Do it yourself drop kerbs
September 29th, 2008 by Ruth WilkinsonJust a quick note to say please do not be tempted to cement in a DIY drop kerb outside your house and hope that nobody notices! Our attention has been drawn to a couple of these within the last month.
Council planners do become involved when consent is required for crossings
to commercial premises or properties fronting to classified roads. Applications are dealt with by the County Council from their Kidlington Office.
If a cemented in drop kerb results in clear ‘interference with the Highway’ then it is a criminal offence, and will be investigated promptly.
What about people who take down their fences and just ride up over the pavement into their front gardens without making a pavement crossing? Is this legal?
They can take down their fence, of course. They can’t legally cross the kerb, as I understand it.
A Google search reveals that some councils are fining residents £1,000 for driving up the kerb in order to park on their house fronts. There are many residents in central Headington doing just this — so what an opportunity for cash-strapped Oxford City Council to replenish its coffers! (Presumably the fine could be doubled if two cars are parked on the front?)
The houses concerned are usually HMOs, and of course it is better that students park in their front gardens, as it keeps the weeds down and the number of parking spaces in the road up. But it is a very dangerous practice: you don’t expect cars to be mounting the pavement in this way.