Highly recommended for safety reasons, road verges require regular maintenance. However, this maintenance has a number of effects on the ecosystem services provided by road verges. In order to achieve a more environmental maintenance of these vegetated areas, a thorough assessment of all impacts and their interrelationships resulting from maintenance decisions is needed. Based on the available literature, the concept of causal diagrams is used to structure and represent the impacts of road verges maintenance decisions on ecosystem services and other externalities through causal networks. Nine interrelated causal diagrams were developed, allowing a holistic study of the consequences of roadsides maintenance decisions. These diagrams are a first step in the development of guidance and decision support tools for decision makers.