Welsh Government traffic officer

Last updated

Welsh Government traffic officer
Swyddog Traffig y Llywodraeth Cymru (Welsh)
Occupation
Activity sectors
Government, road traffic control, vehicle recovery, roadside assistance
Description
Fields of
employment
Motorways and select trunk roads in Wales operated by Trunk road agents.
Related jobs
Road policing unit, Traffic guard
Logo used by Welsh Government Traffic Officers Welsh Government Traffic Officer logo.png
Logo used by Welsh Government Traffic Officers

Welsh Government traffic officers (Welsh : Swyddog Traffig y Llywodraeth Cymru) are civilian staff employed by the trunk road agents on behalf of the Welsh Government as a means to ease traffic congestion on major trunk roads in Wales. Their role and powers are similar to their English counterparts working for National Highways, the National Highways traffic officers.

Contents

History

They were initially established in order to assist police officers from Gwent Police and South Wales Police by removing part of their workload with regards to breakdowns and collisions.

Powers

In addition to a number of exemptions from the Road Traffic Act and Motorway Regulations (such as stopping on the hard shoulder, driving/reversing on the hard shoulder), traffic officers derive powers from the Traffic Management Act 2004.

Officers must follow the directions of a police constable, [1] and to exercise their powers, must be on duty and in uniform. [2]

For the purposes of: [2]

a traffic officer may: [3]

Assaulting, resisting or willfully obstructing a traffic officer are offences. [5] It is also an offence to impersonate a traffic officer, or for a traffic officer to claim to have more powers than they do. [5] Traffic officers do not have any powers of arrest, nor do they have the power to search, issue fixed penalties or report for summons for any motoring offence. Traffic officers are not exempt from any traffic laws, and must, at all times, comply with the posted speed limits and all red traffic lights.

Drivers are obliged by the Traffic Management Act 2004 to comply with the directions given by traffic officers. [6] This is briefly explained in the Highway Code:

Traffic Officers have powers to stop vehicles on most motorways and some 'A' class roads. If traffic officers in uniform want to stop your vehicle on safety grounds (e.g. an insecure load) they will, where possible, attract your attention by

You MUST then pull over and stop as soon as it is safe to do so. Then switch off your engine. It is an offence not to comply with their directions.

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>The Highway Code</i> Official rules for UK road users

The Highway Code is a set of information, advice, guides and mandatory rules for road users in the United Kingdom. Its objective is to promote road safety. The Code applies to all road users including pedestrians, horse riders and cyclists, as well as motorcyclists and drivers. It gives information on road signs, road markings, vehicle markings and road safety, and has annexes on vehicle maintenance, licence requirements, documentation, penalties, and vehicle security.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Compulsory Basic Training</span> Motorcycle training in the United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, the term Compulsory Basic Training is a preliminary vehicular training course which must be completed by people wishing to ride a motorcycle or moped unaccompanied on the road, and remains valid for 2 years upon completion. It was introduced in Great Britain on 1 December 1990 as a means of reducing accidents on the road caused by inexperienced drivers by reviewing aspects of riding both on and off the road with a qualified motorcycle instructor registered with an Approved Training Body (ATB). If a full car licence was obtained before 1 February 2001 it is not necessary to complete a CBT course to ride a moped.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Traffic ticket</span> Type of notice issued by a law enforcement official

A traffic ticket is a notice issued by a law enforcement official to a motorist or other road user, indicating that the user has violated traffic laws. Traffic tickets generally come in two forms, citing a moving violation, such as exceeding the speed limit, or a non-moving violation, such as a parking violation, with the ticket also being referred to as a parking citation, or parking ticket.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vehicle and Operator Services Agency</span>

Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) was an executive agency granted trading fund status in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Transport of the United Kingdom Government.

Causing death by dangerous driving is a statutory offence in England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, as well as Hong Kong. It is an aggravated form of dangerous driving. In the UK, it was created by section 1 of the Road Traffic Act 1988, and in Hong Kong it was created by section 36 of the Road Traffic Ordinance.

Many countries have adopted a penalty point or demerit point system under which a person’s driving license is revoked or suspended based on the number of points they’ve accumulated over a specific period of time, points are given for traffic offenses or infringements committed by them in that period. The demerit points schemes of each jurisdiction varies. These demerit schemes are usually in addition to fines or other penalties which may be imposed for a particular offence or infringement, or after a prescribed number of points have been accumulated.

The United Kingdom driving test is a test of competence that UK residents take in order to obtain a full Great Britain or Northern Ireland (car) driving licence or to add additional full entitlements to an existing one. Tests vary depending on the class of vehicle to be driven. In Great Britain it is administered by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) and in Northern Ireland by the Driver & Vehicle Agency (DVA).

