The appellant complained that the local council had failed to maintain a highway. The road was a single track rural highway. The Crown Court allowed for the present-day character of the highway, and the appellant objected. The complainant sought to hold a highway authority responsible for making verges reasonably available for the use of walkers, cyclists and horse-riders by extending the metalled carriageway over them.
Held: The claim failed. The state of the road was a matter of fact for the Crown Court, and the appellate court should not interfere. The highway included the verges, but this did not create any obligation to extend the roadway to allow use to be made of the verges. The question was whether the road as a whole was in a fit state for use by ordinary traffic, allowing for the character of the highway.
Judges:
Scott Baker J
Citations:
Gazette 23-Aug-2001, [2001] EWHC Admin 616
Links:
Statutes:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Citing:
Cited – Burnside v Emerson CA 1968
A car crashed as a result of running into a pool of storm-water lying across the road. The pool had been caused by the authority’s failure properly to maintain the drainage system, which had become blocked.
Held: The claim succeeded. Diplock . .
Cited – Burnside and Another v Emerson and Others CA 1968
The plaintiffs were injured in a road accident caused by flooding. They sued the executors of the deceased driver whose car spun out of control into the path of their own car, and also the highway authority, who had installed a proper system of . .
Cited by:
Cited – West Sussex County Council v Russell CA 12-Feb-2010
The council appealed against a finding that it had failed in its duty to keep the highway safe leading to an accident in which the claimant was severely injured. The road was narrow, and a significant drop had developed by the edge of the road. The . .
Cited – Herrick and Another v Kidner and Another Admn 17-Feb-2010
Psychological Obstruction to Public Footpath
A public footpath crossed the appellants’ land. They constructed a gateway across it which they now accepted had been a significant obstruction of the right of way. The local authority served a notice requiring its removal, including the stone . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Local Government, Land
Updated: 01 February 2022; Ref: scu.140358