Criminal offence of obstruction

The wilful obstruction of a highway without lawful excuse is one of several criminal offences. The range of lawful excuses would include statutory powers to plant trees in highways, to put up barriers within highways or to put gates across them. It would also cover a situation where a landowner had dedicated a highway subject to a restriction allowing what would otherwise be an obstruction, such as a pre-existing bridge or overhanging building. A third type of lawful excuse might be evident when a frontager exercises lawful rights to use the highway for access to their premises, including the occasional use of scaffolding. For a full examination of criminal offences relating to the highway see Practice Note: Local authority powers to manage highway