Grass Verges in Elmbridge

Elmbridge Borough Council has been monitoring the maintenance of the highway grass verges contract on behalf of Surrey County Council as part of an agency agreement that started on the 1st April 2009.

The total area of grass verges in Elmbridge is approximately 830,000 thousand square metres and includes highway verges adjacent to pavements and roads, as well as central reservations and sight lines at junctions.

There are two categories of grass verge: urban Grass and rural Grass.

Urban Grass Cutting

Urban areas are defined as those where the grass verges are in built-up areas, and within 30 or 40 mph speed limits.

Grass cutting within urban areas is carried out to a higher frequency than verges in rural areas

Elmbridge plans to annually carry out eleven urban grass cuts, on a three weekly schedule (depending on weather, and growing conditions).

Frequent grass cutting on urban verges promotes a safe environment and a tidy appearance.

Rural Grass Cutting

Grass cutting in rural areas is not required so regularly, and therefore is carried out twice during the growing season. This lower frequency promotes flora and fauna, by encouraging wildlife habitats, whilst contributing to a more natural appearance along our rural roads

Grass cutting in rural areas is important for a number of reasons, and Elmbridge aims to:

- Maintain visibility, particularly at sight lines and junctions
- Prevent grass from overhanging and encroaching onto roads and footways
- Prevent the obscuring of road signs, edge posts and other highway furniture, such as bollards etc.
- Provide a strip or verge that is cut for pedestrian safety