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Part 3
Road Traffic and Highways
| 10 | Overhanging trees etc. which obstruct views of traffic signs, etc. |
| (1) | Section 154(1) of the Highways Act 1980 (c. 66) (cutting or felling trees etc. that overhang or are a danger to roads or footpaths) shall apply as respects— |
| (a) | a highway for which a London authority are the highway authority; |
| (b) | any road or footpath in a borough which is not a highway, |
in accordance with subsection (2) below.
| (2) | For the words from "overhangs a highway or any other road" to "horse-riders," there is substituted— |
| "(a) | overhangs a highway or any other road or footpath to which the public has access so as to endanger or obstruct the passage of vehicles or pedestrians, |
| (b) | obstructs or interferes with the view of drivers of vehicles or the light from a public lamp, |
| (c) | overhangs a highway so as to endanger or obstruct the passage of horse-riders, |
| (d) | obstructs or interferes with the view of a traffic sign which drivers of vehicles, cyclists or pedestrians have or would otherwise have, or |
| (e) | prevents or hampers the operation of any device used for obtaining evidence in relation to contraventions of law relating to the use of vehicles,". |
| 11 | Removal of abandoned apparatus etc. from streets |
| (1) | If, in the opinion of the relevant street authority— |
| (a) | apparatus in a street is not, or is no longer, used for the purposes of the undertaking for which it was provided and there is no reasonable likelihood that it will be so used; and |
| (b) | the apparatus is causing a nuisance or is detrimental to the amenity of the area in which it is located, |
the relevant street authority may serve a notice under this section upon the owner of the apparatus.
| (2) | If, after reasonable enquiry, the relevant street authority have been unable to ascertain the name and address of the owner, they may affix a notice under this section to the apparatus. |
| (3) | A notice under this section is a notice requiring, within such reasonable time (not being less than 28 days) as may be specified in the notice, the owner of the apparatus to remove the apparatus. |
| (4) | The sections of the Public Health Act 1936 (c. 49) mentioned in Schedule 1 to this Act shall have effect as if references in those sections to that Act included references to this section. |
| (5) | The period within which the owner of apparatus must comply with the requirements of a notice served under subsection (1) above may be extended with the agreement of the council. |
"apparatus" means any apparatus placed in a street (but does not include apparatus placed wholly under a street) and includes any structure for housing any apparatus or for gaining access to apparatus;
"relevant street authority" means—
| (a) | the borough council, as respects roads for which they are the street authority; |
| (b) | Transport for London, as respects roads for which they are the street authority, |
under Part III of the New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 (c. 22);
"street" has the same meaning as in Part III of the New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 (c. 22).
Part 4
Filming
| 12 | Prohibition or restriction on roads in connection with filming |
| (1) | Section 16A of the 1984 Act (prohibition or restriction on roads in connection with certain events) shall apply in Greater London with the following modifications. |
| (2) | The expressions "relevant event" and "the holding of a relevant event" include the making of a film. |
| (3) | After subsection (2), the following subsection is inserted— |
| "(2A) | The traffic authority for a road may at any time by notice restrict or prohibit temporarily the use of the road, or any part of it, by vehicles, or vehicles of any class, or by pedestrians, where it appears to them that it is expedient for the making of a film and that the restriction or prohibition should come into force without delay.". |
| (4) | The references, in subsections (3) and (5) to (10), to an order under section 16A include references to a notice under subsection (2A) of that section, as inserted by subsection (3) above, and references to the making of such an order include references to the issuing of such a notice. |
| 13 | Restrictions on orders and notices |
| (1) | Section 16B of the Act of 1984 (restrictions on orders under section 16A) shall apply in Greater London with the following modifications. |
| (2) | In subsection (1) after the words "three days" the words "(or seven days, in the case of a film order)" are inserted. |
| (3) | In subsection (6) the words "Subject to subsection (6A)," are inserted at the beginning. |
| (4) | After subsection (6), the following subsections are inserted— |
