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Highways Agency andAssociation of ChiefPolice OfficersThe Network Operations National Guidance FrameworkMarch 2005

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TABLE OF CONTENTSForeword1. The purpose of the National Guidance Framework 5

1.1 Guiding Detailed Regional Operating Agreements1.2 Review process1.3 Structure

2. The joint operational concept for the English motorway network 72.1 Priorities for the HA and the police2.2 Joint operational goals2.3 New operational roles and responsibilities2.4 Joint implementation

3. Principles for the partnership 113.1 Establishing clear working relationships3.2 Implementation planning checklist3.3 National planning and support3.4 Making it stick

4. Delivering the service – enablers 174.1 Joint governance4.2 Independent financing of running costs4.3 Mutual support in delivering desirable outcomes

5. Delivering the service – joint operations 235.1 Operational flexibility5.2 Productive information and intelligence sharing5.3 Compatible command, control and communication systems5.4 Clear understanding about responsibility for managing incidents5.5 Joint enforcement strategies under the

provisions of the Traffic Management Act6. Guidance by function 37

6.1 Guidance structured by organisation6.2 Control office functions6.3 On-road activity6.4 Central functions

7. Performance 737.1 Rationale for a joint performance measurement framework7.2 Principles of the joint HA/ACPO performance measurement framework7.3 The need for shared intelligence7.4 The key performance indicators7.5 Setting targets7.6 Targets for the DROAs7.7 Examples of analytical tools to improve performance7.8 Contribution to police efficiency

8. Moving forward 83

AppendicesAPPENDIX A: Glossary 85APPENDIX B: References 88APPENDIX C: Acknowledgements and contacts 90

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FOREWORDThe roles and responsibilities programme is delivering a significantrealignment of responsibilities between the police and the Highways Agency (HA). Whilst recognising the organisational challenges to bothparties, it provides a real opportunity to make substantial improvements inthe way we manage the motorway network1 and deliver roads policing. It isbased on sound operational input and principles and, as such, has the fullbacking of the senior managers in the HA and of the Association of ChiefPolice Officers (ACPO).

This document is the 2nd edition of the National Guidance Framework. It sets out the operational framework within which the police and the HAwill continue to work together to deliver a better service for the Englishmotorway user. It should be read in conjunction with its enabling document –the Network Operations Partnership Agreement. This sets out at a high levelhow we envisage managing the future operation of the motorway network. It expresses what we want to achieve.

The audience for the Network Operations National Guidance Framework is fundamentally at a senior operational level – the people tasked withdelivering these new services. The guidance provides the broad foundationfor operational managers to work within, whilst not taking away localdiscretion, where appropriate. It provides the overarching national principlesthat encourage innovation, not inhibit it. It sets out what should be nationalstandards. This is a new way of working and we must retain someoperational flexibility. This programme is a good example of cross-agencyworking in practice and builds on achievements to date.

We should not be complacent – we know that there will be major challengesahead and things will not always go as we planned. A key test for us is how we deal with challenges when they occur. This is the true measure of our partnership strength. The enclosed guidance sets the direction byestablishing national standards and guidelines for the delivery of the newservice.

1 For the purpose of the Network Operations NGF ‘motorway network’ refers to motorways andsome key all purpose trunk roads upon which the new HA Traffic Officer service operates.

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Steve Williams, National Traffic Director, Highways Agency

“The Roles and Responsibilities Programme represents a fundamentaland highly challenging change in the way the Highways Agency works.Working closely with the Police and other key stakeholders we are ontrack to roll out the service across key parts of our network. By March2006 there will be some 1200 staff working in the Agency’s TrafficOfficer Service, both on-road and in the control room.

We have already shown, by our close and collaborative working withthe police, that we are able to make a real contribution to deliveringsafer roads, more reliable journeys and better informed travellers. Initialfeedback from the public and the media has been positive. The TrafficOfficer Service will make an important impact on tackling incidentrelated congestion, reducing the scope for secondary incidents andfreeing-up police time enabling them to focus on criminal activity.

I am confident that by coupling the energy of all our people with ourpolice colleagues we shall continue to make a significant contribution tothe quality of service provided to the road user.”

