Last amended by Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 in 2000. Amended the law on public rights of way, including provisions on the definitive map and the creation, diversion, and extinguishment of paths.
Independent editorial summary — not the official statute text. Read the official version on legislation.gov.uk.
Summary
The Highways Act 1980 is the principal consolidating statute on highways in England and Wales. It identifies the highway authorities and their duties, governs the creation, improvement, maintenance, and stopping up or diversion of highways (including footpaths and bridleways), and creates a range of offences for interfering with the highway. Central provisions include the duty in s.41 to maintain highways maintainable at public expense, the s.38 mechanism by which new estate roads are 'adopted' by agreement, the s.278 mechanism by which developers fund works to the existing network, and the s.137 offence of wilfully obstructing the highway. A highway authority can be liable in damages for injury caused by failure to maintain, subject to the special defence in s.58.
Key Points
- Duty to maintain highways maintainable at public expense (s.41), with a statutory defence of reasonable care (s.58)
- Section 38 agreements — a developer can agree for a new road to be adopted and thereafter maintained at public expense
- Section 278 agreements — a developer funds works to the existing highway network
- Criminal offence to wilfully obstruct the free passage along a highway (s.137)
- Powers to create highways and to divert or stop up footpaths and bridleways (Parts III and VIII)
- Dedication of a way as a highway can be presumed from 20 years' public use (s.31)
Parts & Sections
Amendments History
1991 — New Roads and Street Works Act 1991
Introduced the modern street-works code regulating works by utilities and others in the highway, amending the Highways Act framework.
2000 — Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000
Amended the law on public rights of way, including provisions on the definitive map and the creation, diversion, and extinguishment of paths.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the main purpose of the Highways Act 1980?
- The Highways Act 1980 is the principal consolidating statute governing highways in England and Wales. It identifies highway authorities and their duties, manages the creation, improvement, and maintenance of roads, footpaths, and bridleways, and defines offences for interfering with the highway. It also provides mechanisms for adopting new estate roads and funding works to existing networks.
- Who is responsible for maintaining public roads and what defence do they have?
- Under Section 41, highway authorities have a core duty to maintain highways that are maintainable at public expense. However, if a claim for damages is made due to injury caused by failure to maintain, the authority can use the statutory defence in Section 58. This defence allows them to argue that they took reasonable care in maintaining the highway.
- How does a new road built by a developer become a public highway?
- A Section 38 agreement allows a developer to agree with a highway authority that a newly built road will be adopted. Once adopted, the road becomes a highway maintainable at public expense. This means the local authority takes over responsibility for its future maintenance, rather than the developer or residents managing it privately.
- Is it illegal to block a public road or path?
- Section 137 makes it a criminal offence for a person, without lawful authority or excuse, to wilfully obstruct the free passage along a highway. This provision is designed to prevent intentional blockages that hinder the movement of people or vehicles on public roads and paths.
- Can a private path automatically become a public highway?
- Under Section 31, if the public has passed over a way as of right and without interruption for 20 years, the law presumes that the way has been dedicated as a highway. This presumption stands unless there is specific evidence showing that the landowner intended to prevent the way from becoming a public highway.
- What is a Section 278 agreement?
- A Section 278 agreement is a mechanism where a developer funds specific works to the existing highway network. This is distinct from adopting a new road; instead, it involves the developer paying for improvements or modifications to roads that are already maintained by the highway authority.