Frequently Asked Questions

Question:

Do I need permission to erect a traffic mirror on a road?

Answer:

No council, including this one, is able to provide permission or to erect traffic mirrors on the highway.

Whilst a traffic mirror may well help those joining a road from a visibility impaired junction, a traffic mirror placed in the highway is legally classed as an obstruction on the highway. It, therefore, cannot be put up without the express permission of the Department for Transport and that requires extensive site investigation application information.

Permission is very rarely given and is reserved only for the very poorest of busy junctions with a significant collision history and generally only on a temporary basis until junction improvements are made.

There are two further concerns:

• the sun or lights from a vehicle emerging from a private access may shine onto the mirror and reflect into the eyes of an approaching motorist, causing considerable confusion and possibly an accident, and
• the emerging driver may rely on the mirror, even though it might have become obscured, no longer be visible or indeed not even facing in the right direction any more.

The DfT stance will always be that junction improvements should be made to improve visibility rather than to rely on the dubious benefits of positioning a traffic mirror. It must also be stressed that in the event of a traffic mirror being installed by Herefordshire Council/Amey without DfT permission and a collision occurs then the council/Amey would be liable to prosecution.

For further information please contact Streetscene on 01432 261800 or email streets@herefordshire.gov.uk