Chapter 29:15 URBAN COUNCILS ACT 156 Vesting of land, roads and sanitary lanes The property of and in all lands, roads and sanitary lanes or any part thereof within a council area to which the inhabitants of the municipality or town have or acquire a common right shall be vested in the municipality or town, and sections 56 and 57 of the Regional, Town and Country Planning Act [Chapter 29:12] shall apply, mutatis mutandis, in relation to any such road or sanitary lane. PART XI CONSTRUCTION OF SIDEWALKS 157 Interpretation in Part XI In this Part— “sidewalk” means the whole or any portion of a footway and includes the curbing and channelling thereto; “works”, in relation to a sidewalk, means all or any one or more of the following works when executed for the first time— (a) the forming and grading of the sidewalk; (b) the foundations of the sidewalk; (c) the paving of the sidewalk with stone blocks, cement, asphalt seal coat or other suitable preparation as a wearing and water-proofing surface; (d) the curbing to the sidewalk; (e) the channelling to the sidewalk. 158 Execution of sidewalk works Subject to section one hundred and sixty-one, a council may execute any sidewalk works, whether or not it has received a request for such works from owners of land that would be affected by the execution of the proposed works. 159 Charging of expenses of sidewalk works by council (1) Subject to this Part, a council may charge an amount not exceeding one-half of any expenses incurred by it in executing any sidewalk works in terms of section one hundred and fifty-eight to the owners of land abutting on the portion of the proposed sidewalk upon which such works are to be executed. (2) The council may include as part of the expenses incurred by it in executing any sidewalk works any indirect costs incurred by the council: Provided that if such indirect costs exceed ten per centum of the other expenses referred to in subsection (1), the council may not include such excess. (3) Any portion of a road which abuts on to a sidewalk or proposed sidewalk shall not be regarded, for the purposes of this section, as land abutting on that sidewalk or proposed sidewalk. 160 Specifications and apportionment of sidewalk works (1) In respect of any proposed sidewalk works in respect of which a council intends to charge part of its expenses in terms of section one hundred and fifty-nine the council shall prepare— (a) a specification of the works; and (b) an estimate of the probable expenses of the works; and (c) a provisional apportionment of the expenses estimated in terms of paragraph (b) among the owners who are liable to be charged therewith in terms of section one hundred and fifty-nine. (2) In making a provisional apportionment in terms of paragraph (c) of subsection (1) between the owners of the land referred to in that paragraph the apportionment of the estimated expenses shall be made according to the area or to the frontage of the land abutting on the proposed sidewalk as provided in subsection (1) of section one hundred and fifty-nine: Provided that the council may vary the apportionment in terms of this subsection according to— 56