21.9.1
Section 36(6) of the Highways Act 1980 states that ‘…the council of every county [metropolitan district] and London borough and the Common Council shall cause to be made, and shall keep corrected up to date, a list of the streets within their area which are highways maintainable at the public expense….’
21.9.2
In March 2012, the Court of Appeal clarified the law by stating that the List of Streets could be held in an electronic format. In the case of Fortune v Wilts CC and Taylor Wimpey [2012] EWCA Civ 334, it was ruled that electronic format is a valid way of maintaining a List of Streets (sections 164 to 167), and that the fact that a list was not 100% perfect and correct did not invalidate it (sections 159-163).
21.9.3
The list must include any Streets in the Local Highway Authority area which are maintainable by National/Regional Highway Authorities, because these organisations are not responsible for creating a List of Streets.
21.9.4
Although the Highways Act does not prescribe what information must be on the List of Streets, and a list of street names would fulfil the letter of the law, most Local Highway Authorities include additional information in their list.
21.9.5
Companion lists may also be compiled for prospectively maintainable streets and private streets, including permissive paths. Although these do not form part of the s36(6) list, there is benefit to keeping them as lists in the same format as the list of Highways Maintainable at Public Expense. A list of Stopped Up Streets is also useful.
21.9.6
It is possible to create a List of Streets for s36(6) Highways Act 1980 using data from the LSG and ASD. The basic information is held in the Street Adoption code in the type 61 Record. For full details of the type 61 Record, see Section 14.
21.9.7
If the LSG and ASD are used to create this list, apply the following rules:
- Any Street which is Maintainable at Public Expense must be included.
- Any Street which is not Maintainable at Public Expense must not be included.
- Any Closed Street must not be included. This is because to be closed, the Street’s highway rights must be removed.
21.9.8
The following additional information can be taken from the LSG:
USRN
USRN
5.3
Location
Town and Locality
10.1
Start and end points
Extremity point X and Y Fields
6.3
Public Rights
Street Classification Code
9.4
Maintenance
Street Adoption Code and ODD
14.3
21.9.10
The following additional information can be taken from the LSG using a GIS system to process the data:
Length
ESU Coordinates
Classification
Type 3 Streets
Road Number
Type 3 Streets
21.9.12
The Highway Records Working Group has produced advice on data which can be included within a List of Streets. The group was formed by Local Highway Authorities with the following remit:
- To exist as a forum for discussion and the sharing of experience and ideas, for those responsible for the List of Streets and for the Definitive Map and Statement.
- To develop a written guide to help authorities in the process of researching the status and extent of a Highway
- To identify issues around the current system (statute, regulation and guidance) for recording Highways
- To make constructive suggestions as to how the current system could be improved.
- To engage central government in ways of improving the current system.
21.9.13
The Highway Records Working Group:
- Proposes standards for the content of an authority’s highway record (excluding NSG). (Approved at the eighth meeting of the Highway Records Working Group on 11 February 2011).
- Suggests that an authority keeps a master record and applies filters to generate a List of Streets and a list of privately maintainable routes.
- Recommends that there is just one basic network record for the authority. Do not keep duplicate records for different purposes. For example, maintenance records can be based on what is publicly maintainable so should be based on the same maps/GIS centrelines as the List of Streets.
- Suggests that a master record can include everything (not just Maintainable at Public Expense), for example:
- Maintainable at Public Expense.
- Part Maintainable at Public Expense. (For example, if a cycle/footway strip is maintainable but roadway is not).
- Privately maintainable Highways.
- Private roads (not Highways).
21.9.14
For advice on information to be included in a List of Streets, see table below.
Routes
Highways Maintainable at Public Expense.
PRoWs which are maintainable at public expense.
As Legal Minimum plus:
Motorways.
Trunk roads.
Classified roads.
Unclassified roads.
Cycle Tracks (1984 Act).
Footpaths and ‘divorced. footways’
All PRoWs.
Does not include privately maintainable highways
As Bronze plus:
Private roads.
Permissive routes (including Cycle Routes)
Routes pending adoption.
Unknown
Attribute Data
No details are specified in the legislation
USRN.
Road number.
Road name.
Parish or locality.
Start point (preferably a description otherwise a coordinate).
End point (as start point).
Approximate length.
Caveat on the information.
As Bronze plus:
Highway rights, for example vehicular or pedestrian.
Coordinates (start and end points).
Maintenance responsibility, that is, by whom the Street is maintained.
Adoption date (if known).
Links to GIS.
As Silver plus:
Flag to indicate whether on Definitive Map or not.
Reason for inclusion for example:
An agreement under Section 38 of the Highways Act 1980s.
Researched historical Street.
A side roads order.
Unknown.
Verified (whether or not researched).
References or links to other documents.
Maps
No details are specified in the legislation
Not necessary
Centreline for all routes.
Polygon layer extent for newly recorded or researched routes.
Up to date base map.
Data accurate at a scale of 1:2500.
Legend applied as a default.
Caveat on the information.
Data accurate at 1:1250 in urban areas.
Defined open or closed network, not just poor
Digitising.
As Gold plus:
Polygon extents for all highways.
Note: Items marked in italics are still subject to agreement with GeoPlace and Ordnance Survey.
21.9.16
Other issues - yet to be resolved
How can these be depicted (problematic to do so on a paper map)?
Subways.
Overbridges
Flyovers.
How will errors be corrected?
Work has been started on a separate checklist covering this.
Lengths
There are two separate lengths - digitised lengths (map lengths) and measured lengths (chainage).
Part maintainable
If part maintainable, the maintainable part should be included in a List of Streets, for example Abc Road Footway and Cycleway, whilst the privately maintainable highway could be recorded separately as Abc Road excluding the footway/cycleway.
A caveat should be drawn up to cover the following
Best of our knowledge.
Not definitive as to the status of any highway.
Accurate at a particular date.
Not to scale (not measurable).
21.9.18 Inclusion of Public Rights of Way in a List of Streets
Section 36(6) refers to Highways Maintainable at Public Expense and this would include those Public Rights of Way which are Maintainable at Public Expense. However, local custom and practice often means that the Definitive Map is kept as a separate document and there is some overlap between the documents.