Trees causing highway or safety issues
You can report a tree problem on council-owned land where it causes a highway or safety issue. If the tree is imminently dangerous you must follow the procedure for reporting dangerous or fallen trees.
Trees causing a highway or safety issue may include overhanging branches which are obstructing the highway, road, footpath or cycleway and pose a risk to motorists and pedestrians. We will inspect the following issues:
| Issue | Description |
|---|---|
| Branches blocking street lights | Where branches or foliage impairs or blocks the light from a public street light for highway or footpath users. |
| Branches blocking traffic signals | Where branches or tree growth impairs or blocks the view of drivers or pedestrians to traffic signals or pedestrian crossings. |
| Branches impairing visibility | Where branches or tree growth impairs or blocks the view of drivers or pedestrians on the road, pavement or footpath and/or any signage. |
| Low branches obstructing a highway | Where low branches impair or block the safe unobstructed passage of drivers or pedestrians beneath the canopy of trees. |
| Hedges need pruning | Where a hedge or plants growing from ground level block the unobstructed passage of drivers or pedestrians along a footpath or road. |
| Issue | Description |
| Vegetation obstructing a footpath/pavement (from private property) | Where tree, hedge or bush (vegetation) on private land is obstructing a public footpath or pavement. |
You can report any of the above issues online.
Before reporting an issue, we recommend creating a My Council account. This means you can track any issues you log. If you already have an account, make sure you are logged in before submitting a report otherwise you won't be able to track it.
Report a tree or hedge causing a highway or safety issue
Read our privacy notice which tells you how we use your data.
What happens next?
An arboriculturist will inspect the trees and identify any remedial work that is needed. This is logged on a register of tree work in order of risk and liability at that time, on a citywide basis.
Due to the volume of requests, demand for tree work and the limited resource available for delivering tree services, we have established a priority-based approach to deliver citywide tree work.
Each year, up to 20,000 trees are inspected and their condition assessed in terms of health and safety. The higher risk trees are prioritised ahead of some of those already on the work register because of the risk they pose. This makes it extremely difficult to programme ahead exactly which trees will be worked on in any year with accuracy.
We are not able to inform you when work will be scheduled in. This is because priority order may change or be delayed where higher risk works are identified and reported.
We do not respond to customer reports. However, we will update the case file, which you will be able to track if you submitted your report when logged in to your My Council account.