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Find out about changes to our services and Christmas opening times on our Festive information page. To find out when your bin will be collected over the festive period, visit Changes to County Durham bin collections at Christmas.

Due to maintenance, the following systems will be unavailable from 11.45am on Tuesday 24 December until 8.00am on Thursday 2 January: our online Council Tax, business rates and housing benefit services, and our welfare assistance form. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

Vehicle access over kerbs


If you need to drive over the pavement or verge to park on your property, you need to apply for a licence to have a properly constructed crossing. You also need to apply if you are wanting to extend and existing crossing.

Please follow the process below to apply for a licence.

You may need planning advice

You will need to get planning advice before you apply for a licence if either/both of the following apply:

  • the access is on to a classified road (A, B or C road)
  • you are using tarmac, concrete or a resin bound surface for your driveway

Applying for a licence

Note: there is a £165 licence fee.

What happens next

After we receive your application, we will check to make sure the location is suitable for vehicle access.

If you are successful, you will receive a confirmation letter, which will include a list of our registered contractors. We always advise contacting more than one contractor to get a competitive price for your work. Once you have a contractor organised, you will be required to pay for your licence prior to starting any works.

If you are unsuccessful, you will be contacted and the reasons will be explained. No fee will be charged.

Getting the crossing built

Only contractors registered with us can carry out the work. Before starting work your contractor must:

  • give us a minimum of seven days notice before the start of the work, so we can issue them a street works permit (there is no charge for this permit)
  • contact our Report a problem with a street light or illuminated sign team to confirm if any street lighting equipment is likely to be affected
  • give notice to any companies who have pipes, cables etc in the area, eg gas, water, electricity, that may be affected
  • comply with our work specification stated in your licence

It is illegal to place ramps in the road to access your property. Ramps can be dangerous to pedestrians, cyclists and passing vehicles and may obstruct the flow of surface water on the road. If an illegal crossing has been constructed or it is considered to be in a dangerous location, you may need to reconstruct the crossing to an approved standard or remove it completely.



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