Traffic Officers
Since 2004, regular users of English motorways will have noticed the presence of ‘Traffic Officers’. At first glance, one could be forgiven for mistaking the chequered white 4×4’s for Police units, particularly as most motorists immediately slow down to around 65mph upon seeing them! It seems many of us are still asking, “Who are they, why are they here and what legal powers do they have?”
The Traffic Officer Service, part of The Highways Agency, was introduced to take on around 75% of the duties previously handled by the Motorway Police. Time consuming functions such as clearing accidents, escorting large loads, co-ordinating lane closures, helping stranded motorists and assisting the Emergency Services now fall under the remit of Highways Agency Traffic Officers. The Officers have the legal powers to direct, divert or stop traffic and can also take control of modern motorway technology such as Variable Message Signs, which give advance warnings to motorists of potential hazards such as accidents and road debris.
The Officers’ primary function is to ease congestion and keep traffic flowing safely. This applies particularly where an accident has taken place, as accidents are known to be responsible for 25% of all motorway tailbacks. The intention here is to significantly improve the ‘User Experience’ of motorway travel and The Highways Agency has now rolled out the service across the whole of England, with around 1,200 on-the-road Officers taking charge of up to 1,500 incidents a day.
Now let’s answer the most common question asked about Traffic Officers: Highways Agency Traffic Officers are civilians; they are not Police Officers. Their job is not to enforce the law and they can neither arrest you nor issue fines directly. However, they are usually in close radio contact with local Police Patrol cars, and if you ignore or refuse a Traffic Officer’s directions you run a high risk of prosecution, which could lead to a £1,000 fine, points on your licence and even disqualification.
So how do we differentiate a Highways Agency Traffic Officer from a Police Officer? The obvious similarity between vehicle liveries is surely no coincidence, but there are some subtle differences. Firstly, a Traffic Officer’s roof bar lights are amber, not blue as on a Police car. Secondly, the chequered patterns on the vehicles are different colours, with Traffic Officer 4×4’s sporting yellow and black checks as opposed to the yellow, blue and white checks of a Police unit.
If you’re especially perceptive, you may also notice the high visibility jackets of Traffic Officers are orange and yellow as opposed to a Police Officer’s plain yellow version.
Finally, it’s worth pointing out that despite the presence of these new Officers, there are as many Police Patrol Cars on the motorways today as there were before this service arrived, so let’s keep driving conscientiously!
For more information visit http://www.highways.gov.uk/