Safe Speed Forums

As many of you know most UK motorways are now patrolled regularly by Highways agency officers in their own distinctive vehicles.
My question is - what police powers have been conferred onto Highways Agency officers, eg fines, cautions, speeding enforcement and arrest.
Looked at their roles and responsibilites on the Highway agency website but theirs no mention about what specific police powers have been conferred on Highways agency officers.

None.

Which doesn't stop numpties following behind at 55mph for mile after mile.

Slightly modified version of none - depends on interpretation (from their site ,hidden amongst all the goblegook ,etc on http://www.highways.gov.uk/knowledge/1968.aspx

"Traffic Officers work with the police but their role varies with the severity of the incident. The Highways Agency Traffic Officers are not able to fine you, but it is an offence not to comply with their directions. The police still enforce the law."

Perhaps less imposing vehicles might be the answer - since they are and act like plastic police - ( oh drat the factory in Tamworth closed down years ago)

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lets bring sanity back to speed limits.
Drivers are like donkeys -they respond best to a carrot, not a stick .Road safety experts are like Asses - best kept covered up ,or sat on

I meant none out of the list supplied.

They have about the same powers as lollipop ladies.

It's a pity they aren't trained in safe driving. I was very closely tailgated by one on the m1 in heavy traffic a few days ago.

Don't Lollipop Ladies (God Bless them and the Lollipop Men) have powers to stop the traffic.

Also, don't HATOs have the power to operate a rolling roadblock, albiet without the power to nick anybody that overtakes them, but they can report overtakers to the control room for Police action to be taken.

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Semper in excreta, nur quantitat variat.

HATO under the new traffic management act 2004 will be getting some powers of Constable yes.

Well - what do you know - just what was suspected - so it's goodbye to honest decent policing on our motorways and hello to "self financing policing"( well those fancy 4x4 have got to be paid for somhow )
Wonder how the safety record on our motorways will behave when the idiot mentality takes over ?

_________________
lets bring sanity back to speed limits.
Drivers are like donkeys -they respond best to a carrot, not a stick .Road safety experts are like Asses - best kept covered up ,or sat on

Basically HATO traffic Officers was a means by which the Secretary of State could ease the "new" breed of traffic officers onto the public. This is going to be a massive expansion, not just for motorways but now for every road in the country. Where does this leave traffic Police you ask? Ask away!!!! These new breed of "traffic Officer" if the legislation is to go by, will undoubtedly be used for speed enforcement, and they can effective be "hired" by other counties etc.


Traffic Management Act 2004


Jurisdiction and powers of traffic officers
3 Jurisdiction of traffic officers

(1) A traffic officer has jurisdiction-

(a) over any relevant road in England (if he was designated by, or under an authorisation given by, the Secretary of State); or

(b) over any relevant road in Wales (if he was designated by, or under an authorisation given by, the Assembly),
unless his designation provides that this subsection does not apply to him.

(2) If subsection (1) does not apply to a traffic officer, he has jurisdiction only over such relevant roads, or relevant roads of such descriptions, as may be specified in his designation.


(2) In section 35 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 (drivers to comply with traffic directions)-

(a) in subsection (1)-

(i) after "a constable" there is inserted "or traffic officer";

(ii) after "duty" there is inserted "or the traffic officer (as the case may be)";

(b) in subsection (2)(b) after "constable" there is inserted "or traffic officer".

(3) In section 37 of that Act (directions to pedestrians)-

(a) after "uniform" there is inserted "or traffic officer";
(b) after "duty" there is inserted "or the traffic officer (as the case may be)".
(4) In section 163 of that Act (power of police to stop vehicles), in subsections (1) and (2) after "uniform" there is inserted "or a traffic officer".
(5) Subsection (4) applies to a person whom the traffic officer reasonably believes to have been the driver of a vehicle at a time of a failure to comply with-
(a) a direction given in relation to that vehicle under a power conferred by section 6, or
(b) the indication given by a traffic sign placed under a power conferred by section 7.
(6) In the case of offences committed before the commencement of section 281(5) of the Criminal Justice Act 2003-

(a) subsections (1) and (3) apply as if for "51 weeks" there were substituted "six months"; and
(b) subsection (2) applies as if for "51 weeks" there were substituted "one month".


13 Power to acquire land


In the Highways Act 1980 (c. 66), after section 245 (acquisition of land for buildings etc. required for discharge of functions of highway authority) there is inserted-

"245A Acquisition of land by Secretary of State or Assembly for buildings etc. needed for traffic management purposes

(1) The Secretary of State may acquire land which in his opinion is required for the provision of any buildings or facilities which are needed-

(a) for use by, or in connection with the activities of, traffic officers in England; or
(b) for other purposes connected with the management of traffic on highways in England for which he is the highway authority.


That's just the beginning, i'm still digging up the references to other acts yet.

So basically our trafpols might be advised to look for new positions - and instead of intelligent policing of motorways , look out for a new regime of speed enforcement by a new breed of robots , in vans, unless i'm mistaking what you're saying

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lets bring sanity back to speed limits.
Drivers are like donkeys -they respond best to a carrot, not a stick .Road safety experts are like Asses - best kept covered up ,or sat on

In a nutshell, you've got it!

As i said in another post - why give them Range Rovers - most appropriate vehicle for this lot would be ( ops sorry , factory at Tamworth has ceased profuction of Reliants ).

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lets bring sanity back to speed limits.
Drivers are like donkeys -they respond best to a carrot, not a stick .Road safety experts are like Asses - best kept covered up ,or sat on

Ha! looks like cushy work if you can get it - I may sign up.
Get to cruise the M-ways in a shiney Range Rover pulling people (and who can't admit to having wanted a set of blue lights to get the last tailgater/nutter etc.) without the downside of spending several years before you can transfer to traffic as a PC getting a kicking in the towncentre on a saturday night.

I doubt whether pulling people will be necessary. They will just push a button on the dash and the video evidence will be flashed straight to some fines processing computer somewhere. The NIP will be printed out before they've even had chance to say "HaHa! Sucker!"

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“For every complex problem, there is a solution that is simple, neat, and wrong.” - H. L. Mencken