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Dropped kerbs

A dropped kerb allows vehicles to cross the pavement from the road to a driveway.

Apply for a dropped kerb

Please check that your property meets the dropped kerb criteria before applying. Not all applications are successful, and we can’t refund the fee.

Application costs

Oldham Council charges a non-refundable fee of £56.20 for dropped kerb applications.

This fee covers the costs of processing the application. It also covers the assessment of your property.

The fee applies regardless of your application’s success.

We will only allow dropped kerbs in suitable locations and must consider:

  • highway safety,
  • impact on traffic and pedestrians,
  • and engineering requirements.

Please wait for your application to be approved, and planning permission to be granted (if required) before building your driveway.

Criteria

Your property and driveway must:

  • Meet the minimum driveway length (usually 5m)*
  • Have a maximum width of 6 kerb lowered kerbstones, plus transition (sloped) kerbs
  • Have a maximum gradient of 10%
  • Be at least 10m from a junction**
  • Have no obstructions affecting the driveway

*The minimum driveway length may vary depending on specific circumstances.

Please refer to the Light Duty Vehicle Crossings Policy for full details.

**If the vehicle crossing is on a main road or near traffic lights, this distance may need to increase.

If you are a tenant, you should speak to your landlord as you may need their permission to make changes and park a car on their property.

You will also need to check if you need planning permission.

Planning permission

You may need planning permission to construct a dropped kerb or driveway if:

  • The access will be onto a classified road (A, B or classified unnumbered roads).
  • The property is a listed building
  • The property is in a conservation area
  • Vehicles weighing over 3,500kg will use the access.
  • The access will serve multiple homes
  • The access will serve a commercial building
  • Your driveway does not meet Sustainable Urban Drainage requirements*

* If your driveway will be over 5m2, it must comply with Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS) rules. Otherwise, you will need planning permission.

The GOV.UK website has published some guidance on this:

Applying for Planning Permission

You can apply for planning permission online:

If you have any questions about planning permission for your dropped kerb, please contact the planning team:

A planning application's success does not guarantee that highways will approve your request for dropped kerbs. There may be engineering or safety reasons why a dropped kerb should not be allowed. These reasons may not be considered in the planning process.

Please wait for your application to be approved, and planning permission to be granted (if required) before building your driveway.

Construction costs

Oldham Council does not allow other contractors to construct dropped kerbs. If your application is approved, you will also have to pay Oldham Council for the construction costs.

After you have paid an application fee, an officer will visit your property to assess your application. If it is successful, the officer will prepare a quote for the cost of the construction of the dropped kerb.

If a lamppost is in the way, you will need to phone the Street Lighting team to see if it can be moved and at what cost

If equipment or manholes are in the way, you will need to contact the company that owns them, to discuss the costs of any alterations which may be needed.

You must pay for their costs separately from the Council's work.

Policy

We will consider your dropped kerb application according to the Council's Light Duty Vehicle Crossings Policy.

Apply

Email the Highways Team to apply for a dropped kerb to a single house:

For any other kind of vehicle crossing please contact the planning team: