Patrol Vehicles with Amber lights on M40

[ledfoot]

Have seen a Police look alike patrol Range Rover on the M40 sitting in Police Only vehicles bay in Warwickshire for last 2 days.

What powers do these people have ?

Can they catch and report you for speeding ?

[tootler]

They're usually maintenance vehicles of one sort or another.

Some Councils employ people in similar vehicles to monitor traffic flow and speeds, and such vehicles may have a small camera mounted on a pole either attatched to the vehicle itself or set on the side of the road.

I don't believe they have any powers.

>> Edited by tootler on Thursday 3rd June 22:00

[towman]

I believe that they may be HATOs. Highways Agency Traffic Officers. Their role is to support the police with the more mundane tasks e.g. debris on the carriageway, damage only accidents etc etc. I dont believe they have the same powers as BiB. They are there to free up "proper coppers" to do other (traffic related) work.

Or does anyone know otherwise?

[MajorPart]

This might be for Large loads as i saw a Brand New White Merc C-Class with what looked like the full roof mounted traffic style lights.. but they were all white and amber.. only had one hi vis stripe on it.

It was escorting a large load around the town and had done so from down south.

[Flat in Fifth]

towman said:

I believe that they may be HATOs. Highways Agency Traffic Officers. Their role is to support the police with the more mundane tasks e.g. debris on the carriageway, damage only accidents etc etc. I dont believe they have the same powers as BiB. They are there to free up "proper coppers" to do other (traffic related) work. Or does anyone know otherwise?

Spot on towman.

If you look closely you will see not only are the beacons amber but the battenburg pattern is yellow / black.

However certain VOSA officials also in marked Ford Galaxies do have powers to stop.

see
http://tinyurl.com/22nmq

and

http://tinyurl.com/2ffvc

The Met is the latest force to give VOSA such powers.

All in the name of turning certain of our friends on here into an endangered species.

[pi55edoffnow]

I got stopped in a brand new mondeo in march, they checked the tyres the exhaust and lights and the tax not bad on a 200 mile old car!!! cheered me up no end.

[MajorPart]

Seeing how it's not in the highway code and not been highly publisized I ain't stopping for no Amber flashing car!

Totally argee I'm sure the goverment will say in regards to traffic budgets "cool we can give them 15% less now"