Chief Constable Stephen Green, Association of Chief Police Officers

"In a relatively short time, we have created firm foundations for theoperation and delivery of services on the motorway network in England. I am delighted at how this has developed and look forward to buildingupon our constructive working relationship with the Highways Agency. We know that it will not be without challenge but we will work togetherto ensure the goals of both organisations are achieved and that safetyconsiderations underpin all our activities. The police have enormousexperience and we are gladly providing operational expertise to helpthe Agency during the ongoing transition. We both stand to gain greatlyfrom this programme - the police are under significant pressure to focuson and deliver our core priorities and to achieve these we need to shedancillary tasks. Programmes such as this are most welcome. Theyallow us to focus scarce resource on what the public expects us to bedoing. In addition it provides real opportunities to demonstrate ourability to strike regional alliances across force borders and with externalstakeholders to address the wider policing agenda. For me, it providesa real opportunity to make a significant difference to roads policing."

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1. The purpose of theNational GuidanceFramework

Figure 1 Relationship betweenNGF and operational practices

NationalGuidance

Framework

RegionalOperating

Agreements

Processesand

Procedures

Best Practice& LessonsIdentified

JointOperational

Practice

The purpose of the National Guidance Framework (NGF) is to guide theestablishment and operation of the new working relationship between thepolice and the Highways Agency (HA) in their partnership to make the Englishmotorway network safer, less congested and freer from crime.

1.1 GUIDING DETAILED REGIONAL OPERATING AGREEMENTSThe National Guidance Framework, is an operational delivery documentarising from the roles and responsibilities programme, agreed by the ACPOand the HA. It translates the intent of the Network Operations PartnershipAgreement into national standards and common guidance for the DetailedRegional Operating Agreements (DROA) through which consistent andeffective joint operations will be delivered. It is therefore targeted at all thosetasked with making the Network Operations Partnership Agreement real andoperationally successful, and particularly police commanders and HA NetworkOperations Managers. It is written with the Traffic Management Act 2004 (Part1) as the primary source of powers and authority for Highways Agency TrafficOfficers. In addition, the Motorways Traffic (England and Wales) Regulations1982 have been amended to enable Traffic Officers to exercise discretionarypowers as prescribed.

1.2 REVIEW PROCESSThis is a living document that will be reviewed and updated to reflect bestoperational practice as well as future programmes to enhance the operation ofthe English motorway network. The partnership will continue to learn and tostrive for improvements in service delivery standards as it develops. Qualityand value for money will remain important considerations as the partnership

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matures. The next review will take place in early 2006 following initialoperations and learning experiences. It will be reviewed annually in the light ofkey operational events under the direction of the chair of the NationalPartnership Board.

1.3 STRUCTUREThe National Guidance Framework is structured in seven main sections and three appendices:

Section 2 - The joint operational conceptSection 3 - Principles for the partnershipSection 4 - Enablers for service deliverySection 5 - Joint operations to deliver servicesSection 6 - Detailed guidelines for each of the 31 functionsSection 7 - Mechanisms to monitor performanceSection 8 - Moving forward

Appendix A - provides a glossary of termsAppendix B - contains references to existing documentationAppendix C - contains acknowledgements to those who have assisted in the

development of this document and contact details for authors.

Figure 2 The key documents supporting Network Operations

Network Operations Partnership Agreement

Network Operations National Guidance

Framework

Detailed Regional Operating Agreements

HA procedures & guidance Regional procedures

and policies

Protocols and agreements: MACs, Local Authorities, Fire Service, VOSA

NGF to supportNTCC’s information

coordination role

DLOAs supportingNTCC’s role

National Partnership strategies e.g. control

strategy, ANPR

Regional Partnership strategies e.g. control

strategy, ANPR

Police Force procedures &

guidance

ACPO policy & guidance

HA corporate plans

National Policing Plan and national policing strategies

LegislationStrategic influences

Network OperationsAgrements, Frameworks & Strategies

Joint Police

Procedures & Guidance

Other agreements relevant to

network operations

National Regional

It should be noted that the Network Operations NGF and the NGF to support NTCC’s information coordination role are two distinct partnership agreements.

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The joint operational concept reflects the HA and police corporate goals,identifies how the joint operational goals of the Network OperationsPartnership Agreement support these, shows the new operational roles andresponsibilities, and summarises their joint implementation. It is not intended toundermine the statutory obligations and independence of either organisation.

