Detailed Information On Vehicular Crossings

Various factors need to be considered before making a domestic vehicle crossing application. These have been split into two sections. The first deals with external factors such as planning permission and street furniture and the second deals with the actual crossing. Both should be fully satisified before making your application.

External Factors.

Planning Permission

From the 1st October 2008 Planning Permission may be required to construct a hard standing or drive in a garden if the material you use is impermeable (non porous).

You may require planning permission for the access crossing, which must be applied for prior to the construction of the crossing. You will require planning permission if:

• The property involved has the frontage directly onto a classified A B or C road.
• If your intention is to use an impermeable/non-porous surface for the hard standing/drive area.
• The property is other than a house for a single-family e.g. flat, maisonette, commercial or industrial premises or operation.
• If a boundary wall over two metres high is to be adjusted.
• It is proposed that a tree that is protected by a Tree Preservation Order, subject to Conversation Area controls or planning conditions is removed or may be affected.
• The access is being formed in connection with an operation or construction that requires an access to the Highway under a Planning application.
• The property involved is a listed building.

If the property is in a conservation area it may need conservation area consent, for which no fee is payable. Please contact the Borough Planning Service to find out if you need planning permission or conservation area consent.

Street Furniture

Where applicants have removed more of the wall or fence running along the boundary, than is required by the size of the crossing, it should be understood that an item of street furniture, i.e. lamp post, telegraph pole, traffic sign etc., may be erected at any time in the footway outside the area of a crossing, even though this may obstruct an area where there is no wall or similar feature.

Obstacles to Construction

If the proposed position of the access is obstructed by a road sign, lamp post, or tree, etc. the location should be altered to avoid the obstacle. If this is not possible, a decision will have to be made by the relevant department of the Council as to whether the item can be removed or relocated. If a statutory authority is required to carry out work such as relocating a fire hydrant, telegraph pole etc. any charges for such work will be the responsibility of the applicant. The applicant will be required to produce written proof of approval by the authority to Streetcare Services before a crossing can be built. If an applicant wishes the crossing to be placed in a location that requires the relocation of a lamp post or similar item, which would not otherwise be necessary, they will be required to pay the full cost of relocation. Applicants should be aware that Utilities plant will include not only those visual features such as poles, columns or cabinets but also underground ducting and cables whether or not these are related to nearby above ground features. Modern telecommunications installations have been constructed in the Borough at depths that may affect footway-crossing construction.

Removal of Street Trees

This will not normally be allowed. Damage to street trees includes, for example, root severance as a result of lowering a pavement or converting a verge to hardstanding within the trees minimum root protection zone. In exceptional circumstances (e.g. if the tree is in very poor health) approval will be granted where a tree of similar size and species can be provided nearby. A pavement vehicle access is not usually sufficient reason on its own to justify tree removal or damage to a street tree.

Roadside Ditches

Where the proposed access crosses a ditch the written consent of the Environment Agency is required before any works to pipe the ditch take place.

Gates Across Vehicle Entrance

Gates fitted across the vehicle entrance to your property may in no circumstances open outwards across the footpath or carriageway. (Highways Act 1980 - Section 153)

Additional Costs  

These can be incurred in the following circumstances:

• If a public utility company (such as water, gas or electricity) considers it necessary to move or protect its underground cables or pipes. They may want to move some of their equipment, such as underground boxes, streetlights or telegraph poles and this can be expensive. Even if there is nothing to see on the pavement, there may be cables or pipes underneath that are not deep enough to take the weight of a vehicle. If this is the case you will have to pay for the work;
• If street furniture (such as lamp columns or bollards) need to be moved;
• If the Traffic Management Order (the legal document which defines, for example, the hours of restrictions on parking and loading and the start and end points for yellow lines and/or parking bays) needs to be altered to take account of the construction of your vehicle access. The process to alter the Order takes up to 3 months, subject to no substantial objections being received. The construction of the crossover can only proceed once the alteration to the Order is complete.
  

Crossing Considerations

Information & Application Details

Information in this section should enable you to see whether space and safety considerations will make it possible to construct a driveway or suitable parking space within your garden. In some places, space or safety considerations or steep slopes will make it impossible to construct a driveway or parking space within a garden. 

Permitted Types of Material for Hard Standing

All domestic driveways or parking areas over five square metres will require Planning Permission if they are constructed using surfaces that do not allow water to soak through the ground (impermeable).

Where surface water can be drained using either permeable surface such as porous oncrete blocks, porous asphalt or gravel, wheel track only pavig or through installation of soak-away systems permission can be granted.

Please refer to the Environment Agencies publication - 'Guidance on the pereable surfacing of front gardens' for further details.

The final levels of the hard standing when constructed must be compatible with the existing footway level and the boundary f the property.

If the ntention is to use gravel, or a similar loose material, you should consider the problem of stones being carried onto the highway, as it is illegal for loose material to be deposited on the highway. where material of this type is used, concrete or blacktop should be laid in a 500mm strip from the boundary to the start of the gravelled area.  

Permitted Types of Vehicles

A domestic vehicle crossing may only be used by a private light goods or similar vehicle. It may not be used by heavy goods vehicles or mechanical equipment. If a delivery, such as a skip, is made to the property, and in doing so the delivery damages the crossing, any repairs will be the responsibility of the occupier.

