Road occupation permits

Road occupation statutory notice periods

The law states that you must inform the Council of your intended start and finish dates and then keep us updated with your progress.   You may be fined if you fail to do so. 

Advance Notice 

How much advance notice you must give the Council is determined by 

  • the type of permit you are applying for 
  • whether the street you will be occupying or working in is categorised as *Traffic Sensitive.
  • the affect your intended works or road occupation will have on traffic flow for example will you require a road closure, lane occupation or other Temporary Traffic Regulation Order.

Statutory Notice Periods 

Your application should be submitted so that it gives at least the notice periods outlined below.  Please be aware that if there is a need for a site meeting to discuss the application, additional consultation, or additional information then the application process may take longer. 

The advance notice which you must give the Council is summarised below 

  • If a road closure or other temporary traffic regulation order is required you must the give the Council a minimum of 3 months prior notice of your intended start date. 
  • If the street you intend occupying or working in is listed as Traffic Sensitive you must give the Council a minimum of 8 weeks prior notice of your intended start date.  Please note that for skip permit applications, this requirement is 5 days. 
  • If the street you intend occupying or working in is not listed as Traffic Sensitive you must give the Council a minimum of 6 weeks prior notice of your intended start date.  Please note that for skip permit applications, this requirement is 5 days. 

Keeping the Council informed of your notified dates and progress 

You must confirm with us your start and finish dates and inform us of your progress. 

If your work or road occupation has not yet started and there is a change to the start or finish dates you previously informed us of, you must let us know as soon as possible. 

Once your work or road occupation has started you must inform us by no later than 5pm on the day you started work. Certain exemptions apply to skip permits. Please contact us for assistance. 

Once your work or road occupation is complete you must inform us by no later than 5pm on the day work was completed. 

About Traffic Sensitive Streets 

Some roads in Edinburgh are designated as "traffic-sensitive" because of their importance to traffic flow within the city.  Roads may be traffic-sensitive all of the time, or only for part of the time on certain days for example peak periods. 

You can download our list of Traffic Sensitive Streets to find out if your proposed works are likely to fall into this category.  The list shows whether or not the whole street is traffic-sensitive, or only a part of it, and the times at which it is designated as traffic-sensitive.  If the Street you intend to work in or occupy is not on this list then it is not designated traffic-sensitive.  

You should contact a neighbourhood Roads Officer if 

  • the whole road is not traffic-sensitive and you want to find out which sections are not
  • you think the works you are planning will be carried out wholly outwith the traffic-sensitive period for the street.