2.1 PRIORITIES FOR THE HA AND THE POLICEThe Network Operations Partnership Agreement addresses both HA and policecorporate goals for the English motorway network.

The HA's three aims (from the Highways Agency Business Plan) are:• safe roads• reliable journeys• informed travellers.

HA Traffic Officers, whose role is defined by the Traffic Management Act,support these aims through the powers provided within the Act to:

• maintain or improve the movement of traffic• prevent or reduce congestion• avoid damage• prevent damage.

The police's five main objectives for road policing (from the ACPO RoadsPolicing Control Strategy) are:

• denying criminals use of the roads by enforcing the law

2.The joint operationalconcept for the Englishmotorway network

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• reducing road casualties• tackling the threat of terrorism• reducing anti-social use of the roads• enhancing public confidence and reassurance by patrolling the roads.

2.2 JOINT OPERATIONAL GOALSThe Network Operations Partnership Agreement aligned these organisationalgoals and aims to make the English motorway network safer, less congestedand freer from crime by:

• improving road safety with fewer fatal, serious and slight injurycollisions driven by an increased on-road presence on the motorwaynetwork, better co-ordinated operations and education, better informedand focused engineering, faster clearance of incidents and debris, andtargeted enforcement of traffic regulations

• reducing incident-related congestion with faster incident detection,response and clearance through improved CCTV coverage, additionalon-road resources and the ongoing development of joint traffic incidentmanagement

• freeing up police resources to target criminality by continuing totransfer non-core police roles to the HA, enhancing the detection ofcriminal activity on the motorway network and better targeting of policeresources to counter it. Where the term criminality is used throughoutthis document it includes all matters subject to criminal law includingroad traffic offences.

2.3 NEW OPERATIONAL ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIESTo achieve these goals the revised roles and responsibilities will see:

• the HA developing a fuller and more proactive network managementrole for both routine operations and incidents, complementing andreinforcing its traditional focus on infrastructure maintenance and development

• the police refocusing its roads policing functions away from networkmanagement towards intelligence-led targeting of criminal activity,alongside its continuing roles in managing incidents involving death orinjury, threats to public order and public safety or incidents requiringsignificant coordination of the emergency services. This refocusingtherefore supports the five objectives of the ACPO Roads PolicingControl Strategy and should support local targets and priorities thathave been developed through use of the National Intelligence Model.

Charts 1 and 2 below show the extent of the changed roles and responsibilities:

2.3.1 Traditional roles and responsibilities

2.3.2 New roles and responsibilities

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Chart 1 Traditional roles and responsibilities

