What is a Roadway Easement?

Updated on September 14, 2021

Roadway Easement for Ingress and Egress

The most common type of easement is a roadway easement for ingress and egress to another parcel of property. In this case, ingress refers to having the right to enter a property, while egress refers to the right to exit a property. An example of this type of easement is a shared driveway where your neighbor may own the property but you have the right to drive on your neighbor’s property to access your home.

Purpose of Roadway Easement

Generally speaking, the conveyance of a roadway easement grants only the right of ingress and egress and a right of unobstructed passage across the easement. It does not include the right to use the easement for any other purposes. (See San Rafael Ranch Co. v. Ralph Rogers Co. (1908) 154 Cal.76, 77.) For example, an ingress and egress easement does not create a right to dig trenches or lay pipeline. (Id.)

Scope of an Ingress and Egress

Nonetheless, in certain circumstances, the scope of an ingress and egress easement may be expanded in situations where a party can show that it is reasonable and consistent with the original grant, based on the parties’ intentions. For example, a driveway easement for ingress and egress may also be used for parking. (See Heath v. Kettenhofen (1965) 236 Cal.App.2d 197, 204.)

Schorr Law’s real estate attorney Los Angeles has experience in various easement matters including, prescriptive easements, public utility elements, ingress and egress easements, easements by necessity, and more.

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