Getting home when a road has been shut

[scottyp123]

Whats the score when this happens, yesterday there was a big rave going on a couple of miles away from my house, I didn't bother with it but in between going to the supermarket and coming back the police had shut the main road at the junction just before my house. I pulled up to the cordon and the police were less than sympathetic and wasn't going to let me through, it took a fair bit of arguing to get him to let me through and go home.

At first he said tough I will have to drive all the way round (about 10 miles or more) but I was finding it hard work to explain to him that the road would be shut at the other end and I wouldn't be able to get through there either and then I would be even further from home.

The setup was as follows, road blocked where I was at the junction - 500yds down the road my house - 2 miles further on the rave - and then about another mile away I presume was where the other end of the road was blocked off. These two ends are the only way to get onto the main road, no other accesses.

It was only because I was prepared to argue with him that I managed to get through, the police woman that was with him was barking orders at other cars to turn around and they just did as instructed. My next smart arsed quip to him would have been "you've been telling us to go home for the last 3 months whats going on". He had to look at google maps before he would believe me and then had to radio ahead to say the odd driver would be coming through to get home.

I find it hard to believe they don't think of stuff like this before they carry out road closures etc, it can't be the first time they have come across someone needing to get home, I can understand it if I had to drive through 10,000 people to get there but if there weren't any leaves on the trees you could have seen my house from where I was sat. Supposed I could have left the car parked up and walked the last bit with the shopping and then returned the next morning to find 10,000 footprints over the bonnet and roof but that didn't appeal either.

So what is the score when the police shut a road, do they have absolute power to enforce it or is it just an advisory and can you be charged with anything if you simply drive round it? There won't be a traffic order or whatever to close the road so what rights do the police have?

[DoubleD]

I would imagine that they closed the road in a rush so weren't able to come up with suitable diversions for you.

[CaptainSlow]

Sadly, Police pay doesn't attract particularly intelligent people.

[anonymous-user]

CaptainSlow said:

Sadly, Police pay doesn't attract particularly intelligent people.

Often, they’re not dealing with particularly intelligent people......

[CaptainSlow]

REALIST123 said:

Often, they’re not dealing with particularly intelligent people......

That is true.

[scottyp123]

DoubleD said:

I would imagine that they closed the road in a rush so weren't able to come up with suitable diversions for you.

Obviously but there weren't any diversions to come up with, if you have a road that has only two access points and they are both shut then no diversion in the world is going to help you, its either let someone through or they don't go home.

[Glenn63]

If the police have closed a road due to an ‘incident’ they can just close and tuff tiddlywinks or try and explain to them were your going like you did.
If it’s planned road works etc then it will be properly set up with diversions and signage etc.

[croyde]

I hope the 10,000 were social distancing and in masks.



After living in London for most of my life I moved for a short while to a hamlet in Surrey.

Amazing what a random road closure could do.

One night, the road to my place was shut. I was 5 minutes from my home.

The diversion was crazy, taking me miles in the opposite direction. I even tried to cheat by off roading in my old E36.

Added about 15 miles to my journey.

[DoubleD]

scottyp123 said:

DoubleD said:

I would imagine that they closed the road in a rush so weren't able to come up with suitable diversions for you.

Obviously but there weren't any diversions to come up with, if you have a road that has only two access points and they are both shut then no diversion in the world is going to help you, its either let someone through or they don't go home.

But you spoke to them and they let you through, so whats the issue?

[bigandclever]

This is one of those trick questions isn’t it?

What would normally happen is you’d stop, make your case and, if it was practical, you’d be let through. Like what happened, in fact.

[Dixy]

By the very nature of such events the police are forced to react quickly and therefore all the tiny nuances and minor details cant be accommodated. The problem is exacerbated by the average bib being totally intransigent and unwilling to engage with members of law abiding public. The police operate by consent in this country, they should always remember it and we should always remember they have an almost impossible job to do.

[scottyp123]

DoubleD said:

scottyp123 said:

DoubleD said:

I would imagine that they closed the road in a rush so weren't able to come up with suitable diversions for you.

Obviously but there weren't any diversions to come up with, if you have a road that has only two access points and they are both shut then no diversion in the world is going to help you, its either let someone through or they don't go home.