Chart 2 New roles and responsibilities

1.1Incident

Management

1.1.1HandlingPolice-ledincidents

1.1.2Handling

HA ledincidents

1.1.3Emergency

roadside telephonecall handling

1.2.1CCTV use

for incidentmanagement and

criminality

1.2.2CCTV

use to monitortraffic flow

1.2.3Real-time

traffic managent

1.3.1Providing network

informationto media

1.3.2Tactical

diversionsign setting

1.3.3Strategic

sign setting

2.1.1Managing

criminal activity

2.1.2Management

Police-ledincidents

2.1.3Management

of minorcollisions

2.2.1Dealing withabandoned

vehicles

2.2.2Removal of

damaged/ brokendown vehicles

2.2.3Providing rollingroadblocks andtemporary road

closures

2.3.1Escort certain

vehicles

2.3.2Escorting

abnormal loadsif required

2.3.3Monitoringroadworks

3.1.1Develop

protocols andstandards

3.1.2Contingency

planning

3.1.3Routing

of abnormalloads

2.1.4Enforcementof road traffic

offences

2.2.4Clearing debris

and animals

2.3.4Special events

3.1.4Planning

fixed trafficmanagement

2.1.5High visibility

patrols

2.2.5Repairing

and improving theinfrastructure

2.3.5road-usereducation

3.1.5Planning

for roadworks

1.1.4Incident sign

setting

1.1.5Liaison with HA

contractors/roadside service

providers

1.2Monitoring

road network

1.3Support

to drivers

2.1General

on-road duties

2.2Controllingtraffic flow

2.3Other services

3.1Planning

and controlfunctions

1 Control Officefunctions

3 Central functions

2 On-road activity

Shared

Highways Agency

Police

1.1Incident

Management

1.1.1Handling fatal andserious incidents

1.1.2Handling minor

collisions

1.1.3 Emergency

roadside telephonecall handling

1.2.1CCTV use

for incidentmanagement and

criminality

1.2.2CCTV

use to monitortraffic flow

1.2.3Real-time

traffic managent

1.3.1Providing network

informationto media

1.3.2Tactical

diversionsign setting

1.3.3Strategic

sign setting

2.1.1Managing

criminal activity

2.1.2Management of

fatal and seriousincidents

2.1.3Management

of minorcollisions

2.2.1Dealing withabandoned

vehicles

2.2.2Removal of

damaged/ brokendown vehicles

2.2.3Providing mobile/temporary road

closures

2.3.1Escort certain

vehicles

2.3.2Escorting

abnormal loadsif required

2.3.3Monitoringroadworks

3.1.1Develop

protocols andstandards

3.1.2Contingency

planning

3.1.3Routing

of abnormalloads

2.1.4Enforcementof road traffic

offences

2.2.4Clearing debris

and animals

2.3.4Special events

3.1.4Planning

fixed trafficmanagement

2.1.5High visibility

patrols

2.2.5Repairing

and improving theinfrastructure

2.3.5road-usereducation

3.1.5Planning

for roadworks

1.1.4Incident sign

setting

1.1.5Liaison with HA

contractors/roadside service

providers

1.2Monitoring

road network

1.3Support

to drivers

2.1General

on-road duties

2.2Controllingtraffic flow

2.3Other services

3.1Planning

and controlfunctions

1 Control Officefunctions

3 Central functions

2 On-road activity

Shared

Highways Agency

Police

The transfer of functions will take place at different rates and for interim periods some functions may be shared

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2.4 JOINT IMPLEMENTATION The new roles and responsibilities are put into effect through seven regionalpartnerships formed between the HA and individual police forces or combinedpolicing groups. These will work in partnership to optimise performance on themotorway network.

2.4.1 Regional partnershipsTable 1 sets out what each partner is committed to provide as part of the rolesand responsibilities programme.

Table 1 Commitment to roles and responsibilities programme

The Highways Agency will continue to:

• develop Regional Control Centres (RCCs) to assess and manage themotorway network and traffic movement regionally, and to work withthe National Traffic Control Centre (NTCC) in managing national trafficmovement

• establish the new on-road national Highways Agency Traffic Officer (HATraffic Officer) service to lead incident management where there is noinjury or alleged offence, manage congestion, ensure the rapid and saferemoval of obstructions, and support road-users in need of assistance

• develop the capability of Incident Support Units (ISUs) through HAcontractors in standard livery to clear and repair the road infrastructure

• maximise opportunities to deliver enhanced services by working closelywith Highways Agency service provider partnerships.

The police will continue to:

• maintain primacy in incidents involving injury, criminality, threats topublic order and safety (or allegations of same) and where significantcoordination of emergency responders is required

• re-focus freed-up police resources on intelligence-led targeting ofcriminal activity and continue to actively support the enforcement ofroad traffic regulations

• integrate the motorway operations of Police Control Offices (PCOs)with the RCCs and, where desirable and agreed by both parties,collocate them, to enhance operational management of and on themotorway network.

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The National Guidance Framework is founded on two sets of principles: • a set for establishing the partnership; and• a set for delivering the service (divided between service delivery

enablers and joint operations).This section outlines the principles for establishing the partnership.

The principles for establishing the partnership continue to provide thefoundations for successful partnership working and delivery of a nationallyconsistent service. The principles are for guidance and are written on thebasis of experience and good practice.

3.1 ESTABLISHING CLEAR WORKING RELATIONSHIPSIt is recognised that good working relationships and adherence to the guidingprinciples of the NGF are the keys to success.

Table 2 (on the following page) sets out what each partner is committed toprovide in terms of partnership working.

