Dropped Kerbs: The Rules, the Application and Who Builds It
To get a dropped kerb you apply to your council as the highway authority, it inspects the frontage, and if it approves, the kerb is lowered by the council or by a contractor it has accredited and licensed. You cannot build one yourself or have an ordinary builder do it. Planning permission is a separate question and is only needed in some cases, such as a house on an A, B or C road.
What is a dropped kerb, legally?
A dropped kerb, which councils usually call a vehicle crossing or footway crossing, is a lowered section of kerb with a strengthened pavement behind it so cars can cross to a driveway. It stays part of the public highway. You do not own it, and the council maintains it once it is built. The drive behind it is yours, and that is the part we build for homeowners getting new driveways in Wolverhampton and across the Black Country.
The power sits in section 184 of the Highways Act 1980. Anyone can ask the highway authority to build a crossing. The authority can approve, approve with changes, propose something else or refuse, and it must have regard to preventing damage to the footway or verge, safe access to and from the property, and the flow of traffic on the road.
Is it illegal to drive over a kerb without a dropped kerb?
It can be. Highway Code rule 145 says you must not drive on or over a pavement except to gain lawful access to property or in an emergency, citing section 72 of the Highway Act 1835 and section 34 of the Road Traffic Act 1988. Without an approved crossing you are relying on that "lawful access" exception, which is a grey area, and driving over a full-height kerb damages a footway that was never built to carry cars.
There is a practical side too. Section 184 lets a council that sees vehicles habitually crossing a kerb without a crossing serve notice and either build one at the owner's expense or impose conditions on use. Using a footway in breach of those conditions is an offence. Councils can also take enforcement action against unapproved work on the highway, such as a homemade ramp or a kerb someone has knocked down, and recover the cost of putting it right.
Do you need planning permission for a dropped kerb?
Usually not for a house on an unclassified road. Forming an access to a highway that is not a trunk or classified road is permitted development in England (Class B, Part 2 of the General Permitted Development Order), provided it serves development that is itself permitted.
In Wolverhampton the council says you will need planning approval as well as highways approval if:
the property is on a classified road (A, B or C)
it is in a conservation area
it is a listed building
the building is divided into flats
it is offices, shops or other non-residential use
Highways approval is not planning permission. Where both are needed, get the planning decision first. Rented, leasehold and housing association homes also need the landlord's or landowner's written consent before you apply.
How to get a dropped kerb: the process
Every council runs its own scheme, so check the page for your area. In Wolverhampton the process is:
Check the basics: frontage depth, opening width, trees and street furniture (see below), and whether planning is needed.
Apply to the council with the form and pay the non-refundable inspection fee (£160 in Wolverhampton).
A highway technician visits with you and marks out the proposed crossing.
You get a decision, normally within 21 days of the visit, with any conditions. Approval lasts 12 months from the visit.
You appoint an accredited contractor, who must hold public liability insurance and apply separately for a "Permit to Dig" licence under section 171 of the Highways Act before starting. Wolverhampton's fee list and its October 2026 application pack put that licence at £415.
The crossing is built to the council's specification and becomes part of the highway.
Neighbouring councils do it differently. Sandwell, for example, gives you a fixed quotation after its inspection and only the council or its appointed contractors carry out the work. Wolverhampton's current fees and criteria are on its dropped kerbs page.
What will the council check?
These are Wolverhampton's published criteria. Most councils use something similar, but the figures vary.
Frontage depth: at least 5.5m deep so a parked car does not overhang the pavement, with an opening at least 2.7m wide. Where cars park parallel to the road, the frontage can be 2.5m deep but the opening must be at least 6m wide.
Width of crossing: the standard is three flat kerbs (2.7m) plus two tapered kerbs, about 4.5m in all. A crossing will not usually be allowed to exceed seven kerbs.
Visibility: a pedestrian splay of at least 2m by 2m, with nothing over 1m high at the back of the footway.
Junctions: closer than 10m to a junction (15m on a major road or busy junction) is a safety concern. If there is no other option, the council asks for a road safety audit, which costs an extra £100.
Trees: a gap of four times the trunk circumference between a highway tree and the crossing.
Other reasons to refuse: a bend or traffic signals, a steep slope, street lights or signs that cannot be moved, or a 40mph road where you cannot drive out forwards.
Lamp posts and signs can sometimes be moved for a fixed price paid to the council, which does that work itself. Utility boxes, poles and covers are between you and the utility company.
Build the driveway first, then the crossing
The council's own advice is not to start a driveway until you have the necessary permissions, but it also says it is better to build the drive before the crossing so the new kerb is not damaged by the works. In practice that means: get the crossing approved, then have the drive laid, then have the crossing built.
That is where we come in. We do not build vehicle crossings on the public highway; that is for the council or its accredited contractor. What we do is lay the drive behind it, set to the right levels so it meets the back of the crossing cleanly, and handle the drainage so no water runs onto the pavement. Councils are clear on that last point: a driveway should be built to stop water running onto the highway, and a front garden over 5 square metres needs to be permeable or drain to a lawn or border unless you have planning permission. A permeable surface such as our resin bound driveways deals with that without a separate soakaway.
Dropped kerb questions, answered
Can I park across my own dropped kerb?
Usually, yes. Section 86 of the Traffic Management Act 2004 bans parking across a dropped footway in a special enforcement area, but it makes an exception for a vehicle parked outside residential premises by, or with the consent of, the occupier. The exception does not apply to a shared driveway. Separately, the Highway Code advises drivers not to stop or park in front of an entrance to a property.
Can I extend an existing dropped kerb?
Yes, through the same application and inspection. In Wolverhampton the total length still cannot go beyond seven kerbs.
Is there help for disabled residents?
Some councils offer it. Wolverhampton points disabled residents to its Independent Living service about financial assistance with a crossing.
How much does a dropped kerb cost?
It is the council's fees plus the construction, and both vary a lot between councils. Sandwell, for example, quotes around £1,600 for a typical standard crossing on top of its £250 inspection fee, and says extra items such as traffic management or moving street furniture can push that up significantly.
If you are budgeting for the whole job, our guide to what a new driveway costs covers the drive itself, and the kerb or block edging you choose at the pavement line is covered in our post on driveway edging ideas. If you are in Wolverhampton or the surrounding towns, we are happy to look at the frontage and the levels on a free site visit before you apply, so the drive and the crossing line up.
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