Shared Access

Where the occupiers of two adjoining properties share a driveway, and wish to build a double width crossing to serve the two sites, one occupier should act on behalf of both parties.

Two Crossings at the Same Property (Entrance & Exit)

The general rule is that the more points on the highway where vehicles turn, the more potential for traffic conflict there is. Therefore, applications for two crossovers or access points to a single property, or a second crossover or access point where one already exists, will not normally be approved for domestic dwellings unless there is strong evidence that it will add significantly to highway safety.

For such applications to be considered, the applicant will need to show:

• how a second crossover or access point will add to the safety of the access arrangement
• why such added safety cannot be achieved from a single crossover or access point, or by improving or repositioning an existing one

Drainage

The parking area within your property must be built so that water does not drain from it across the footway. Suitable drainage must be provided within the boundaries of your property.

Crossings - Standard Finish

The standard finish to crossings is either tarmacadum or concrete.

Space & Safety Criteria

As there is a non-refundable fee for the survey and estimate, you are advised to check your proposal against the following criteria:

Is there enough distance between the back of the pavement / verge and the front of your house or garage in your garden?

For the parking area you are planning on your property, there must be:-

• at least 5.0 metres between the back of the pavement or property boundary (the face of the wall, fence or hedge, for example) and the front of your building.
• at least 5.5m where the parking area is in front of a garage or door.

No part of a vehicle parked within your property may project on to or over the highway. The crossing may not be used as a parking area and no part of it is exempted for the purpose of footway parking.

Parallel parking is not actively promoted but may be considered in exceptional circumstances. A minimum frontage depth of 3.0 metres with a minimum width of 6.0 metres will be required.

Is the position of the access at least 10 metres from a road junction?

If the location of the proposed crossing is closer than 10 metres to a road junction it would create a serious hazard and the application will be refused. This dimension may be increased to 15 metres on major roads or near to busy junctions.

Will you be able to see pedestrians and vehicles clearly enough to drive out of the driveway without causing danger to yourself or other road users?

The application will be refused if the crossing would not meet visibility requirements. Greater visibility may be required on faster, busier roads. Traffic visibility - generally no obstructions higher than 600mm in white areas. The dimension shown is indicative (greater visibility may be required on faster or classified roads).

Pedestrian visibility - a 2m by 2m visibility splay will be required planting and structures generally no higher than 600mm in white areas. On some busy roads it may be necessary to have an on-site turning space available. The access must not restrict the use of a parking bay or lay-by.

Are you the owner of the property in question?

If you are not the freehold owner of the property, you will need to obtain the permission of the owner for the construction to be undertaken, before the application can be considered

Does your application meet these criteria?

If you can answer 'yes' to all these questions, then you may apply for permission to construct a vehicle crossing. If the answer to any of them is 'no' then it means that your site is too small or that safe access to your property may not be possible and is unlikely to be suitable for the construction of a crossing and your application is likely to be refused.

How to apply for a Vehicle Access, Dropped Crossing

Complete the application form. Please telephone 01628 683804 (during office hours) to request a form to be sent by post or open, print-off and complete the form below. Enclose the £130.00 Administration Fee (payable to Windsor & Maidenhead Borough Council) with your completed application form. Upon receipt of your application, a Council Officer will visit the proposed site to assess the feasibility of the access. Enquiries will be made to determine whether planning permission is required. Public Utilities will be contacted to ensure that there will be no conflict with their apparatus. If your application is rejected, you will be advised in writing with a full explanation. The £130.00 fee is not refundable in the event of a refusal

Costs and Timescales

The estimated cost will vary depending on individual circumstances since it is based on the cost of the work required to construct the proposed crossing. As a guide, crossovers are likely to cost at least £750. A non-refundable fee of £130 is charged, which must be included with your application. You should be aware that as part of the dropped crossing application we are obliged to obtain details of plant in the highway owned by utility companies and that this can add delays to the application process.

Consent

If the site is suitable, we will then give you approval and provide you with a list of approved contractors who can undertake the work for you. However should you wish to use any other contractor then the Authority must approve them in advance of the works being carried out. Approval will be conditional upon the production of a valid public liability Insurance Certificate for at least £5 million and proof of NRSWA accreditation by the contractor.

You will then need to notify us when the work will be undertaken so that we can carry out an inspection to ensure that it has been carried out to a satisfactory standard. A maintenance period of 24 months shall commence from the date of completion of the crossing/access during which  time you may be held responsible in the event of any failure of the construction

Refusal

It is unusual for a request to be refused. However, if your proposed crossing puts other road users at risk or seriously interferes with the free flow of traffic on a busy road, then it may be turned down. Notwithstanding the Guidelines above, in certain circumstances it will be necessary for the Council as Highway Authority, to refuse to allow the construction of a footway crossing to your premises. In these circumstances you will be informed in writing of the reason why permission has been refused.

Reasons for refusal may include:

• Planning grounds
• Land ownership objections
• Local parking implications
• Safety implications such as poor sight lines at the proposed access point
• The proposed access is in close proximity to a road hump, road safety feature, street tree etc.

The Council's decision as to whether the application will be approved or refused is final. An appeal will not be considered due to parking conditions in your area or where you feel that an access that has already been built in your road or elsewhere does not comply with the current criteria for approval and should not have been approved.

•   Domestic Vehicle Application (pdf 78KB)