3.Principles for the partnership

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Police • all regional Chief Constables to be

appraised of regional proposals and agreethem (see section 4.1 for operationalgovernance arrangements once the projecthas been delivered)

• standing agenda item at regional AssistantChief Constable (ACC) (Operations)meetings for strategic steer

• one named ACC, eg the nominated lead of STOC, to be mandated to steer theprogramme on behalf of all forces in the region

• one police 'champion' to be appointed - forexample, a Superintendent from RoadsPolicing from one of the forces in the region

• full-time police project manager/liaisonofficer to be appointed for the delivery ofthe project

• nominated part-time advisors representingeach police force in each of the regions areappointed to support the HA workstreamleaders (specifically people, technology,buildings, performance, vehicles andrequirements). One police 'leader' for each workstream

• the police will construct a regional policeproject implementation plan - this will havesynergy with the HA project plan.

Highways Agency• all senior managers in the HA - through the

National Programme board to be appraisedand agree regional proposals

• standing agenda item at TrafficManagement Group meetings

• Divisional Directors will take an active rolein managing the programme for each of theRCCs he/she is responsible for

• HA to maintain an establishment for oneNetwork Operations Manager in each of theregions

• each of the RCCs will have a workstreamleader responsible for delivering the servicein the region

• the HA will resource the nationalworkstreams working with regionalcounterparts in the police

• the HA will have a regional HA project plan– this will have synergy with the policeproject plan.

Joint

• the nominated ACC and HA Divisional Director will meet on a regular basis (the RegionalPartnership Forum) to monitor the progress of the partnership at a strategic level

• The champion, Network Operations Manager and work stream leaders will meet monthly andappraise the regional ACC lead and the HA's Divisional Director. They, in turn, will have theresponsibility of briefing other ACCs and HA managers in the region

• joint resourcing implications including opportunity costs will be agreed and budgetary informationwill be openly shared.

Table 2 HA/ACPO commitment to partnership working

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3.2 IMPLEMENTATION PLANNING CHECKLISTTable 3 summarises the key activities that each organisation will need toundertake individually and together in each region to deliver the new service.

Police• local police governance arrangements

agreed (collaboration or integration andcost contribution)

• internal police communications andculture change plan

• clarify ownership of risks andaccountabilities for the police

• creation and maintenance of a policerisk register

• police staffing of the RCC - how manyand from what forces

• assessment of the HR, TUPE andtraining implications for the police

• performance monitoring and benefitsrealisation - identifying and collatingbase police data

• one force to take the lead role for eachof the individual work streams within theregion

• police intelligence capturing andprocessing.

Highways Agency• internal HA governance arrangements

agreed and shared• internal HA communications and culture

change plan• clarify ownership of risks and

accountabilities for the HA• creation and maintenance of a HA

regional risk register • the RCC building - how many HA staff

(control centre and Traffic Officers) andstructure

• assessment of the HR, TUPE andtraining implications for the HA

• performance monitoring and benefitsrealisation - identifying and collatingbase Highways Agency data

• HA intelligence capturing andprocessing.

Joint • agreed PCO migration plan by force area • agreed transfer of functions plan• early identification and involvement of key internal stakeholders - to ensure they plan to

provide resources when needed at critical stages of development• agreed operational processes and procedures - having regard to how individual forces are

structured and operate• agreement to plan and deliver capability for dealing with technical issues by police force

area• the sharing of appropriate information (where legislation allows)• the police and the HA will work together at regional level to agree the Detailed Regional

Operating Agreement.

Table 3 Key activities required for regional delivery

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The processes of the partnership need to ensure that:• all key stakeholders are engaged with the programme• local delivery teams are clear about what they need to do• there is clarity as to what are the key deliverables for each region.

The key deliverables that need to be in place include:• agreed infrastructure• workable technology packages• agreed implementation packages• benefits realisation package• agreed operational protocols.

3.3 NATIONAL PLANNING AND SUPPORTA national support team consisting of an Assistant Chief Constablerepresenting ACPO, the HA Divisional Director, the HA Delivery Co-ordinatorsand the ACPO/HA Partnership Team ensure delivery of a nationally consistentservice.

3.4 MAKING IT STICKReasonable set-up costs associated with making the joint operation viable willbe funded by the HA. These will typically relate to the development anddelivery of the infrastructure necessary to integrate the operations of thepolice and HA.

This includes:• land and buildings• control room technology• programme management costs• communications equipment costs• HA vehicle technology costs• one-off training costs.

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We should never underestimate the need to communicate with:• our own staff• partner organisations• the public.

