Grass cutting
Grass cutting
We cut grass on highway verges to help maintain visibility and keep road users safe. We don’t cut grass on public open spaces, village greens, or verges that aren’t part of the adopted public highway. Some roads in Staffordshire are maintained by other authorities, such as National Highways.
Some housing associations also cut grass on land they own.
We manage grass cutting through two programmes: rural and urban. Several delivery partners carry out this work on our behalf.
Rural grass cutting
Our priority in rural areas is safety and visibility. We don’t collect grass cuttings—they are left to mulch down into the verge.
Rural cutting is done on roads with speed limits of 40mph and above. There are two regimes:
- Priority 1 routes: 1 metre wide cut, three times a year
- Priority 2 routes: 1 metre wide cut, twice a year
Some areas are only cut once a year to protect local wildlife. Junctions and bends are usually cut to full width for visibility.
Urban grass cutting
Urban cutting is done on roads with speed limits of 30mph or less. It may be carried out by district, borough or parish councils.
Urban grass is cut at least six times during the growing season. Our focus is safety and visibility, not appearance. Cuttings are not collected and are left to mulch down.
Some local councils may choose to do extra cuts to improve the look of an area. We offer advice and guidance to councils who want to carry out grass cutting or other roadside maintenance.
To report an issue with grass on a highway verge, please use the report It tool.
