Highways England traffic officer service - Wikipedia Highways England traffic officer service Highways England Traffic Officer Service Abbreviation HETO Agency overview Formed 2015 Preceding agency Highways Agency Legal personality Governmental : Government agency Jurisdictional structure Operations jurisdiction * Country of England, United Kingdom Legal jurisdiction England and Wales General nature Law enforcement Local civilian police Operational structure Overviewed by Her Majesty 's Inspectorate of Constabulary / Independent Police Complaints Commission Headquarters Birmingham Officers 3,500 Footnotes * Divisional agency : Division of the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction. The Highways England Traffic Officer Service ( HETOS ) is an operational unit within the Highways England in England. In April 2004, Highways Agency Traffic Officers ( HATOs ) began working alongside police on motorways in the West Midlands. The roll - out of traffic officers was completed on 18 July 2006 and they now cover all of the motorway network within England, i.e. that which is owned or managed by Highways England, and some of the all - purpose trunk road ( APTR ) network. The introduction of the officers was aimed to reduce the 25 % of delays caused by collisions by around 5 %. On 1 April 2015 the Highways Agency became Highways England, a government - owned company. A government review in 2015 recommended two options for the future of traffic officers : a single National Infrastructure Constabulary combining the function of the Civil Nuclear Constabulary, the Ministry of Defence Police and the British Transport Police with the traffic officer service ; two separate forces : a Transport Infrastructure Constabulary, that would include the traffic officer services, and an Armed Infrastructure Constabulary. As of February 2017 these proposals have been put on hold whilst the three police forces involved explore collaborative working options. Contents 1 Operations 1.1 Patrols 1.2 Vehicles and equipment 1.3 Communications 1.4 Incident support units 1.5 Incidents 2 Powers 2.1 Traffic Management Act 2004 2.2 Removal and disposal of vehicles 3 Regional Control Centres 3.1 Management 3.2 Control room 4 Death on duty 5 Locations 6 Ranks and grades 7 References 8 External links Operations Patrols Normally, each patrol has a crew of two. Only team managers, their deputies or specially trained single crew officers may be single crewed - but this limits their capabilities. A pilot of single crewed Traffic Officers is ongoing and planned to be rolled out nationally, starting in September 2013. All crew members wear high - visibility jackets, distinctive by the orange and yellow markings, along with dark blue cargo - style trousers. All staff who work on the network are required to wear steel toe cap boots and have access to other protective equipment such as high visibility waterproof trousers, gloves and safety goggles. Staff have the option to wear a white collared shirt and tie, an open necked white shirt or a navy collared polo shirt. All officers carry a portable Airwave radio. Vehicles and equipment A typical Highways England Traffic Officer vehicle Traffic officers patrol the motorway network using high - visibility 4x4 patrol vehicles. Such vehicles are used mainly for their ability to tow, or clear broken - down or disabled vehicles to a place of safety off the carriageway if needed. 4x4 vehicles can remain mobile in flood or snow conditions, as well as being able to carry the large amount of safety and recovery equipment ( including a basic first aid kit ) that the patrols use. Such vehicles also have the advantage of visibility -- their size makes them more visible to other motorists when stationary on the hard shoulder. All of the vehicles are liveried with yellow and black Battenburg markings ; equipped with a Sepura vehicle mounted TETRA digital radio ; hands - free mobile telephone ; have the benefit of red and amber LED lightbars and additional LED lights. All of the latest vehicles are fitted with alternating headlights ( wigwags ) and a bull horn to assist with progressing through stationary traffic on approach to an incident. When travelling on the hard shoulder, vehicles use front - and rear - facing amber lighting, and are restricted to 20 mph ( HETO procedures ). When stationary on the hard shoulder, vehicles illuminate rear - facing amber LEDs. However, when the vehicle is working in the carriageway all the rear - facing lights ( amber and red ) are displayed to warn approaching traffic. Traffic officers, unlike police, must comply with all speed limits, including temporary mandatory limits in roadworks. These procedures differ from police procedures, whereby the police will employ rear - facing ' reds ' only when stationary on the hard shoulder. Whilst stationary on the hard shoulder and if a traffic officer feels it is necessary - because of the weather or location - they may use the red rear lights, in addition to the amber lights. This will be noted in the traffic officer 's pocket notebook as a dynamic risk assessment and also relayed to a Regional Control Centre ( RCC ) for entry on to the log. Each vehicle carries 650 kg ( 1,430 lb ) of equipment, which includes traffic cones, basic first - aid kits, warning