Roadside verges to be kept in better shape by St Albans and Herts councils

The damaged grass verge on the crescent off the Ridgeway (Image: Archant)

St Albans council has been working with Herts County Council on maintaining highways.

It follows complaints from the like of Phil Caley, who said: “Having lived at on The Ridgeway for over 14 years, nothing has ever been done to repair the verge outside my property, indeed it was in a poor state when we moved in.

“Last year the verges were cut on four occasions, the first being at least six weeks late, so by the time the contractors got round to it, many residents had already trimmed them.

“By the third cut, the grass was so wet the contractors didn’t so much as cut the grass, but pulled it out of the ground.”

Mr Caley said he recently parked his car on a verge outside his home while unloading topsoil.

When he returned to his car, he found a notice asking him not to park there as Sandridge Parish Council “tries hard to maintain the verges in good order”.

He said: “I do park on the verge in the evening and at weekends to stop people using it as a parking bay for the post box across the road and to stop people blocking my drive.

“The topsoil was to fill in the hole in the verge outside my property the council haven’t managed to do for 14 years.”

A report by St Albans councillors has since revealed some success from attempts to improve the upkeep of verges.

The environment committee reported on its investigation into grass cutting, gully drain cleaning, and street sweeping last week.

Committee chair Anthony Rowlands said: “A year ago the committee was very concerned district and county were not working effectively together on behalf of residents.

“There are signs improvements have been made to keep our roads and pavements looking good, but also signs there is still some way to go.

“One thing we would like to see are protective guards around the base of trees to protect them from damage when the grass is being strimmed.

“The main message we have sent to the county council is further improvements like this must be made, and our own officers will work with them.”

“We will as a committee be monitoring these issues very closely.”