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Grass verges
Verges alongside the road are usually part of the public
highway. Maintenance (including grass cutting) of highway verges is
conducted on the Head of Highways and Parking Service's behalf by
the Greenspaces Department.
Other verges, particularly those in the former council estates
in the old Rochester Council area, are owned by mhs homes and are maintained by its
contractors.
Some verges are maintained by the council’s Community Services
Department as the housing authority and a few verges are
private.
If the condition of the grass verge outside your house requires
attention, please phone the number below and give an accurate
description of the location.
Service margins
On newer housing estates, "service margins" sometimes replace
the footway with a grassed area that provides access to service
ducts and cables.
There are two types of service margin:
- where the margin is dedicated as public highway by the
developer, the margin has the same status as a highway verge.
Although in normal circumstances, maintenance of the margin by
anyone other than the highway authority is discouraged, the local
policy is to allow cultivation with moderately-sized plants that
are unlikely to either damage the services beneath or obstruct
sight lines.
- where the adjoining landowner retains ownership of the margin,
but there is a condition attached to the deeds of the property that
allows statutory undertakers (public utility companies) to lay and
maintain their services in the service margin.
There is a tendency for householders to treat service margins as
part of their gardens. However, they should be left as verges, with
no fences, walls, etc. built on them.
The council has maps that show the ownership of verges and
service margins that can be viewed at the Civic Centre at a time
agreed with Highways Department staff.
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