lights, water containers, road - clearance equipment and towing / recovery gear, all contained in a heavy steel bolted - in rack system. They also have variable message signs ( VMS ) at the rear. The traffic officers use different models of 4x4 vehicles, all diesel - powered with automatic transmissions. Vehicles used for patrolling as of 2016 are : Land Rover Discovery 4 and Mitsubishi Shogun BK. When first introduced into service, the Mitsubishi Shogun was operating above the vehicle maximum plated axle weight. This continued for some time ; faced with the alternative of withdrawing the vehicle HE, with the assistance of Mitsubishi, uprated the rear springs, thereby allowing the vehicles to be operated within the manufacturer 's specification. Previous vehicles used included Mitsubishi Grandis ( for team managers ) Mitsubishi Shogun ( CK Model ), Nissan Pathfinder, Range Rover and Toyota Land Cruiser. The Pathfinder was considered unsuitable, and was discontinued in service once the vehicles had reached the end of their lease. The vehicle stance, squat low at the rear when carrying the HE equipment, upset handling and obstructed rear vision. Previously HETO vehicles were leased on an 18 - month / 150,000 mile contract through Lloyds leasing ( which became Lex Leasing in 2009 ). A new contract was awarded on 8 February 2010 to VT ( now Babcock ) Group for the provision and maintenance of the 207 - strong fleet. Communications Traffic Officers maintain contact with each other and the RCC by use of Sepura hand - held and vehicle TETRA Radios using the Airwave network, and enabling officers to co-ordinate with other Airwave users ( e.g. local Road Traffic Policing officers. Speeding past a Traffic Officer Vehicle in an obvious or dangerous manner could result in a prosecution through evidence based witness statements as each crew member will have direct access to local road police unit resources and request cctv footage be preserved ). Each patrol vehicle is also fitted with a handsfree mobile phone. Incident support units Although liveried similar to the patrol vehicles, incident support units ( ISU ) are part of the managing agent contracts. They work closely with the traffic officers in dealing with incidents on the network. For example, they can carry more equipment ( in quantity terms ), a wider range of kit and deal with certain infrastructure elements that traffic officers are not able to work on. Incidents Between 1 December 2007 and 30 November 2008, traffic officers patrolled 2,025 miles ( 3,259 km ) of motorways and trunk roads across England every hour of every day, and attended over 281,000 incidents, an average of one incident every two minutes. As a result of government budget cuts in 2013, traffic officers no longer patrol the network. They are reactive, and only attend reported incidents. Traffic officers attend incidents ranging from breakdowns and road debris to minor Road Traffic Collisions ( RTC ) releasing the police motorway patrols to concentrate on criminal activities on the network and serious RTCs. At serious RTCs, the police take control of the incident and will generally be assisted by traffic officers, making use of the RCC for setting of electronic traffic signs. A silver command will be established at the RCC to manage the incident on behalf of Highways England, controlled by a duty operations manager. Other incidents traffic officers attend include ; debris in the carriageway, spillages, animals, fires ( to support the fire service ), pedestrians, vulnerable persons, broken - down vehicles and network defects. Powers In addition to a number of exemptions from the Road Traffic Act and motorway regulations such as being permitted to stop, drive and reverse on the hard shoulder, Traffic Officers derive powers from the Traffic Management Act 2004 and The Removal and Disposal of Vehicles ( Traffic Officers ) ( England ) Regulations 2008. Under The Traffic Signs ( Amendment ) ( No. 2 ) Regulations and General Directions 2011, which became effective on 30 January 2012, traffic officers are also exempt from certain requirements in the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions, as are motorists when acting under the direction of a traffic officer. Traffic Management Act 2004 Officers must follow the directions of a police constable, and to exercise their powers must be on duty and in uniform. For the purposes of : maintaining or improving the movement of traffic on a relevant road over which the traffic officer has jurisdiction preventing or reducing the effect of anything causing ( or which has the potential to cause ) congestion or other disruption to the movement of traffic on such a road, avoiding danger to persons or other traffic using such a road ( or preventing risks of any such danger arising ), preventing damage to, or to anything on or near, such a road, a traffic officer may : direct a person driving or propelling a vehicle to stop the vehicle, or to make it proceed in, or keep to, a particular line of traffic, for the purposes of a traffic survey of any description which is being carried out on or in the vicinity of a road, to direct a person driving or propelling a vehicle to stop the vehicle, or to make it proceed in, or keep to, a particular line of traffic, or