In India, a driving licence is an official document that authorises its holder to operate various types of motor vehicles on highways and some other roads to which the public has access. In various Indian states, they are administered by the Regional Transport Authorities/Offices (RTA/RTO). A driving licence is required in India by any person driving a vehicle on any highway or other road defined in the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. This act sets limits on the minimum age for vehicle operation ranging from 16 to 20, depending on specific circumstances. A modern photo of the driving licence can also serve many of the purposes of an identity card in non-driving contexts, such as proof of identity or age.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Driving licence in the United Kingdom</span> UK official document

In the United Kingdom, a driving licence is the official document which authorises its holder to operate motor vehicles on highways and other public roads. It is administered in England, Scotland and Wales by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and in Northern Ireland by the Driver & Vehicle Agency (DVA). A driving licence is required in England, Scotland, and Wales for any person driving a vehicle on any highway or other "road", as defined in s.192 Road Traffic Act 1988, irrespective of the ownership of the land over which the road passes. Similar requirements apply in Northern Ireland under the Road Traffic Order 1981.

The Highway Traffic Act is a statute in Ontario, Canada, which regulates the licensing of vehicles, classification of traffic offences, administration of loads, classification of vehicles and other transport-related issues. First introduced in 1923 to deal with increasing accidents during the early years of motoring in Ontario, and replacing earlier legislation such as the Highway Travel Act, there have been amendments due to changes to driving conditions and new transportation trends. For example, in 2009, the Act was revised to ban the use of cell phones while driving.

A civil enforcement officer is a person employed to enforce parking, traffic and other restrictions and laws.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sexual Offences Act 1985</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Sexual Offences Act 1985 (c.44) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that created two offences concerning prostitution, and increased the maximum sentence for attempted rape from seven years to life imprisonment. The act was applicable in England and Wales only.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Highways traffic officer</span> Road transport occupation in England

National Highways traffic officers, previously Highways Agency traffic officer (HATO), are employed by the National Highways.

Impaired driving is the term used in Canada to describe the criminal offence of operating, having care or the control of a motor vehicle while the person's ability to operate the motor vehicle is impaired by alcohol or a drug. Impaired driving is punishable under multiple offences in the Criminal Code, with greater penalties depending on the harm caused by the impaired driving. It can also result in various types of driver's licence suspensions.

The laws of driving under the influence vary between countries. One difference is the acceptable limit of blood alcohol content before a person is charged with a crime. Thresholds range from the limit of detection (zero-tolerance) to 0.08%. Some countries have no limits or laws on blood alcohol content.

The powers of the police in England and Wales are defined largely by statute law, with the main sources of power being the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 and the Police Act 1996. This article covers the powers of police officers of territorial police forces only, but a police officer in one of the UK's special police forces can utilise extended jurisdiction powers outside of their normal jurisdiction in certain defined situations as set out in statute. In law, police powers are given to constables. All police officers in England and Wales are "constables" in law whatever their rank. Certain police powers are also available to a limited extent to police community support officers and other non warranted positions such as police civilian investigators or designated detention officers employed by some police forces even though they are not constables.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency</span> UK Department for Transport Agency

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is an executive agency of the UK Department for Transport (DfT).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Driving in India</span> Overview of driving in India

Driving in India is governed by various legal powers and in some cases is subject to the passing of a driving test. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, a branch of the Government of India, is the apex body for formulation and administration of the rules, regulations and laws relating to road transport, national highways and transport research, in order to increase the mobility and efficiency of the road transport system in India. Indian traffic drives on the left.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naval Historical Branch</span>

The Naval Historical Branch originally known as the Historical Section is the branch responsible for managing the Royal Navy's historical archives, it was established in 1912 and exists today. It is currently superintended by the Head of Naval Historical Branch and Naval Historical Library he reports to the Assistant-Chief of the Naval Staff (Policy).

References

  1. http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2004/ukpga_20040018_en_2#pt1-pb2-l1g4 UKOpenGovernmentLicence.svg UKOpenGovernmentLicence.svg This article contains content from this source, which is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright.
  2. 1 2 http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2004/ukpga_20040018_en_2#pt1-pb2-l1g5 UKOpenGovernmentLicence.svg UKOpenGovernmentLicence.svg This article contains content from this source, which is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright.
  3. http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2004/ukpga_20040018_en_2#pt1-pb2-l1g6 UKOpenGovernmentLicence.svg This content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright.
  4. http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2004/ukpga_20040018_en_2#pt1-pb2-l1g7 UKOpenGovernmentLicence.svg UKOpenGovernmentLicence.svg This article contains content from this source, which is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright.
  5. 1 2 http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2004/ukpga_20040018_en_2#pt1-pb3-l1g10 UKOpenGovernmentLicence.svg UKOpenGovernmentLicence.svg This article contains content from this source, which is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright.
  6. "Our Roles and Responsibilities". Highways Agency Traffic Officers. Highways Agency. Retrieved 1 January 2008.