Goodbye to green - collateral damage and 'verge-grabbing'

I wrote to Bexley Council recently, inquiring about the status of verge protection legislation, and lamenting the damage I have seen locally and the fact that the Council appears to do nothing about it, not even appealing to the public to desist in its own public magazine. The Council's Enviro-crime Unit state that is illegal to park a vehicle on or drive over [a] verge and footway to gain access to a property without a properly constructed vehicular crossing. I was invited to report incidences of the same. In a letter below the following pictures, which show the extent of some of this damage, I explain why I am reluctant to do so. My worry - the likelihood of 'verge-grabbing' (sanctioned or otherwise) as the 'easy way out' - being illustrated in the final photograph.









Reply to Enviro-crimes Unit, 15/2/2010.

Belated thanks for your very prompt and helpful reply to my inquiry.

I could easily report numerous examples of driving over verges and
footways, but am reluctant to do so until I have determined what the
Council's longer term action would be in such cases.

The cynic in me fears that it might take the 'easy' option and simply
encourage or allow such residents to widen driveways, resulting in
permanent loss of yet more verge. Enough was lost hereabouts some years
ago when the already dropped kerbs and entranceways were widened.
According to a workman I challenged at the time, this was allegedly
necessitated by 'EU legislation'.

I have noticed two recent, local examples of people concreting over a
corner of the verge where they were previously driving over it, without
any notices being put up allowing public objection. I will inquire as to
whether these actions were approved, or done on a 'freelance' basis, since
I think it important to determine whether the Council desires to protect
public amenity over a minor 'inconvenience' to private car owners - or
not.

Yours sincerely, Chris Rose.


If anyone complains, will the Council protect public amenity, or give private motorists licence to annexe chunks of verge for their own convenience (having already paved over much, sometimes all of their front gardens for the sake of multiple car-parking)? Above - corner of verge recently concreted over in favour of a resident for whom a front garden was of no value and a one car's-width entranceway just wasn't enough.