Vehicle crossing permits get a rev

Developing your property? Great news, the council has made it quicker, simpler and cheaper to get a vehicle crossing permit!

A vehicle crossing is the point or driveway where property owners access public roads. Anyone constructing, upgrading or relocating a vehicle crossing must get approval from the council. This is to ensure that vehicle crossings are safe, do not undermine public roads and comply with engineering standards. Those standards are outlined in the Vehicle Crossings Bylaw 2021. Failure to comply with the bylaw risks a fine of up to $20,000.

In the past, applicants were asked to allow 10 working days for the council to process applications and another 30 days to carry out a site visit, assess the application and issue a three-year approval permit. The applications were outsourced to external consultants because the council had no in-house engineering expertise. This resulted in higher costs for property owners and less internal oversight for the council.

To improve this service for customers, the council’s resource consents department took over processing vehicle crossing permit applications from 1 July 2025. This change will result in faster turnaround times, better communication through automated notifications keeping applicants informed every step of the way, and better internal tracking of applications so staff can respond quickly to changes in demands. The cost of applications is also expected to come down. However, that will depend on how complete applications are and how much extra information staff need before they can complete the permit.

To find out more and to apply for a Vehicle Crossing Permit online, go to the Vehicle Crossing Approval page on the FNDC website.