Traffic officers get up to speed
M25 fully patrolled but trafpol disappear
Still not enough of these...
What it means is that traffic officers will now patrol the whole of the M25, after the service was introduced between junctions 14 (London Heathrow) and 17 (Rickmansworth) last week.
Patrols started on the M25, Europe's busiest motorway, last August and have been introduced around the London Orbital in phases. The Traffic Officer Service will also start patrolling the M4, junctions 1 to 5, to help keep traffic moving.
Roads minister Stephen Ladyman said: "The Government is committed to improving the country's road network, tackling congestion and improving management of traffic.
"Today, traffic officers patrol in every region in England and by the summer around 1500 staff based on-road or in one of seven regional control centres will be managing our entire motorway network, in an effort to ease congestion and improve journey times."
The 117 miles of the M25 will be patrolled by 50 traffic officers, in two-person crews on three shifts, and they will be responsible for managing road closures, stopping and directing traffic and clearing debris off the motorway as well as assisting drivers whose vehicles have broken down.
The on-road patrols are supported by staff at two Regional Control Centres in Godstone, Surrey (M25 Junction 6) and South Mimms, Essex (M25 Junction 23) who also answer emergency roadside telephones and set warning signs to provide motorists with information during their journeys.
Uniformed traffic officers began their patrols in black and yellow chequered vehicles between junctions 2 and 14 last August and this was extended to junctions 17 and 30 as the serviced moved in to Essex in October and Hertfordshire in January.
Traffic Officers work closely with police partners and today will take over some of the responsibilities from the Metropolitan Police Service, which has traditionally carried out patrols on the M4 (J1-5) and the M25 (J14-16). Traffic Officers will free up police resources to concentrate on tackling crime.
Superintendent Ian Chappell from the Metropolitan Police Service said: "We welcome the introduction of the Highways Agency Traffic Officers onto the motorway network around London. Combining our expertise will greatly enhance the service we, as a partnership, deliver to those who visit and live in London.
"The Highways Agency Traffic Officers will assist in the movement of traffic, the management of motorway incidents and free our police officers up to concentrate on our priorities - dealing with criminals, investigating serious collisions and challenging bad driving behaviour."
Fair enough as far as it goes of course -- but who's going to stop the tailgaters and other nutters?
First commute along the M1 in the S2000 today, and I felt very vulnerable. At one point I saw 4 cars so nose-to-tail that there was less than a car gap between each of them...at 65-70mph! I'd have been BEHIND #4 if the car in front of me was #1!!!
Add the handful of under-endowed reps who felt so threatened by my nice car that they needed to aggressively tailgate me (and in one case dangerously undertake me...I backed off to avoid the impending accident!), and it was not a pleasant journey.
No-one was speeding (much), but the only reason there wasn't an accident was that no-one needed to brake ahead of these numpties. And now they've announced 'there's no Trafpol!', it's only going to get worse, as they know they can do it with impunity.
Now is not a good time to have a nice car...
As an aside, judging by the increasing commonality of Police SUV's, the policy of siting observation platforms coincidentally with 30% reductions in speed limit must be reaping dividends.
Oh yeah, and there was the Traffic Officer's Disco 3 that was parked with it's full complement of warning beacons activated, at 4:30pm on a sunny weekday afternoon, right after the M62 M1 interchange, to help swap a wheel on some Kevin's rustbucket. Let me tell you, nothing promotes a good half-hour of rubber-necking induced gridlock quite like a 2.5 tonne, hi-visibility monster covered in flashing lights!
runnersp said:
"Keep traffic moving" and "Improve journey times."...
I'm sure these are both doublespeak.
"keep traffic moving" = ...slowly, with low limits policed by cameras on gantries. Forget that some people need to move quickly while others aren't bothered.
"improve journey times" = make them more consistent -- I think this is one of the HA's stated objectives. It doesn't mean that they want to make journeys faster.
So why were they sitting in their 4x4 on the hard shoulder, strobes flashing, looking at a car wheel in lane two, while lanes one and two were closed by overhead gantry signs...?
This was the M60.
Gantry signs had been arrowing lanes one and two to move over to lane three for miles, then the red closure signs appeared over lanes one and two, with the message debris in road.
All traffic was in lane three, slowed to walking pace, but STILL they sat in their tank, gazing at the wheel in lane two...