But you spoke to them and they let you through, so whats the issue?

There wasn't any issue on my part but only because I had to be quite persistent and was able to hold my ground, many people would be frightened to death of engaging with the police after they had been told to go away. What the police woman should have done was to stand on the other side of the traffic lights and speak to people through the window advising them of what to do for their set of circumstances instead of waving her arms about and snapping orders at everyone.

[Bill]

scottyp123 said:

it can't be the first time they have come across someone needing to get home

It also probably wasn't the first time someone has spun them a line to save a 10 mile diversion.

He clearly didn't know the area that we'll, or where you lived. You showed him and he let you through.

And?

[Riley Blue]

In such situations I've shown the address on my driving licence and avoided smart arse comments.

[scottyp123]

Riley Blue said:

In such situations I've shown the address on my driving licence and avoided smart arse comments.

So you sit at the lights and when they change before you have even got a yard a police woman frantically waves her arms at you mouthing NO. Despite this you pull up to the cordon and the copper shoves his head through your window and says "the road is closed turn round" you say but you live down there 500 yards away he says "tough the road is shut you will have to find another way I can't let you down". Bearing in in mind you will have seen various media videos lately of the police carting away lone females for doing nothing more that sitting on a park bench and talking nicely to the police, whats your next move?

Personally mine was "don't be daft the road will be shut at the other end too, I know what the closure is for, I can't get home" He then realised he might have to do something about it but you can see he clearly wanted an easy life and it was just easier to dismiss me at first. Maybe he had been in Manchester all day dealing with the BLM thing and just wanted to go home, who knows, but so did I.

[scottyp123]

Anyway to get back on track, my point wasn't whether I was wronged or not by the police and now need a bit of compo. It was to ask what jurisdiction do the police have to actually close a road off like that in an emergency and if you came across a copper who simply wouldn't engage with you and simply said go away, are you breaking any laws by driving round the cordon?

I would imagine its a driver following the directions of a constable in uniform or something like that, but even if so would you be able to plead special reasons* or whatever if you pointed out you were effectively bared from your own home so decided to take the only sensible approach.

• Most laws do have a get out of some sort if you can plead your case.

[MC Bodge]

Carrington?

[DoubleD]

scottyp123 said:

So you sit at the lights and when they change before you have even got a yard a police woman frantically waves her arms at you mouthing NO. Despite this you pull up to the cordon and the copper shoves his head through your window and says "the road is closed turn round" you say but you live down there 500 yards away he says "tough the road is shut you will have to find another way I can't let you down". Bearing in in mind you will have seen various media videos lately of the police carting away lone females for doing nothing more that sitting on a park bench and talking nicely to the police, whats your next move?

Personally mine was "don't be daft the road will be shut at the other end too, I know what the closure is for, I can't get home" He then realised he might have to do something about it but you can see he clearly wanted an easy life and it was just easier to dismiss me at first. Maybe he had been in Manchester all day dealing with the BLM thing and just wanted to go home, who knows, but so did I.

Speak nicely with people and most will speak nicely back.

[Riley Blue]

scottyp123 said:

Riley Blue said:

In such situations I've shown the address on my driving licence and avoided smart arse comments.

So you sit at the lights and when they change before you have even got a yard a police woman frantically waves her arms at you mouthing NO. Despite this you pull up to the cordon and the copper shoves his head through your window and says "the road is closed turn round" you say but you live down there 500 yards away he says "tough the road is shut you will have to find another way I can't let you down". Bearing in in mind you will have seen various media videos lately of the police carting away lone females for doing nothing more that sitting on a park bench and talking nicely to the police, whats your next move?

Personally mine was "don't be daft the road will be shut at the other end too, I know what the closure is for, I can't get home" He then realised he might have to do something about it but you can see he clearly wanted an easy life and it was just easier to dismiss me at first. Maybe he had been in Manchester all day dealing with the BLM thing and just wanted to go home, who knows, but so did I.

[4rephill]

The Police these days are damned if they do, and damned if they don't.

Perhaps it's time for all of the Police around the World to go on strike for a few months, and let people find out what life is really like without them?

My monies on it not being the Utopia that so many on here seem to think it would be!