Parking on or across a dropped kerb: rules, enforcement and how to report it

What counts as a dropped kerb for enforcement

Section 86 applies where the footway, cycle track or verge has been lowered to meet the carriageway (or the carriageway has been raised to meet it) for one of three purposes: helping pedestrians cross, helping cyclists enter or leave the carriageway, or helping vehicles enter or leave the carriageway across the footway, cycle track or verge. That covers vehicle crossovers to driveways, pedestrian dropped kerbs at crossings, and raised tables that meet the same purpose.

Richmond's parking enforcement page (a worked London example) notes that the sloping tapers either side of a crossover are not part of the dropped section: the vehicle must be parked in front of the flat dropped footway where it meets the carriageway, or overhanging that section, before the prohibition is treated as engaged. Other councils may describe the geometry slightly differently — use your own authority's guidance.

Highway Code rule 243

Rule 243 lists places where you should not stop or park. Two of the bullets matter for dropped kerbs:

• where the kerb has been lowered to help wheelchair users and powered mobility vehicles
• in front of an entrance to a property

The rule applies except when you are forced to stop by stationary traffic. Elsewhere in Great Britain the Highway Code's wording shows whether a point is advisory or backed by a specific statute. Civil parking enforcement under the Traffic Management Act is separate from the Highway Code text: many authorities enforce dropped-kerb parking as a civil contravention where they are a special enforcement area.

Traffic Management Act 2004 section 86

In a special enforcement area, a vehicle must not be parked on the carriageway adjacent to a dropped or raised footway, cycle track or verge for the pedestrian, cyclist or vehicle-access purposes above. The prohibition is enforceable as if it had been imposed by a traffic order (in Greater London under section 6 of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984; elsewhere in England and Wales under section 1 of that Act).

"Parking" in section 86 includes waiting, but does not include stopping where the driver is prevented from proceeding by circumstances beyond their control, needs to stop to avoid an accident, or stops only as long as needed to let people board or alight.

Statutory exceptions under section 86

Section 86 itself lists the exceptions. Paraphrased:

1. Authorised parking place. The vehicle is parked wholly within a designated parking place or another part of the carriageway where parking is specifically authorised.
2. Occupier consent at a single residential driveway. The vehicle is parked outside residential premises by or with the consent (not given for reward) of the occupier. This exception does not apply to a shared driveway.
3. Emergency services. Fire brigade or police purposes, or ambulance / NHS ambulance emergency response purposes (as defined in the Act).
4. Loading and unloading. Delivering or collecting goods, or loading or unloading, where that cannot reasonably be done without parking adjacent to the dropped kerb, for no longer than necessary and for no more than 20 minutes.
5. Certain works. Building works, local-authority waste collection, removing a traffic obstruction, works to the road, traffic signs or lighting, or works to sewers, water, gas, electricity or communications — again only where the vehicle cannot be used for that purpose without parking there, and only for as long as necessary.

Read the full wording on legislation.gov.uk. Local enforcement policies add practical detail (for example when a complaint is needed before a PCN is issued).

London and borough practice

In London, boroughs typically enforce dropped-kerb parking on most roads. Red routes are a separate network: Transport for London enforces parking on the red-route network. Do not assume every London road is enforced the same way.

Richmond's published practice (updated 19 May 2026) is a useful illustration, not a UK-wide rule:

• For a dropped kerb serving a single property, the occupier may park there and may give permission for others to park, provided no other restrictions (such as yellow lines or zig-zag markings) apply and it is safe. A PCN for someone else's vehicle may be issued if the resident complains that the vehicle does not have permission.
• For a dropped kerb serving two or more properties (a shared driveway), residents are not permitted to park adjacent to it and cannot give permission for others. A PCN may be issued without a complaint.

PCN amounts and complaint routes vary by borough and change over time. We do not publish fine figures here. Use find your council or your borough's parking pages for current local rules.

Scotland

Highway Code rule 243 adds that in Scotland you MUST NOT double park or park anywhere the kerb has been lowered to help pedestrians or cyclists, with exceptions only in limited circumstances (law: Transport (Scotland) Act, part 6). Scottish roads authorities and local parking enforcement differ from the England and Wales civil framework under TMA section 86. Check your local council for how it enforces blocked driveways.

How to report a vehicle blocking your drive

Processes differ by authority. Typical steps:

1. Confirm the vehicle is on the carriageway adjacent to the flat dropped section (not only on a sloping taper), and that no yellow lines, bay markings or other restrictions change the picture.
2. If it is a single-property crossover and you are the occupier, note whether you have given consent — under section 86, your consent is an exception for that case only (not for shared drives).
3. Contact your local parking enforcement team through your council's website or published parking contact route. Many London boroughs are complaint-led for single-property access.
4. On a red route in London, use TfL's parking enforcement contacts rather than the borough's.
5. For an emergency obstruction (for example blocking emergency access), contact the police via the non-emergency route your force publishes, or 999 if life is at risk.

We do not publish phone numbers here — they go out of date and differ by area. Start with find your highway authority, then open that council's parking or dropped-kerb enforcement pages. Our council fee league table links each highway authority we have checked.

If the crossing itself may be unauthorised

Parking enforcement is about vehicles on the carriageway next to a dropped kerb. Building or using a vehicle crossing without the highway authority's consent is a different issue under the Highways Act. See dropped kerb rules and can I get a dropped kerb? If you need a lawful crossing or a wider one, use the application guide and widening guide.

Questions people ask

Is parking across a dropped kerb illegal?

In a special enforcement area in England and Wales, parking on the carriageway adjacent to a dropped kerb for the purposes in TMA section 86 is prohibited unless an exception applies, and it can be enforced with a PCN. Highway Code rule 243 also says you should not park there. Outside special enforcement areas, or where an exception applies, the picture differs — check your council.

Can I park across my own dropped kerb?

Section 86 allows parking outside residential premises with the occupier's consent (not for reward) at a single residential driveway. That exception does not apply to a shared driveway. Other restrictions on the road (yellow lines, zig-zags, red routes) can still ban parking even with consent.

What about the sloping kerbs either side?

Richmond's guidance says the sloping tapers are not part of the dropped section for enforcement. Other authorities may word this differently. Check local guidance before you assume a car next to a taper is or is not in contravention.

How much is the fine?

We do not publish PCN amounts. They are set by the enforcing authority and change. Check your council's or TfL's parking penalty pages for current figures.

Does this apply to pedestrian dropped kerbs at crossings?

Section 86 covers footways lowered (or carriageways raised) to help pedestrians cross, as well as vehicle crossovers and cyclist access. Highway Code rule 243 separately covers kerbs lowered for wheelchair users and powered mobility vehicles.