The Road Safety Authority (RSA), the County and City Management Association (CCMA), and the Irish Road Haulage Association (IRHA) have jointly called on landowners to cut their hedgerows to prevent road safety hazards.
Hedges can be cut between 1 September and the end of February, as permitted under the Wildlife Act 1976. Hedge-cutting is otherwise prohibited from 1 March to 31 August, except where overgrowth poses a risk to road users.
Maintaining hedgerows properly is vital for road safety, ensuring that vulnerable road users are not forced onto the carriageway and that motorists have a clear view, particularly at junctions and bends on rural roads.
Sarah O’Connor, Director of Partnerships and External Affairs with the RSA, highlighted the risk posed by unmaintained hedgerows:
“Overgrown hedgerows can pose a road safety hazard. We all have a role to play in making roads safer, and landowners must take responsibility. Inaction could endanger lives.”
Landowners are being urged to act now to ensure compliance with regulations and avoid potential enforcement actions from local authorities.
Barry Kehoe, Chair of the CCMA Transport, Infrastructure and Networks Committee and Chief Executive of Westmeath County Council, reinforced this message:
“Local authorities have an important role to ensure that roadside verges are maintained and that local road safety issues are dealt with, whilst also recognising the importance of hedgerows and biodiversity. Landowners and anyone living along the roadside have a responsibility to check that hedges and trees on their property are not causing a road safety hazard. If they are, the landowners should take the necessary steps needed to ensure road safety. We are also calling on members of the public to report road safety issues caused by overgrowth to their local authority, which can then contact the landowner.”
A 2024 Ipsos B&A survey commissioned by the RSA found that 75% of 620 HGV drivers reported overgrown roadside hedgerows as a challenge while driving.
The IRHA has also urged landowners to consider the height of trucks and trailers when cutting hedgerows.
Ger Hyland, President of the IRHA, warned of the dangers posed by encroaching hedgerows:
*”Overgrown hedgerows pose a serious hazard to all road users, particularly for high-sided vehicles such as trucks. When hedges encroach onto the road, truck drivers are often forced to veer across the white line in order to avoid damage to their vehicles and wing mirrors, creating a dangerous situation for all road users.
We urge landowners to take action and ensure hedgerows are trimmed back, not just at the roadside, but also at the necessary height – over 4 metres to accommodate our larger vehicles.”*
Under Section 70 of the Roads Act 1993, the responsibility for maintaining roadside hedges lies with the owners or occupiers of adjoining land, while local authorities are responsible for maintaining roadside verges. Hedge-cutting is permitted between 1 September and 28 February, with exceptions only for road safety concerns.
Authorities are encouraging landowners to take action now, ensuring roads remain safe for all users.