Council charges $338.50 to apply for a standard driveway crossing on the Central Coast
By Artigellence ·
The part of a new driveway between the road and your boundary needs Central Coast Council's approval before it is poured, and the application carries Council's own fees. For 2026/27 a standard crossing costs $338.50 to apply for and $271.95 for the inspection, with a higher assessment fee if the crossing needs engineering plans. None of that pays for the concrete. Ask whether your quote includes the fees and who lodges the application.
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What Council charges before the crossing is poured
Council calls the strip of driveway that crosses the nature strip a Vehicle Access Crossing, and it needs approval whether or not the street has kerb and gutter. The fees sit in section 23 of Council's Fees and Charges 2026/27, on page 117. Fee 1829 is the application fee for a standard crossing, $338.50, charged under section 138 of the Roads Act 1993. Fee 1830 is the inspection fee, $271.95. Both are charged per application and neither carries GST.
The schedule prices both in its category C, which it describes as reflecting the full cost of providing the service. They are what it costs Council to check and sign off the crossing, and they come on top of whatever the concreter charges to build it.
Which fee applies to your crossing
A crossing that fits Council's standard drawings is assessed under fee 1829. One that is steep, has multiple levels or may be affected by future road works can need a site-specific design, and Council's page says an additional fee may apply when a crossing is non-standard and needs engineering design. That is fee 1831, $496.30, for assessing a non-standard crossing, including one that needs engineering plans.
The schedule also lists a crossing inspection fee of $267.35 in its development section. Its own note says that fee applies to all developments other than single or secondary dwellings, so it is not the fee for a crossing to a house. For a house or granny flat, the application is lodged online through Council's Online Services with its drawings, and the fees are paid when it goes in.
What the fees do not cover
The fees buy an approval, not a driveway. The concrete, the formwork and any pipe under the crossing are the concreter's to price, and after the pour the crossing is yours to maintain: Council's page says maintenance of the crossing and anything supporting it is the property owner's responsibility under the Roads Act.
An approval for the house does not cover the crossing either. Council states that a development consent, a complying development certificate or a construction certificate with driveway conditions is not approval to build the crossing. Starting without it is priced too: fee 1841 adds $605.90 where work has begun without the relevant approval, on top of the standard fees, and fee 1842 lets Council charge for removing work not built to its specifications, by quote plus 20%.
Before you book the pour
If the block fronts a State road, such as the Pacific Highway or the Central Coast Highway, Council wants written approval from the State roads authority with the application, so that comes first. A second crossing is usually refused unless the block has more than 20 metres of street frontage, sits on a corner, or needs one for a significant safety reason.
Then ask whether the quote includes Council's fees, and whose name the application goes in. Ask too whether the crossing will follow Council's standard drawings; if it will not, expect the non-standard assessment fee on top.
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