Take a look at some of the unadopted roads in our area
Take a look at some of the unadopted roads in our area
The saga of ‘unadopted’ roads has gone on for many years, not only in this area but also throughout the country, as this is a national problem. Nationally there are said to be approximately 40,000 unadopted roads. In the city of Sunderland this figure is around 250, the majority of which are in former mining communities.
Unadopted roads, often referred to as private roads, are roads that do not reach the minimum adoptable standards set by the local authority. As such, unadopted roads do not receive any maintenance by councils. Unadopted roads usually consist of a dirt or rubble-track that in many cases do not have basic services such as drainage and street lighting. Although referred to as private, many unadopted roads are also a public thoroughfare and therefore cannot be fenced off or obstructed.
It would appear that unadopted roads are a ‘legacy of the past’ something that just ‘came about’ over a period of time and several generations, in the days before planning regulations and Tarmac roads. The problem of unadopted roads continues to exist today because of disagreements between residents and local authorities over the financing of improvements. Many unadopted roads are also plagued by uncertainties/disputes regarding land ownership.
Judging from my own experience I suspect that many residents of unadopted roads buy such property when they are young, as first time buyers. The reason they buy a house in such a street is usually because that is all they can afford at the time.
Again, judging from my own experience as a first time buyer, I had no knowledge of unadopted roads. I simply or naively thought that such roads were waiting ‘their turn’ to be modernised as I had viewed other properties in other streets that had been made-up or landscaped. Solicitors, estate agents or vendors did not explain the situation regarding unadopted status. I suspect that many of today’s prospective buyers have no knowledge of unadopted roads. I also suspect that neither are they informed of the situation, either by the vendor, the estate agent or their solicitor.
Please click to read more about the problems of unadopted roads.
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