Wednesday, August 08, 2007

Advanced Stop Line ... Update from Les

As ever, Les is on the money ...

7th Aug 2007

Advanced Stop Line

I had a discussion with the Met Police Traffic Policy Unit today and learnt something.

The police do have the power to issue a three point penalty and fine to motorists that stop in the advanced green box reserved for cyclists behind the stop line at traffic lights. It seems that the reason that you never hear of anyone being prosecuted is because the police use their discretion, being that it is generally considered such an unreasonable law - expecting a motorist to get across what can sometimes be a distance of four metres or more between a traffic light going from amber to red.

I asked if the police would be having any input into Livingstone the dictator's plan to issue £120 fines to people who might get trapped in these green boxes?

The answer?

"We enforce the law, we don't make it."

I also took the opportunity to speak with a white-cap traffic cop on this matter a few days ago. He agreed that the stress of a possible £120 fine for getting caught in the advanced stop area will cause erratic driving behaviour - that will lead to an increase in accidents.

I have made an appointment to see my MP about this very matter. Things don't change on their own it requires that we get involved.

If you don't want to pay hundreds of pounds a day in fines or become involved in an unnecessary accident you may want to speak with your MP.

If you are happy to be ripped-off and lose your driving licence.......................then just do nothing.

http://www.parking-ripoff.co.uk/


154: Advanced stop lines. Some junctions have advanced stop lines or bus advance areas to allow cycles and buses to be positioned ahead of other traffic. Motorists, including motorcyclists, MUST stop at the first white line reached, and should avoid encroaching on the marked area. If your vehicle has proceeded over the first white line at the time the signal goes red, you MUST stop at the second white line, even if your vehicle is in the marked area.
Laws RTA 1988 sect 36 & TSRGD regs 10 & 43(2)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

How refreshing to hear the sensible common sense approach by the police about the law being unreasonable and "We enforce the law, we don't make it." It has almost restored my faith, if only they didn't rely so heavily on ANPR and got some really bad drivers off the road through actually observing awful driving and increasing Traffic Police and restoring their Class 1 drivers. I have always found traffic police to be the most reasonable and discretionary because, frankly, they know what's what.

The local administrations may like to try and catch all those drivers who have had someone else fraudulently take their driving tests for them, a very major problem according to the Driving Standards Agency but then you can't catch them on CCTV can you even though it is a far greater threat to other road users and safety.

Perhaps some of the over-vocal twerps from ACPO like Richard Brunstrom and Med Hughes could learn from this approach that it is not their job to make or influence policy, perhaps they should also be taught about the separation of powers and their role and that they only get to police with the consent of the public, consent that can be removed at any time.

This is really all about social engineering and revenue raising, the little Hitlers of this country in local administration don't like the fact that their mentalist minority views are being ignored and our behaviour is not changing as a small minority wish it to or that the actions of the majority should be considered lawful as it doesn't suit their agenda, that is for everyone to walk around in cotton wool suits and drive at 10mph, all in the name of 'safety' you understand.

So they decriminalise it, it becomes a contravention (civil responsibility) rather than an offence and there is no chance of being judged by your peers and the principle of jury nullification coming into force determining that the 'law is an ass'. Instead it is purely administrative with little recourse except to a parking tribunal, in effect a judicial quango (unaccountable too IMO) set up in the interests of pretend 'justice' that usually suits the administrations rather than the electorate; this is fundamentally wrong as it is the electorate that are sovereign in a democracy (even with our most gracious monarch on the throne).

I would write to my MP, the useless Keith Hill if I thought it was worth it any more but the little t**d is stepping down at the next election having been Bliar's PPS poodle and has never actually 'listened' to anything I've written to him and wouldn't sign any Early Day Motions, so much for democracy; and now the coward is resigning at the next election, probably to be succeeded by Steve Reed, 'Leader' of Lambeth Council who along with Chief Executive Derrick Anderson CBE (does a lot of good work for charity, DOES like to talk about it) has presided over one of the most shocking pieces of local administration mismanagement in recent years.

Any increase in the number of contraventions local administrations can issue PCNs for will see an increase in maladministration causing injustice as they see it as the golden egg-laying goose to top up their ever dwindling funds that they have so woefully mismanaged over the last decade; most local administrations, if the not the Country, are now essentially bankrupt. They can also of course employ more dullards to procrastinate and prevaricate over representations and deny in almost every case that the driver has grounds for the PCN to be cancelled; employing more (empire building), not just for the PCN processing but the live CCTV monitoring by more unaccountable pillocks will keep the unemployment figures down too; and they are employed by third party companies owned by very low tax paying private equity groups (NCP for example). These private equity groups take loads out of the Country but they don't put much back.

You have two options:

1) Fight,

2) Bend over.

Oh, BTW, have a nice day.

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