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Class D: Toll road facilities
Class D of Part 9 permits the setting up, maintenance, improvement or alteration of facilities for collecting tolls, together with associated hardstanding for vehicle parking. Unlike most of Part 9, Class D contains clear numerical limits and a prior approval procedure on article 2(3) land.
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What does Class D permit?
There are two elements to the right:
- Setting up, maintaining, improving or otherwise altering facilities for the collection of tolls
- Providing a hard surface for parking vehicles in connection with the use of those facilities
The GPDO defines toll collection facilities by reference to buildings, structures and other facilities reasonably required for or connected with collecting tolls under a toll order. A toll road is a road which is the subject of such a toll order.
Class D location and size limits
Development falls outside Class D if any of the following limits are breached:
- The development is not within 100 metres, measured along the ground, of the boundary of a toll road
- A building or structure would exceed 7.5 metres in height excluding a rooftop structure
- A building or structure would exceed 10 metres in height including a rooftop structure
- The aggregate floor space at or above ground level of buildings within a toll collection area, excluding toll collection booths, would exceed 1,500 square metres
These are hard limits in the permitted development right. If the proposal exceeds one of them, Class D is not the route to planning permission for that development.
Prior approval on article 2(3) land
On article 2(3) land, Class D is subject to prior approval as to the siting, design and external appearance of the toll collection facilities.
The application must be made before development starts and must include a written description, plans and elevations, together with any required fee. The class uses a 28-day procedure: development must not begin until the authority confirms prior approval is not required, grants the required approval, or the 28-day period expires without the authority making and notifying a determination.
Where prior approval is required, the development must follow the approved details. Where it is not required, or the 28-day period expires in the circumstances set out in the class, the development must follow the submitted details. The works must be carried out within five years of the relevant approval or submission date specified by Class D.
For a broader explanation of the procedure, see Planning Geek’s guide to prior approval.
Do the definitions matter?
Yes. Class D includes specific definitions of facilities for the collection of tolls, ground level, rooftop structure, toll, toll collection area, toll collection booth, toll order and toll road. These definitions control how the height, floorspace and location tests operate, so they should be checked against the actual scheme rather than treated as ordinary-language descriptions.
Current Class D legislation
Read the current Part 9 legislation on legislation.gov.uk. The Class D limits, prior approval conditions and definitions sit together and should be read as a complete package.
Explore Part 9
Page Created: 11th August 2023
Page Updated: 23rd September 2026