Why....?
runnersp said:
"Keep traffic moving" and "Improve journey times." Says nothing about patrolling for idiot drivers... A good idea in theory, but more normal traffic cops stopping stupid people would be a nice idea too.
50 of em it will easier to find rocking horse shit
>> Edited by sgt^roc on Monday 13th March 20:34
crankedup said:
What a load of boll0cks this is, presume that these highway agency staff work for nothing then and the vehicles involved are sponsored. If not how much money is saved over proper BiB doing the job. Just another layer of bull and the thin end of a wedge.
No, the HATOs will just do a proper days work for a fair days pay instead of spending loads of time off sick, retiring at 43 on half pay with a year and halfs salary as a lump sum (tax free of course). The brief seems to be to deal with accidents and get the road open and traffic moving ASAP. Unlike the traffic cops who stand around drinking tea then measure a few skidmarks, call it science and persecute some poor bastard who fell asleep at the wheel due to paying too much income tax. The sooner traffic cops are scrapped the better. Once we get rid of the daft points system then the HATOs will be able to pretend they are highway patrol too and hand out fines, unles you bribe them or are a babe.
Sunglasses now theres a good business idea.....
If the police find a drunken driver, it can take them away from the motorway for up to 2 hours, also they can be called off the m/way to assist in the town if required, the HATO patrols are just for m/way use only.
The patrol that you saw on the hard shoulder obviously hadn't been authorised to work "live lane" yet, so they cannot stop in live lanes, or even retrieve "debris" from live lanes until accredited as live lane working patrols, if they do, they would be severly disciplined, if not sacked. This takes time.(H & S rules)
In fact the H & S rules that they have to abide by are very strict, much stricter than what the police can get away with.
You may see them sat on police platforms or such, they will be waiting to go forward to put a rolling block on or similar for some incident, when required to do so, or just told to be in the area ready.
Their untimate task is to try to keep traffic flowing, that can be by removing debris, vehicles from live lanes (when suitably trained) to organising removal of broken down vehicles etc.
>> Edited by gafferjim on Monday 13th March 23:42
gafferjim said:
The patrol that you saw on the hard shoulder obviously hadn't been authorised to work "live lane" yet, so they cannot stop in live lanes, or even retrieve "debris" from live lanes until accredited as live lane working patrols, if they do, they would be severly disciplined, if not sacked. This takes time.(H & S rules)
In fact the H & S rules that they have to abide by are very strict, much stricter than what the police can get away with.
The HASAW act 1974 is an enabling act based on European directives. It does not recognise the police or the crown as being exempt from any section. If the police are acting in a dangerous way that is authorised by their superiors it is only a matter of time before the HSE or a member of the public prosecutes them.
gafferjim said:
A few points here people, the HATO patrols are not there to replace Police patrols, but to suppliment them by doing the crap mundain jobs, like collecting debris,and baby-sitting broken down motorist in vunerable places, this releases the police to concentrate on the bad driving etc.
But this article has just said that there will be NO Trafpol on the M25...so the HATO's HAVE replaced trafpol.
I've seen it around our way as well - the odd trafpol still around, but more HATO's.
So in other words you've just parroted the gov'ts lie, letting them shaft us one more little step at a time.
havoc said:
A few points here people, the HATO patrols are not there to replace Police patrols, but to suppliment them by doing the crap mundain jobs, like collecting debris,and baby-sitting broken down motorist in vunerable places, this releases the police to concentrate on the bad driving etc.
But this article has just said that there will be NO Trafpol on the M25...so the HATO's HAVE replaced trafpol.
I've seen it around our way as well - the odd trafpol still around, but more HATO's.
So in other words you've just parroted the gov'ts lie, letting them shaft us one more little step at a time.
Are you suggesting that the HATOs are a bad idea?
It's an absolute bugger when you are tanking along and see a battenburg with roof lights in the murky distance - usual braking rules apply.
Bit of a dig at trafpol here - hold yer hats. HATO dude performed a rolling roadblock (very good) so trafpol could collect debris from the central res. Trafpol sees the carriageway completely clear and WALKS across the 3 lanes and back after picking up a rogue cone that was off the road. Brilliant.
I'm ambivalent towards them - I'd like proper trafpol to get the money - but that would disappear into the police pension scheme black hole.
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