Weeds

Weed spraying

Weed spraying is a routine maintenance operation undertaken to mitigate structural damage to highway infrastructure and/or for safety/visibility reasons. It is not carried out to improve the aesthetics of an area.

From April 2020 one weed spraying treatment will take place between June and August. In rural areas, for roads with a speed limit of 40 mph and above, existing weeds along the kerb and channel will be treated. In urban areas for roads with a speed limit of 30 mph and below, we will spray the kerb, channel and the back of the footway (pavement) where a hard edge such as a fence or wall exists, if weeds are present

Due to regulations associated with the toxicity of weed spraying chemicals, the solution used by our contractors is very mild and is only effective on growing plants. Spraying is therefore only undertaken where weeds are present, and the solution’s effectiveness can be drastically reduced if rainfall occurs after treatment. We do not have the resources to carry out additional weed spray visits.

Some district/borough councils undertake weed spraying operations in advance of their urban grass cutting programmes particularly around street furniture, to avoid the need for strimming operations.

Injurious weed control

In Staffordshire, injurious weeds are treated in accordance with a programme. Our control methods for injurious weeds are used to address known locations where there are accumulations of Japanese Knotweed, Himalayan Balsam or Giant Hogweed.

Concerns about significant accumulations of injurious weeds on Staffordshire’s highway network can be reported directly using the myStaffs app or Report It. In most cases however it is likely that we are already aware of the site and already have a regime in place to treat the location.

To find further details of the weed control programme in your area please see the programmes page.