A vehicle crossing is a lowered kerb and strengthened section of pavement or verge that lets vehicles reach your premises from the road. You need one for a new vehicle access to business premises, or to widen an existing one. Only the highway authority, usually the council, can build it on a public highway.
A new access to a road can also need planning permission. Ask your local planning authority before you apply for the crossing.
How to get a crossing
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Check whether you need planning permission
Ask the local planning authority whether the new access needs planning permission, and get it first if it does.
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Send your request to the highway authority
Say where the crossing should go and how wide it should be, using the council's dropped kerb application if it has one.
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Wait for the decision
The authority can approve your request, approve it with changes, propose different works or reject it. It must consider damage to the footway or verge, safe access to your premises and the flow of traffic.
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Pay the quotation
If the authority approves or proposes works, it gives you a quotation. The cost includes any work needed to protect or move utility pipes and cables under the pavement.
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Let the authority build it
Once you deposit the quoted amount, the authority must build the crossing as soon as practicable.
Once built, the authority maintains the crossing. You are not obliged to maintain it.
The Highways Act 1980 gives no right of appeal if the authority rejects your request. Ask it to explain the decision, and use its complaints procedure if you think it is wrong.
If you are developing the site
Where development with planning permission makes a crossing necessary, the authority can serve a notice requiring one. If you are carrying out the development, it can instead authorise you to build the crossing to plans it approves.
If vehicles already cross without a proper crossing
If vehicles regularly cross a kerbed footway or verge to reach your premises, the authority can serve a notice on the owner and occupier. The notice can say it will build a crossing and recover the cost from you, or set reasonable conditions on using the footway as a crossing. The notice tells you how to object. Knowingly using the footway in breach of those conditions, or letting others do so, is an offence with a fine of up to level 3.
Legal basis
Primary legislation and key regulations
Read it on legislation.gov.uk (opens in a new tab) legislation.gov.uk