Temporary highway licences

Traffic Counters

Consent from Bromley Council is required to place a traffic counter on a public highway. This permission is given by granting a temporary highway licence.

There are two main types of traffic counters typically deployed:

  • Pneumatic Road Tubing: rubber hosing laid across the road and connected to a data logger which records the changes in air pressure as vehicles cross the tubing.
  • Video Detection: temporary cameras mounted to analyse vehicles crossing through a set zone.

Any traffic counters found on a Bromley highway that are:

  • Unlicensed
  • Placed on the highway in contravention of the licence conditions

Will result in enforcement action being taken against the responsible person/applicant which may include a fine and/or the seizure/removal of the traffic counters in question.

The responsibility for obtaining and following all regulations and fulfilling the conditions of the licence is the sole responsibility of the applicant.

When do I need a licence?

You will require a temporary highway licence from Bromley Council for any traffic counters that are on any public highway over which Bromley Council has authority and maintains at the public expense, or traffic counters that are attached to a Bromley Council maintained asset such as a lamp column.

Transport for London is responsible for licensing any traffic counters on a TfL Red Route within the borough, which are:

  • The A21 (starts on the borough Boundary with Lewisham on London Road, and comprises Tweedy Road, Kentish Way, Masons Hill, Bromley Common, Hastings Road, Farnborough Common, Farnborough Way and Sevenoaks Road before finishing within the borough at Hewitts Roundabout)
  • The A232 (starts on the borough boundary with Croydon at Wickham Road and comprises West Wickham High Street, Glebe Way and Croydon Road before meeting the A21 at Farnborough Common)

All enquiries that relate to these locations should therefore be redirected to TfL - highway licences

What you need to provide

  • List of locations where the traffic counters are to be sited
  • Public Liability Insurance – with a minimum value of £5million
  • Risk Assessment Method Statement – identifying the steps required for the traffic counter(s) installation and to ensure they are undertaken in a safe manner.
  • If using cameras, a GDPR policy covering their use, what data will be collected, and how it will be processed.

If you intend to mount any equipment such as cameras on Bromley Council maintained lamp columns, authorisation from the Bromley Street Lighting Team will be required ahead of any licence approval.  To assist with that process, we ask that you also confirm the weight of any equipment to be mounted, the attachment method to the column and provide the relevant column asset IDs.

Licence conditions

Once your application has been approved, you will be issued with a licence that will contain conditions relating to the placement of the traffic counters.

We reserve the right to add extra conditions depending upon the location and nature of the traffic counters, or new information of which Bromley becomes aware. If this applies to your application, they will be listed under Special Conditions on the licence.

Cost of licence

A traffic counter licence costs £54, payment will be requested once the application has been processed.  Please allow five working days for your application to be processed.

Apply

Traffic counter licence application form

Appeal a refused licence

Anyone who believes they have been unfairly refused a temporary highway licence can appeal.

Appeal a refused temporary highway licence

Data protection and privacy

For information on how we will use, process and store your personal data please see our privacy notice.