| "(6A) | No more than 6 film orders may be made under section 16A in any calendar year so as to affect any length of road, unless a further film order— |
| (a) | is made by the Secretary of State as the traffic authority for the road concerned; or |
| (b) | is made with his consent. |
| (6B) | No film notice shall continue in force for more than 24 hours from the time at which it comes into effect. |
| (6C) | In this section, "film orders" and "film notices" are orders and notices under section 16A of this Act which are made or issued in relation to the making of a film.". |
| (5) | In subsection (7), for "subsection (6)" there is substituted "subsections (6) and (6A)". |
Part 5
Non-payment of Penalty Charges
| 14 | Interpretation of Part 5 |
| (1) | In this Part of this Act— |
"custodian" means a London authority or a person authorised by a London authority to keep vehicles removed under subsection (4) of section 17 (removal of vehicles) of this Act;
"NTO case" means a case where a penalty charge notice has been issued or served under—
| (a) | section 66 of and Schedule 6 to the 1991 Act (parking penalties in London); |
| (b) | section 4 (penalty charge notices under Part II) of and Schedule 1 to the London Local Authorities Act 1996 (c. ix); or |
| (c) | regulations made under section 72 (civil penalties for road traffic contraventions) of the 2004 Act if the regulations make provision for the service of a notice to owner in respect of the penalty charge notice in question; |
"penalty charge" means a penalty charge payable under regulations made under section 72 of the 2004 Act (civil penalties for road traffic contraventions) or under any other specified enactment and includes—
| (a) | an avoided release fee within the meaning of subsection (6) of section 4 (unpaid charges on unlawful release of vehicle: Road Traffic Act 1991) of this Act; and |
| (b) | any increased charge liable to be paid under a specified enactment; |
"prescribed" means prescribed by the joint committee established under section 73 of the 1991 Act (appointment of parking adjudicators) or, if, for the time being, there is no such committee, any other joint committee consisting of all the London borough councils and Transport for London;
"road" has the same meaning as in the 1984 Act (see section 142(1) of that Act);
"specified enactment" means—
| (a) | section 66 of and Schedule 6 to the 1991 Act (parking penalties in London); |
| (b) | section 4 (Penalty charge notices under Part II) of and Schedule 1 to the London Local Authorities Act 1996 (c.ix); |
| (c) | regulations made under section 144 of the Transport Act 2000 (c.38) (civil penalties for bus lane contraventions); |
| (d) | section 4 (Penalty charges for road traffic contraventions) of and Schedule 1 to the Act of 2003; |
| (e) | regulations made under paragraph 12 of Schedule 23 to the Greater London Authority Act 1999 (c.29) (penalty charges for road user charging); |
| (f) | regulations made under section 72 of the 2004 Act. |
| (2) | The reference in subsection (1) above to section 66 of the 1991 Act shall include a reference to that section as applied by section 77 of that Act. |
| (a) | a reference in any provision to an authorised person is to a person authorised by a London authority for the purposes of that provision and different persons may be authorised for the purposes of different provisions; and |
| (b) | where a person has been authorised to act on behalf of a London authority in relation to any matter a reference to the London authority shall be taken to include a reference to that person; and |
| (c) | where an agreement for this purpose exists between two or more London authorities a person may be authorised to act on behalf of all the London authorities party to that agreement. |
| (4) | Subject to subsection (6) below, for the purposes of this Part of this Act a penalty charge is "outstanding" if the London authority in question have not waived payment (whether by cancellation of a penalty charge notice or otherwise) and— |
| (a) | if a penalty charge notice has been issued or served and (in an NTO case) a notice to owner has been served— |
| (i) | the penalty charge has not been paid; |
| (ii) | the owner of the vehicle in question was the owner of the vehicle at the time the penalty charge was incurred; and |
| (iii) | any of the circumstances in subsection (5) below apply without subsection (6) below applying; or |
| (b) | if a penalty charge notice has not been issued or served or (in an NTO case where a penalty charge notice has been issued or served), no notice to owner has been served— |
| (i) | the penalty charge relates to a vehicle which, at the time the penalty charge was incurred, either fell within subsection (7) below or was registered but with no address or an incorrect address given for the registered keeper; |