to proceed to a particular point on or near the road on which the vehicle is being driven or propelled ( subject to the restriction in section 35 ( 3 ) of the Road Traffic Act 1988 ( c. 52 ) ), direct persons on foot ( or such persons and other traffic ) to stop, direct a person driving a mechanically propelled vehicle, or riding a cycle, on a road to stop the vehicle or cycle, place temporary traffic signs and cones on a road. Assaulting, resisting or wilfully obstructing an officer are offences. It is also an offence to impersonate an officer, or for officers to claim to have more powers than they do. HE traffic officers do not have any powers of detention, or to search, issue fixed penalties or report for summons for any motoring offence. Breaching a rolling road block is an offence which is likely to be prosecuted. The number of prosecutions increased as automatic number - plate recognition ( ANPR ) technology became widespread, enabling the recorded location of vehicles to be used in evidence. Drivers are obliged by the Traffic Management Act 2004 to comply with directions given by officers ; this is briefly explained in the Highway Code : Highways England Traffic Officers have powers to stop vehicles on most motorways and some ' A ' class roads, in England only. If HE 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 flashing amber lights, usually from behind directing you to pull over to the side by pointing and / or using the left indicator 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. -- Rule 108, Highway Code Removal and Disposal of vehicles Since 2009, traffic officers have the powers to directly arrange recovery of abandoned, broken - down or damaged vehicles. Previously this had been arranged through local police forces but, in accordance with the Association of Chief Police Officers ( ACPO ) transfer of responsibilities, Highways England gained the relevant powers in 2008. The use of recovery powers are in accordance with strict guidance and instructions. In October 2008 FMG Support were appointed as the Highways Agency 's national vehicle recovery manager ( NVRM ). The NVRM will act as the Highways England 's liaison with the recovery operators, who will be appointed to recovery vehicles as instructed. The powers to allow traffic officers to remove vehicles are detailed in `` The Removal and Disposal of Vehicles ( Traffic Officers ) ( England ) Regulations 2008 '' Vehicles that are in a dangerous location or causing an obstruction can be removed at any time under Section 99 of the Road Traffic Act 1984 ; in other cases motorists have two hours to make arrangements for recovery. Where they can not make suitable arrangements in this time, under Section 99 a `` statutory removal '', subject to strict controls, can be invoked, and traffic officers may offer a `` facilitated recovery ''. The NVRM is appointed to arrange recovery of vehicles. Regional control Centres There are seven Regional Control Centres located across England. These RCCs function as the daily operations control rooms. Management of the on - road functions is controlled by one of three Heads of On Road managers. The seven RCCs are controlled by one senior manager. Management Each Region is headed up by a Regional Operations Manager ( ROM ) and a number of Operations Managers ( OM ). Each OM has an area of responsibility which may be certain areas of the network and outstations, through to planning and control rooms. Control room Control centres answer the orange emergency roadside telephones on the motorway and trunk road network, liaise with breakdown organisations, allocate Traffic Officers to incidents, monitor the CCTV system, control the electronic variable - message signs on the roads and supply information to the NTCC. Some RCCs are jointly staffed by the police. Death on duty This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( April 2014 ) On 25 September 2012, Traffic Officer John Walmsley became the first HETO killed on duty. Officer Walmsley was 59 years old. At about 14 : 50 Officer Walmsley was deployed to attend a single vehicle collision on the M25. Officer Walmsley and his colleague dragged the damaged vehicle onto the hard shoulder using their patrol vehicle and tow rope. The traffic was then released and normal traffic flow resumed but with speed advisory caution signs illuminated on the overhead matrix gantries. Whilst at the scene awaiting recovery for the crashed vehicle Officer Walmsley was observing passing vehicles whilst implementing traffic management to protect the scene, when an approaching car lost control and spun towards him. Officer Walmsley could not react in time, and the out of control car struck him causing fatal injuries. Over 400 people attended his funeral including 200 traffic officers from all over England. In 2013 a woman in her 40s pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving and was sentenced to 150 hours community service and a 3 - year driving disqualification. On 21 February 2016, traffic officer Adam Gibb, 51 and his crew mate were simultaneously struck by a passing vehicle whilst out of their patrol vehicle dealing with the aftermath of an earlier collision on the M6 in Cumbria. It is believed Officer Gibb died instantly whilst members of the public tended to his