Highways Act 1980

184 Vehicle crossings over footways and verges. E+W

(1) Where the occupier of any premises adjoining or having access to a highway maintainable at the public expense habitually takes or permits to be taken a mechanically propelled vehicle across a kerbed footway or a verge in the highway to or from those premises, the highway authority for the highway may, subject to subsection (2) below, serve a notice on the owner and the occupier of the premises—

(a) stating that they propose to execute such works for the construction of a vehicle crossing over the footway or verge as may be specified in the notice; or

(b) imposing such reasonable conditions on the use of the footway or verge as a crossing as may be so specified.

(2) A highway authority is not entitled by virtue of subsection (1) above to construct a vehicle crossing on, or on any part of, the site of a made-up vehicle crossing which has been constructed either under this section or under section 40 of the M1 Highways Act 1971 (which this section replaces) or before the commencement of the said section 40, or to impose conditions on the use of such a crossing.

(3) Where any land is being, or is to be, developed in accordance with a planning permission granted, or deemed to have been granted, under [F1 the Town and Country Planning Act 1990], and it appears to the highway authority for a highway maintainable at the public expense that the development makes it necessary—

(a) to construct a crossing over a kerbed footway or a verge in the highway so as to provide an access for mechanically propelled vehicles to or from the carriageway of the highway from or to premises adjoining or having access to the highway; or

(b) to improve or otherwise alter a made-up vehicle crossing that provides such an access as is mentioned in paragraph (a) above (whenever constructed),

that authority may serve on the owner and the occupier of the premises a notice stating that they propose to execute such works for the construction or, as the case may be, alteration of the crossing as may be specified in the notice.

(4) Unless the development giving rise to a notice under subsection (3) above consists solely of the provision of a new means of access to or from a highway from or to premises, there may be specified in a notice under that subsection works for the construction as part of the vehicle crossing proposed to be constructed or altered, as the case may be, of acceleration and deceleration lanes.

(5) In determining whether to exercise their powers under subsection (1) or (3) above, a highway authority shall have regard to the need to prevent damage to a footway or verge, and in determining the works to be specified in a notice under subsection (1)(a) or (3) an authority shall have regard to that and the following other matters, namely—

(a) the need to ensure, so far as practicable, safe access to and egress from premises; and

(b) the need to facilitate, so far as practicable, the passage of vehicular traffic in highways.

(6) Schedule 14 to this Act has effect with respect to the making of objections to a notice under subsection (1) or (3) above and to the date on which such a notice becomes effective.

(7) Where a notice under subsection (1)(a) or (3) above has become effective, the highway authority by whom the notice was served may execute such works as are specified in the notice, subject to such modifications (if any) as may have been made by the Minister, and may recover the expenses reasonably incurred by them in so doing from the owner or occupier of the premises in question.

(8) A notice under subsection (1) or (3) above shall inform the person on whom it is served of his right to object to the notice and (except in the case of a notice under subsection (1)(b)) shall state the effect of subsection (7) above.

(9) Where a person who is carrying out, or proposes to carry out, such a development as is referred to in subsection (3) above offers to execute the works specified in a notice under that subsection, the highway authority by whom the notice was served may authorise him to execute those works in accordance with plans approved by them.

F2 . . .

(10) If a person authorised under subsection (9) above to execute any works fails to execute them to the satisfaction of the highway authority before the development is completed, the authority may execute the works or alter the works executed by that person and recover the expenses reasonably incurred by them in so doing from him.

(11) Any person may request the highway authority for a highway maintainable at the public expense to execute such works as are specified in the request for constructing a vehicle crossing over a footway or verge in the highway, and the authority may approve the request with or without modification, or may propose alternative works or reject the request; and in determining how to exercise their powers under this subsection an authority shall have regard to the matters mentioned in subsection (5) above.

(12) An authority to whom a request under subsection (11) above is made shall notify the person making the request of their decision and if they approve, with or without modification, the works proposed in the request or propose alternative works, they shall supply him with a quotation of the cost of the works as approved or proposed by them, and he may, on depositing with them the amount quoted, require them to execute those works.

(13) As soon as practicable after such a deposit has been made with an authority the authority shall execute the works as approved or proposed by them.

F3 (14) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(15) The expenses recoverable under subsection (7) or (10) above and the cost of the works for the purposes of subsection (12) above include [F4 the cost of any measures needing to be taken in relation to undertaker’s apparatus, in accordance with section 84 of the New Roads and Street Works Act 1991,] in consequence of the construction of the crossing.

(16) Nothing in this section imposes on any person other than a highway authority any obligation to maintain a vehicle crossing.

(17) If a person knowingly uses a footway or verge as a crossing in contravention of any condition imposed under subsection (1)(b) above, or knowingly permits it to be so used, he is guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding [F5 level 3 on the standard scale].

Textual Amendments

F1 Words substituted by Planning (Consequential Provisions) Act 1990 (c. 11, SIF 123:1, 2), s. 4, Sch. 2 para. 45(11)

F2 Words in s. 184(9) repealed (1.1.1993) by New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 (c. 22, SIF 59, 108), s. 168(1)(2), Sch. 8 Pt. I para. 9(a), Sch. 9 (with s. 25(2)); S.I. 1992/2984, art. 2(2), Sch. 2

F3 S. 184(14) repealed (1.1.1993) by New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 (c. 22, SIF 59, 108), s. 168(1)(2), Sch. 8 Pt. I para. 9(b), Sch. 9 (with s. 25(2)); S.I. 1992/2984, art. 2(2), Sch. 2

F4 Words in s. 184(15) substituted (1.1.1993) by New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 (c. 22, SIF 59, 108), s. 168(1), Sch. 8 Pt. I para. 9 (with s. 25(2)); S.I. 1992/2984, art. 2(2), Sch. 2.

F5 Words in s. 184(17) substituted by Criminal Justice Act 1982 (c. 48, SIF 39:1), ss. 35, 37, 38, 46 (with s. 47)

Marginal Citations

M1 1971 c. 41.