My new gaff has a dropped kerb into its driveway. It’s all pukka, and was put in by the council when the place was built in 1980. However, it has become very ‘undropped’ ; presumably after road plaining or something changing the height of the road surface, and now its a hell of a bump to drive over it. Is it my responsibility to sort it or as it is part of the pavement, the council’s, or someone else? Any one know?

Logic says they changed the road height, then they should sort it. However this is highways… so anybodies guess.

My parents had a slowly collapsing retaining wall, next to the road, which was built by the council long long ago, like 60+ years. They refused any liability to remedy it. However, a passing comment from my Dad to a friend and it turns out it was the crowd that looks after bridges and railway embakments who do this sort of thing, not highways. Four years of to and fro fixed up n less than a month.

You’re going to have to speak to the council anyway, as you can’t do any work on dropped kerbs yourself (or directly employ somebody else to). That doesn’t mean they won’t try and make you pay for the work, but it does probably put you in a stronger position than if they could just tell you to fix it yourself. Fundamentally as there is officially a “dropped kerb” there which has already been “paid for” and the problem is wholly on council owned land rather than private property then it should be up to them to fix it – good luck!

That’s what I was thinking along the lines of, but I’m wondering if there is some kind of defined standard as to how harsh the ‘bump’ into the property has to be before the curb is regarded as not ‘dropped’ enough. Prob best just to as the council.

Bit if a first world problem I know, but it does feel like it is battering my and the better halfs cars.

Pfft old plank of wood in the gutter

If you are fancy you could cut it into two foot long pieces and place them where the tyres will go.

No enterprising spirit in the UK anymore i tell thee

…you can’t do any work on dropped kerbs yourself (or directly employ somebody else to).

You can, but the paperwork & approvals required from the council mean it’s a lot easier to just get them to do it.

We had our front garden reworked a couple of years ago and a new drop kerb put in. I remember the forms for this.

(West Berkshire FWIW, YMMV)

Could try fixmystreet.com

The word on my street, long ago, was to the effect that you put a wooden step or ramp in. Then when the council are working in the road, they’ll fix the dropped kerb.

Yours is already paid for and they’ve messed it up, but thanks to the bankers the councils have no money.

Can you post a pic?

How big is the step? Even after planing the levels shouldn’t change that much as the wearing course would go back down as before.
Come to think of it why not go and get a couple of bags of cold lay tarmac and form a couple of ramps. Take ten minutes tops.

Current regs are a 15mm upstand not including the bullnose (the rounded bit). Yours sounds in excess of this but the reality is the Highway Authority are only going to put a fillet in, if that. Personally i’d do what Wrightyson says, assuming it’s not going to muck up drainage run.

https://goo.gl/photos/oUQ9GCkJuR4tN9wd9

Bad photo, I’m afraid, but it’s 50-60 mm to the bottom of the rounded bit.

I’d be happy with any solution that a) wouldn’t get me into any grief and b) would stop battering our cars. From what people are saying, it sounds like it’s worth chatting with the council.

From what most people are saying it sounds like the easiest thing by far is just to put something there to fill the gap yourself. It would have probably been quicker than taking the photo and writing the posts…

Any work you do on it that involves digging is ‘breaking out the public highway ‘, requires permission and strictly speaking the council could get you for it. In reality, they won’t, for the same reason they won’t fix it for you . Cash.

I would mix up a bucket of asphalt and slap it on there . Sounds hilarious but people I knew in the London Cycling Campaign did that when their requests to London Boroughs for dropped kerbs fell on deaf ears. I know some bad people 😆

It would have probably been quicker than taking the photo and writing the posts…

Indeed, but I’m in the middle of a renovating a house, and the last thing I needed was some council jobsworth turning up and causing grief

Round here the word on the street is Slow.

I’m guessing your car is still running the old standard 26″ wheels. You need to upgrade it to a model with 29″ wheels and it will roll over the kerb far easier. Problem solved

A dod of wood the length of the dropped kerb will resolve that whilst you wait on the council to do something (or possibly nothing).

Find a heavy lorry with a hydraulic stabiliser thing. Park lorry next to troublesome kerb. Deploy stabiliser on kerb. Problem solved.