crew mate awaiting emergency services to attend. The crew mate, who remains unnamed, was airlifted to hospital. He has since been diagnosed with suffering life changing injuries and requires 24 / 7 care. Locations Region Regional Control Centres Outstations North Rob Lane, Newton - le - Willows Calder Park, Wakefield ( NW ) Rob Lane ( M6 J22 to J23 ) Lowhurst Millness Samlesbury Milnrow Knutsford ( NE ) Tingley Carville Barton Sprotbrough Central Nottingham Quinton Avonmouth ( E Mids ) Shepshed Watford Gap Felley ( W Mids ) Ansty Quinton Hilton Park Longbridge ( M40 J15 ) Strensham ( M5 J7 - 8 ) ( S West ) Almondsbury ( M5 J16 ) Stanton St Quinton ( M4 J17 ) Chelston ( M5 J26 ) Pridhamsleigh ( A38, Buckfastleigh ) South Godstone South Mimms ( M25 J23 ) ( South East ) Easton Lane ( M3 Jct 9 ) Weatherhill ( M23 Jct 8 - 9 ) Coldharbour Dartford Heston ( and East Region ) ( East ) Whittlesford Toddington Milton Common Chieveley Heston South Mimms Ranks and grades Highways England ( EX - Highways Agency ) epaulettes Title Traffic Officer ( Control Centre Operator ) Traffic Officer ( On - Road ) Team Manager Operations Manager Head Of ( Functional Department ) ( Formerly Regional Operations Manager ) Grade TM1a TM1b TM2 TM3 PB8 From August 2009 Before August 2009 The numbers shown are for purposes of illustration only. Each member of staff of the Highways England Traffic Officer Service bears his or her own individual `` HA '' shoulder number. From August 2009 the colour and rank system changed following feedback from staff. The new design removed the dual colour / rank system replacing it with a simple and easy to understand design. The HE issued staff with a tie in the colour of the new epaulettes. References ^ Jump up to : `` Civilian patrols police motorways ''. BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation. 2004 - 04 - 26. Retrieved 2008 - 01 - 01. Jump up ^ `` British Transport Police : Commons Library Briefing, 12 June 2017 '' ( PDF ). 12 June 2017. Retrieved 2017 - 11 - 14. Jump up ^ `` Update on the Infrastructure Policing Review ''. www.btpolfed.org.uk. Retrieved 2017 - 11 - 15. Jump up ^ `` Page not found -- News - Highways England ''. Archived from the original on 21 February 2010. Jump up ^ `` Highways Agency Network Management Manual '' ( PDF ). Department for Transport, Highways Agency. Retrieved 4 May 2014. Jump up ^ `` nterim Advice Note 75 / 06 Code of Practice for Emergency Access to and Egress from the Trunk Road Network in England '' ( PDF ). Department for Transport, Highways Agency. Retrieved 4 May 2014. Jump up ^ `` A successful year for the Traffic Officer service ''. Highways Agency. 29 December 2008. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Jump up ^ `` The Traffic Signs ( Amendment ) ( No. 2 ) Regulations and General Directions 2011 ''. www.legislation.gov.uk. Jump up ^ `` Traffic Management Act 2004 ''. www.opsi.gov.uk. ^ Jump up to : `` Traffic Management Act 2004 ''. www.opsi.gov.uk. Jump up ^ `` Traffic Management Act 2004 ''. www.opsi.gov.uk. Jump up ^ `` Traffic Management Act 2004 ''. www.opsi.gov.uk. ^ Jump up to : `` Traffic Management Act 2004 ''. www.opsi.gov.uk. Jump up ^ `` Our Roles and Responsibilities ''. Highways Agency Traffic Officers. Highways Agency. Archived from the original on 14 January 2008. Retrieved 1 January 2008. Jump up ^ `` The Removal and Disposal of Vehicles ( Traffic Officers ) ( England ) Regulations 2008 ''. www.legislation.gov.uk. Jump up ^ http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2008/em/uksiem_20082367_en.pdf The Removal and Disposal of Vehicles ( Traffic Officers ) ( England ) Regulations 2008 ^ Jump up to : `` Regional Control Centres ''. Highways Agency. Archived from the original on 6 September 2008. Retrieved 1 January 2008. Jump up ^ `` Highways England officer dies on - duty after collision on the M6 ''. ITV News. 22 February 2016. Retrieved 2017 - 11 - 14. External links Highways Agency official website Traffic Radio Traffic England - live traffic information from the HA including delays, roadworks, roadside message signs Highways Agency YouTube channel Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Highways_England_Traffic_Officer_Service&oldid=810460232 '' Categories : Law enforcement agencies Road transport in England Law enforcement occupations in the United Kingdom Emergency road services Hidden categories : Use dmy dates from October 2013 Use British English from July 2013 Pages using infobox law enforcement with automatic label pluralization Wikipedia articles needing clarification from December 2010 Wikipedia articles in need of updating from April 2017 All Wikipedia articles in need of updating Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2016 All articles containing potentially dated statements All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from January 2009 Articles with unsourced statements from May 2014 Articles needing additional references from April 2014 All articles needing additional references Official website different in Wikidata and Wikipedia Talk Contents About Wikipedia Add links This page was last edited on 15 November 2017, at 11 : 23. 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Question: which part of the uk do traffic officers operate
Answer: West Midlands