DIY jobs on a road - can I put cones out?

[essayer]

Our garden sides onto a country road and the boundary is an immense laurel/conifer combo that loves to expand in all directions

There's no pavement and, while I have a suitable ladder, I don't trust any road users not to drive into me, plus I need space to pick up rubbish etc.

Am I allowed to just buy cones and mark out an area of road to work in? Or do I need to get approval from the council?

[smokey mow]

essayer said:

Am I allowed to just buy cones and mark out an area of road to work in? Or do I need to get approval from the council?

No
Yes
But most people including myself would just get on and do it regardless.

[randlemarcus]

I'd be buying cones and marking off a safe area before asking "am I allowed to by the local government rules", on the grounds that a) I dont like to be run over and b) you'll have the work done, and the cones stored away before the council notice On the other point about picking up, have you tried a tarp under the work section, and then bag it from there - works for me.

[EBRANDON1]

I'd just crack on and do it probably.

[Scarletpimpofnel]

I'm in a similar situation and 3 times a year put cones out (traffic can pass but I get about a metre of working space which is enough for the smaller stuff) and crack on. Permits etc from the council cost money and a lot of paperwork/training etc.

Obviously take basic precautions like don't work in poor visibility and put cones far enough out or around bends for cars to see them before they hit you.

[MrBig]

Scarletpimpofnel said:

I'm in a similar situation and 3 times a year put cones out (traffic can pass but I get about a metre of working space which is enough for the smaller stuff) and crack on. Permits etc from the council cost money and a lot of paperwork/training etc.

Obviously take basic precautions like don't work in poor visibility and put cones far enough out or around bends for cars to see them before they hit you.

This. My brother in law and I had to fell some trees at the top of my drive earlier this year, we knew it would be a 5 minute job to drop it and drag it to the pavement. Rather than go through the inevitable hassle and cost to go through official channels we just put my wife in the truck to block the road with the hazards on.

[Om]

I would just park my car (if it is fairly expendable) in the appropriate position. Assuming its not a clearway it isn't an unreasonable obstruction and would afford far better protection than a couple of cones should someone get it wrong.

[s p a c e m a n]

Yeah I'd just park my car before the working area so that people slow down and move over, cones aren't going to save you.

[steveo3002]

car with its hazzards on would at least offer some protection for you

as for the cones , no doubt weeks begging the council to allow it , id just go ahead and use them and if anythings said theyre not mine some chap in a transit left them there

[Yellow Lizud]

essayer said:

Our garden sides onto a country road and the boundary is an immense laurel/conifer combo that loves to expand in all directions

There's no pavement and, while I have a suitable ladder, I don't trust any road users not to drive into me, plus I need space to pick up rubbish etc.

Am I allowed to just buy cones and mark out an area of road to work in? Or do I need to get approval from the council?

Are people really this paranoid?
What kind of world are we creating?

And we wonder why everything costs so much nowadays.

[Snow and Rocks]

I cut my brother's hedge in a similar situation and tend to just park the pickup and trailer on the road next to where I'm working.

I wouldn't hesitate to stick some cones out if you have them though - the worst a guy from the council is going to do is come along and tell you to take them in.

[Arrivalist]

smokey mow said:

essayer said:

Am I allowed to just buy cones and mark out an area of road to work in? Or do I need to get approval from the council?

No
Yes
But most people including myself would just get on and do it regardless.

This would be my approach too.

[Leptons]

Can you imagine? They’ll send someone out to do a risk assessment then you’ll have to do it to council spec. Probably to include 5 way traffic lights by an approved council contractor.

Just park a car there and be done with it.

[PaulD86]

Chapter 8, aka The Red Book, outlines the legal traffic management required - this isn't something dictated by the council. Doing things officially, the local authority would need to give a street occupation permit which may be chargable. In short the answer to your question is no.

With regard to sensible advice, I think this hinges on the nature of the country road. Is it a lane that sees a dozen cars a day, or is it the A34? Make a sensible assessment of the likely risk and proceed from there. If there is traffic regularly passing at 60mph in oposing directions? I wouldn't want to be working with just a few cones for protection if your asnwer is yes. If you know you'll see very few cars then tha may be a different kettle of fish.

Advanced warning is going to be beneficial if the location is poorly sighted on approach, but ultimately you just need to look at the likely risks and take sensible steps to mitigate them. I'd be inclined to say that I'd just get on with it as safetly as I could, but there really isn't enough information on the situation to give sound advice and the fact you've said you don't trust road users not to drive into you does make me wonder if this may actually be quite a busy road. If it is and you have real safety concerns, a few cones isn't the answer and you should maybe think about calling in a contractor to do the work.

I'm far from being the most health and safety of people, but when you see the stats on people injured in road works you start to understand why they are designed as they are. If you're not sure what you are doing is safe, it probably isn't. I know this isn't the PH advice approach, but working at the side of country roads is dangerous and some risks aren't worth taking.

[omniflow]

People in a house at the end of Bangors Lane South near Iver High St had their garden wall rebuilt recently (presumably after someone hit it with a vehicle). This resulted in 3 way traffic lights at each road off the nearby roundabout for about 2 months. The bloke rebuilding the wall seemed to lay about 1 brick per day. The traffic lights were totally unnecessary and caused significant delays.

[Tommo87]

I’ve seen people put out cones for broken down cars before, presumably because there were no warning triangles, and nobody batt an eyelid.


Don’t overthink it, you aren’t going to be raided by an armed response unit for being helpful to others,

[P675]

Buy cones?

[essayer]

Thanks all for opinions.

The road is a 30 limit but on a blind bend and people do drive like dicks with an expectation of it being two way.

What I need is a tractor with one of those big cutters on the back..

[mikef]

I do this sort of thing at 7am on a Sunday, no or negligible traffic. Couple of cones and hi-viz

[Snow and Rocks]

essayer said:

Thanks all for opinions.

What I need is a tractor with one of those big cutters on the back..

If you're in a rural area keep an eye out for the council contractor doing the verges. My dad flags him down every year and gives him £20 to give his hedge a tidy up. Sometimes a bit severe but saves a lot of work up a ladder!