| (ii) | the London authority in question having taken reasonable steps have failed to ascertain the name and address of the person on whom a penalty charge notice or notice to owner, as the case may be, could be served; and |
| (iii) | the penalty charge has not been paid before the end of the period of 35 days beginning with the day after the day on which the relevant time fell. |
| (5) | The circumstances mentioned in subsection (4)(a)(iii) above are— |
| (a) | the period allowed by the relevant specified enactment for making representations to the London authority in respect of the penalty charge has expired and no such representations have been made; |
| (b) | such representations have been made and— |
| (i) | the London authority have notified the person who made them that they reject the representations or the grounds of the representations, as the case may be; and |
| (ii) | the period allowed by the relevant specified enactment for making an appeal to an adjudicator in respect of the notification of rejection of representations has expired and no appeal has been made to an adjudicator; |
| (c) | if such an appeal has been made— |
| (i) | the appeal was unsuccessful; and |
| (ii) | the period of 28 days beginning with the date on which the appellant was notified of the decision on the appeal has expired. |
| (a) | a warrant of execution has been issued in respect of a county court order which enables the recovery of a penalty charge or an increased charge; and |
| (b) | a bailiff has been instructed to levy execution of the order, |
the penalty charge in question shall not be treated for the purposes of this Part of this Act as "outstanding" unless the bailiff has agreed otherwise with the London authority which issued the penalty charge notice.
| (7) | A vehicle falls within this subsection if at the relevant time— |
| (a) | the vehicle was not registered under the Vehicle Excise and Registration Act 1994 (c.22); or |
| (b) | the vehicle was registered but no person was registered as its keeper. |
| (8) | In this section "relevant time" means the time at which the penalty charge became payable. |
| (9) | Regulations under section 72 of the 2004 Act may modify subsections (4) to (8) above in relation to penalty charges payable under regulations made under that section. |
| 15 | Preliminary procedure where ownership details not known |
| (1) | This section applies where an authorised person has reason to believe that— |
| (a) | there are, in relation to any one London authority by whom he is authorised, at least three penalty charges outstanding in relation to a vehicle which is stationary on a road in Greater London; and |
| (b) | the circumstances described in subsection (4)(b) of section 14 (interpretation of Part 5) of this Act apply in relation to each penalty charge. |
| (2) | Where this section applies, the authorised person or a person acting under the authorised person's direction may— |
| (a) | fix an immobilisation device to the vehicle while it remains in the place where it is stationary; or |
| (b) | move it, or require it to be moved, to another place on that road or another road and fix an immobilisation device to the vehicle in that other place. |
| (3) | On any occasion when an immobilisation device is fixed to a vehicle in accordance with this section, the person fixing the device shall also fix to the vehicle a notice— |
| (a) | indicating that such a device has been fixed to the vehicle and warning that no attempt should be made to drive it or otherwise put it in motion until it has been released from that device; |
| (b) | indicating the reason why the device has been fixed to the vehicle; |
| (c) | specifying the steps to be taken in order to secure its release; |
| (d) | giving contact information (including a telephone number) which may be used in order to request that the vehicle be released from the immobilisation device under subsection (10) below; |
| (e) | giving such other information as may be prescribed by regulations made by the Secretary of State. |
| (4) | A vehicle to which an immobilisation device has been fixed in accordance with this section may only be released from that device by or under the direction of a person authorised by the relevant London authority to give such a direction. |
| (5) | A notice fixed to a vehicle in accordance with this section shall not be removed or interfered with except by or under the authority of— |
| (a) | the owner, or person in charge, of the vehicle; or |
| (b) | the relevant London authority or their authorised agent. |
| (6) | A person contravening subsection (5) above shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 2 on the standard scale. |
| (7) | Any person who, without being authorised to do so in accordance with this section, removes or attempts to remove an immobilisation device fixed to a vehicle in accordance with this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale. |
