Driveways and dropped kerbs

If you need to drive across the footway and/or verge to gain access to your property from the road but there's no dropped kerb, you will need to apply for permission to construct a vehicle crossover.

These works are done at the property owner’s expense, by a contractor that you employ. The council does not install crossovers.

The process that you need to follow ensures the safety of other road users and pedestrians and prevents damage to the road or footway.

The provision of a crossover requires the construction of 2 separate areas:

1. the ‘hardstand’ or driveway on the property
2. the ‘vehicle crossover’ or dropped kerb, which crosses the public footway and verge between the road and the property

The same process is followed if you want to widen or re-profile an existing crossover.

An application needs to satisfy the requirements of several council departments before it can proceed, including highways and planning.

The hardstanding must be a minimum length of 4.5 metres at right angles to the road (or the length of your car if this is longer), and a minimum width of 2.75 metres. Your application will be refused if your driveway is smaller than this or if there's not enough space available to build a hardstand that meets this requirement.

If the crossover is wider than 2.75 metres the hardstand must be at least 4.5 metres long across the entire width of the crossover.

It's not necessary to have the hardstand built before you apply for the crossover, but it must be in place and accessible for a sign-off to be issued once the crossover has been built.

The usual width of a crossover is 2.75 metres plus any tapered kerbs. The maximum width of a crossover that will be allowed is 5.5 metres including any tapered kerbs.

Visibility splay

A visibility splay must be clear of obstructions over 0.6 metres in height to allow adequate visibility of pedestrians.

Carriageway visibility will also be considered, and the crossover must be at least 10 metres from any junction.

Other barriers to visibility such as bends, hills, etc will also be considered when assessing the safety of a proposed crossover.

Street lights

If your planned crossover falls within 1 metre of a streetlight your application will be passed to the relevant council team to assess.

If the streetlight is one of our heritage cast columns it cannot be moved and your application will be refused. See the picture below for an example of a heritage cast column.

If another type of column would need to be moved but there isn't an appropriate alternative location available, your application will also be refused.

If permission is given, you'll need to pay for moving the streetlight.

The cost of this work will be shown in your permission letter.

Street trees

If your planned crossover falls within 1 metre of a street tree, or if there are indications that the roots of a street tree cross the area of your proposed crossover, your application will be passed to the arboriculture team to assess. 

If they believe the crossover will damage the tree they may refuse the application.

If they give permission, they may require measures to be taken to protect or replace the tree. The required measures and/or cost of the work will be shown in your permission letter.

Other highways requirements

If you're applying for a second crossover to serve the same property, there must be at least 5 metres between the 2 crossovers.

If your planned crossover falls within 1 metre of street furniture such as a telegraph pole or a chamber in the footway, you'll be required to get the permission of the owner to install your crossover.

They may require you to arrange for it to be moved or strengthened. If they give permission, you'll be responsible for arranging this and for paying any associated costs.

Your contractor must have:

• New Roads and Street Works Act accreditation at both Operative and Supervisor levels
• Public Liability Insurance for a minimum of £10 million

If your property is within a controlled parking zone your application will be passed to the Parking team to assess. If they give permission, you will need to pay for the removal of any parking bays or other related work. The cost of this work will be shown in the permission letter you receive.

If parking bays would need to be removed in place of your dropped kerb, the off-street parking spaces provided must at least equal the number to be removed on street. 

Zones M, N, Y and Z

If the property you are applying for the dropped kerb for is within zones M, N, Y or Z, we won't be able to process your application.

Due to the nature of these vehicle-dense zones, permit waiting lists and near-capacity permit uptake, the council will not be able to consider the removal of any on-street parking places for dropped kerbs in these zones.

You may need planning permission for the new crossover/access or associated works. It's your responsibility to check if planning permission is required before you start any work. The Highway Vehicle Crossover application is separate from the Planning process.

Being granted permission for one does not mean that you have permission for the other, and there's no guarantee that if one is granted the other will also be approved.

If you do need planning permission, you will need to make a separate application to the planning department which will take a minimum of 6 weeks to process and receive a decision. Any breach of planning requirements could lead to enforcement action being taken.

You can read more on the planning portal.

Getting a dropped kerb is a 2-stage process, and there are separate fees for each stage.

