We're committed to maintaining highway grass verges across Stockport. They're cut to keep the verges tidy, for road safety purposes and to maintain visibility at junctions for road users. We have scheduled inspections to ensure safety and check that there's no obstruction to roads or pavements.
We will mow grass verges regularly during the growing season, between April and October, to keep grass to an agreed standard. However, there is no definite cycle or day that specific verges are cut, and the timescale is subject to change depending on weather conditions. Grass grows more quickly in warm and wet weather, and the teams cannot mow grass when the ground is saturated. It takes longer to mow tall grass, so this can mean that it takes the team longer to get around the borough.
As grass growth slows down at the end of the growing season we may move to a longer cycle. This will allow us to send out our grounds maintenance teams elsewhere within their area of work. For example, to tidy up shrub beds.
We do not collect cuttings as this is very costly. Box mowing and collecting the cuttings is usually only carried out on ornamental areas.
Over the last few years, we've taken the decision to allow some grassed areas in the borough to grow naturally. The process of re-wilding areas creates new habitats and improves the biodiversity of an area. These areas are managed differently and will usually be cut once a year.