| (8) | Subject to subsection (9) below, section 70 of the 1991 Act (which makes exemptions from the operation of section 69 of that Act) shall, except for subsection (1)(b) and (c) apply in relation to the fixing of immobilisation devices under this section, and where it so applies, references to section 69(1) of that Act shall be taken to be references to subsection (1) above. |
| (9) | The reference in subsection (8) above to section 70 of the 1991 Act or to a provision of that section shall include a reference to any equivalent provision replacing that section or provision made by virtue of regulations under section 79 of the 2004 Act (immobilisation of vehicle where penalty charge payable). |
| (10) | Subject to subsection (4) above, a vehicle to which an immobilisation device has been fixed in accordance with this section shall be released from that device by an authorised person if— |
| (a) | the London authority in question is requested to do so; and |
| (b) | the conditions of subsection (11) or (12) below are satisfied. |
| (11) | The conditions of this subsection are that the person making the request ("the claimant")— |
| (a) | provides his name and address; |
| (b) | provides satisfactory and verifiable proof of his name and address; and |
| (c) | provides the name and address of the owner of the vehicle (if it is not him). |
| (12) | The conditions of this subsection are that— |
| (a) | the claimant provides his name and address; and |
| (b) | a bond in the prescribed sum is paid to the authorised person or to one of the London authorities specified by him and by whom he is authorised; and |
| (c) | no bond has previously been paid under this subsection in respect of the outstanding penalty charges. |
| (13) | If a bond is paid to an authorised person or a London authority in accordance with subsection (12)(b) above, the authorised person shall issue to the claimant a certificate in the prescribed form, stating— |
| (a) | that the certificate is issued under this section; |
| (b) | the date on which the certificate was issued; |
| (c) | the registered mark of the vehicle; |
| (d) | the date on which the certificate expires; |
| (e) | the effect of subsection (14) below; |
| (f) | the contact details of the London authority to whom information should be provided to satisfy the provisions of subsection (16) or (17) below. |
| (14) | If a certificate issued under subsection (13) above is being displayed prominently in or on the vehicle to which it relates on or before the date on which it expires— |
| (a) | no immobilisation device may be fixed to the vehicle under this section; and |
| (b) | the vehicle may not be removed under section 17 (removal of vehicles) of this Act. |
| (15) | A certificate issued under subsection (13) above shall expire at the end of the period of 21 days beginning with the date on which it was issued. |
| (16) | If the London authority referred to in subsection (13)(f) above is provided with satisfactory and verifiable proof of the name and address of the owner of the vehicle, the London authority shall return the bond to the person by whom it was paid and no further action may be taken in relation to the vehicle under this section in relation to the outstanding penalty charges in question. |
| (17) | The guidance that shall be published under section 25 (guidance) of this Act shall include provision about what may constitute "satisfactory and verifiable proof" for the purposes of subsections (11)(b) and (16) above. |
| (18) | A person shall be guilty of an offence if he— |
| (a) | intentionally obstructs a person exercising any power conferred on him under this section; or |
| (b) | in providing proof or information under subsection (11) or (16) above— |
| (i) | makes any statement which he knows is false in a material particular; |
| (ii) | recklessly makes a statement which is false in a material particular; or |
| (c) | displays in or on a vehicle a false certificate, purportedly issued under subsection (13) above. |
| (19) | A person guilty of an offence under subsection (18)(a) above shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale. |
| (20) | A person guilty of an offence under subsection (18)(b) or (c) above shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale. |
| (21) | Section 22 (issue of penalty charge notices, etc. on release or recovery of vehicle) of this Act makes provision about the service of fresh penalty charge notices and notices to owner after the release of a vehicle under this section. |
| (22) | The power of the Secretary of State to make regulations under subsection (3)(e) above is exercisable by statutory instrument. |
| (23) | Any such instrument is subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament. |
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