually at lower levels									750 to		8,700 to
											8,700		15,000
											volts		volts		Same		Different
															utility		utilities
Communication conductors:									Feet		Feet		Feet		Feet		Feet
		General							1, 2	4		4		6				6
		Use in operation of supply
			lines							2	3	2		4		4		6
Supply conductors:
		0 to 750 volts								2	4	2		4		4		6
		750 volts to 8,700 volts									4	2		4		4		6
		8,700 volts to 15,000 volts:
		If worked on alive with long-handled tools and adjacent circuits are neither killed nor covered with shields or protectors
														4		4			6
		If not worked on alive except when adjacent circuits (either above or below) are killed or covered by shields or protectors, or by the use of long-handled tools not requiring linemen to go
		between live wires												2	5	4	5		4
	Exceeding 15,000 volts, but
		not exceeding 50,000 volts													5	4	5		4

 

¹      Where supply circuits of 550 volts or less, with transmitted, power of 3,200 watts or less, are run below communication circuits in accordance with Rule 220B2 the clearance may be reduced to 2 feet.

 

²      In localities where the practice has been established or placing on jointly used poles, crossarms carrying supply circuits of less than 300 volts to ground and crossarms carrying communication circuits at a vertical separation less than specific in the table, such existing construction may be continued until the said poles are replaced provided that –

 

The minimum separation between existing crossarms is not less than 2 feet, and that –

 

Extensions to the existing construction shall conform to the clearance requirements specified in table 11.

 

When communication conductors are all in cable, a supply crossarm carrying only wires of not more than 300 volts to ground may be placed at not less than 2 feet above the point of attachment of the cable to the pole provided that –

 

The nearest supply wire on such crossarm shall be at least 30 inches horizontally from the center of the pole, and that –

 

The cable be placed so as not otherwise to obstruct the climbing space.

 

³      This shall be increased to 4 feet when the communication conductors are carried above supply conductors unless the communication-line-conductor size is that required for grade C supply lines.

 

⁴      Where conductors are operated by different utilities, a minimum vertical spacing of 4 feet is recommended.

 

⁵      These values do not apply to adjacent crossarms carrying phases of the same circuit or circuits.

 

⁶      A conductor which is effectively grounded throughout its length, and is associated with a supply circuit of 0 to 22,000 volts may have the clearance specified for cables having effectively grounded continuous metal sheath or messenger.