Fees before 1 April 2024

The stage 1 fee is £155.

If you're granted permission for your crossover, the stage 2 fee is £464.

Fees on and after 1 April 2024

From 1 April 2024 the stage 1 fee will be £161, and the stage 2 fee will be £481.

Additional fees

In addition to this, you will need to pay your contractor to carry out the work to your crossover. If planning permission is required there are separate fees for this.

Complete the Vehicle Crossover Application form and return it, with the fee, to the Vehicle Crossovers team (address provided on the form). If the form isn't fully completed it will be returned to you and your application will not be processed until all required information is provided.

An officer will visit your property to assess your application. If the officer identifies any issues with your proposal, they may try to contact you by phone to discuss them. If you don't want to be contacted in this way, please indicate this on the application form.

Once the site visit has taken place the officer will decide whether permission can be granted. If there are other considerations, such as streetlights, permit parking, and street trees, they will be referred to the relevant council team at this point. We aim to inform you of the decision approximately 6 to 8 weeks from receiving your completed application form and payment. 

If your application is refused, you will receive a letter explaining the reasons for the refusal. If you want to reapply to address the reasons for the refusal you must start stage 1 again, with a new application form and fee.

If your application is granted; you will receive a letter confirming that you have been given permission and a licence application pack. Please read the permission letter carefully as there may be conditions attached that means you cannot build the crossover exactly as shown in your original application. This permission is valid for a period of six months. If Stage 2 isn't begun within this period, you must start the application process again at Stage 1 with a new application form and fee.

Ask your contractor to complete the Licence Application Pack and return it, with the fee, to the Vehicle Crossovers team. The address is provided on the form.

Copies of the following documents must also be provided:

• Operatives’ and Supervisors’ New Roads and Street Works Act Accreditation
• Contractor’s Public Liability Insurance for a minimum of £10 million
• copies of plans showing the location of utility companies’ plants (water, gas, electric, telecoms, etc)
• Materials Licence applied for (if required)

When everything has been received and a construction date agreed a licence will be issued to your contractor.

Work must not begin until the licence has been issued. Please note that it's an offence under Sections 131 and 133 of the Highways Act 1980 for any person to unlawfully open the highway.

Once your contractor has completed the work on the highway, an officer will visit your property again to check that the crossover has been constructed in accordance with the permission. You will then receive a letter confirming that it's satisfactory. You must not allow vehicles to use the crossover until you have received this letter. You should keep the letter safe, as you will need it to prove you have a legal crossover.

If the crossover has not been constructed in accordance with the permission, you will receive a letter explaining what needs to be changed. If further works are required on the highway your contractor must apply for a new licence to carry out these works. If changes need to be made on your property (such as building your hardstand) you must let us know when they have been completed.

An officer will then visit the property again to check that it's now satisfactory. If it is, you will receive a letter confirming this. You must not allow vehicles to use the crossover until you have received this letter. You should keep the letter safe, as you will need it to prove you have a legal crossover.

You or your contractor will be responsible for any remedial works required on your new crossover for a period of 2 years after it has been built.

After this guarantee period has elapsed Brighton & Hove City Council as the Highway Authority will again be responsible for its maintenance to the prescribed standards.

If you live in a controlled parking zone and have paid for the removal of any parking bays and/or the installation of double yellow lines, this work will be carried out once we have checked that the crossover has been constructed in accordance with your permission.

If you don't live in a controlled parking zone you can request a white return line to highlight your access and deter parking across your driveway.

You may need to build a temporary crossover to facilitate access for construction traffic to a development site. If the temporary crossover is part of your Demolition Environmental Management Plan (DEMP) or Construction Environmental Management Plan (CEMP) then permission will not be granted until the DEMP or CEMP has been approved.

If the temporary crossover is to be incorporated into a new access to the development when it's complete, then this will be part of your Section 278 works agreement. Otherwise, the highway must be returned to its original layout when the development is complete, and the temporary crossover is no longer required.

Find phone numbers for departments you may need to contact:

• Planning team - 01273 292 222
• Vehicle Crossovers Team - 01273 290 729
• Controlled Parking Team - 01273 292 387
• Street Lighting Team - 01273 292 517
• Arboriculture (Trees) - 01273 292 187
• White Return Lines - 01273 290 510