We will monitor and evaluate the communication activity within our individualorganisations, within the partnership as a whole and with the public, to ensurethat people continue to better understand:

• what the transfer of functions means• the potential benefits for our organisations• the services that we provide.

Police• ACPO Roads Policing Operations Forum to

be updated at each meeting - leadmembers to cascade to regional colleagues

• regional ACC (Operations) meetings to beappraised of progress at each meeting bylead regional ACPO officer

• regional police champion and work streamleaders to meet monthly

• regional STOCs to be updated bychampion at each meeting

• ACPO/HA partnership team and regionalpolice project manager/liaison officers tomeet monthly to exchange nationalexperiences and good practice.

Highways Agency• National Programme Board to considerprogress at regular meetings

• Programme Delivery Group to ensureconsistency of approach and to share goodpractice

• monthly reports to continue to follow themeeting cycle.

Joint• National Partnership Board (including senior representatives from HA, ACPO, DfT and HO) to

meet quarterly• Roles and Responsibilities Steering Group• Lead regional ACC and Divisional Directors to discuss progress regularly• Regional Partnership Forum• Regional partnership operations meetings• Police Liaison Group• Joint seminars, working groups and ad-hoc fora.

Table 4 Key communications activities

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The National Guidance Framework is founded on two sets of principles: • a set for establishing the partnership; and• a set for delivering the service(divided between service delivery

enablers and joint operations).This section outlines the principles for enabling delivery of the service.

The management of the partnership between the police and HA is based onjoint governance, clear financial arrangements, and mutual support indelivering agreed outcomes.

4.1 JOINT GOVERNANCEThe partnership between the HA and the police for the operation of theEnglish motorway network will be undertaken according to the key principlesand shared objectives of the Network Operations Partnership Agreement.These build on many years of collaboration between the organisations underexisting agreements that the new roles and responsibilities will strengthenfurther. They are founded on a service-oriented approach and an ethos ofpractical cooperation.

Problem solving and conflict resolution is encouraged at the lowestappropriate level.

4. Delivering the service –enablers

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The partnership will be governed through a three-level structure within whichdecisions will be taken at the lowest appropriate level.

1. National Partnership Board2. Regional Partnership Forums3. Joint Operations Meetings (in which, through adoption of a problem

solving approach, most operational issues requiring resolution will bedealt with.

ForumNational PartnershipBoard

Regional PartnershipForum

Joint OperationsMeetings

ParticipationHA, ACPO, HomeOffice and Departmentfor Transport

HA Divisional Directorand nominees, STOC ACPO Lead andforce/ STOC nominees,and HA/ACPOpartnershiprepresentatives

Operational managersfrom the police(nominated by STOCsand led by vice chair)and HA, ManagingAgents and appropriateexternal stakeholders

Purposestrategic direction of thepartnership;establishment of nationalpolicies and standards;setting overall prioritiesthrough a controlstrategy

agree the transfer offunctions plan for theregion; tactical taskingand coordination forregional partnerships;identifying regionaloperational priorities andperformance indicators,and aligning resourcesto target them

operational tasking andcoordination; andrefining joint operationalpractice

Enabling documentNetwork OperationsPartnership Agreement

National GuidanceFramework

Detailed RegionalOperating Agreement

Table 5 Overall governance arrangements

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Figure 3 Overall governance arrangements

Strategic direction

Local operations

Tactical tasking

Association of ChiefPolice Officers

Regional Senior TrafficOfficers Conference

Individual police forces

Operational roadspolicing units

National PartnershipBoard

Regional Partnershipforum

Joint operationsmeetings

Motorway operations

Highways AgencyBoard

Regional divisionaldirectors meeting

Area managers

HA contractors

Policecontroloffices

Policepatrols

RegionalControlCentres

HighwaysAgency

TO’s

Contractor

controloffices

IncidentSupport

Units

National OperationsPartnership Agreement

Detailed RegionalOperating Agreement

National GuidanceFramework

PurposeEnablingdocument

Any unresolved disputes arising between the partner organisations will beaddressed through this governance structure. The HA will provide thesecretariat for each level of the governance structure. The chair of eachmeeting will alternate between the police and the HA. Meetings should be heldas often as required. The management of agenda items should reflect theproblem solving style that is associated with the National Intelligence Model(NIM see section 7). Operational planning should be undertaken employing theprinciples of the NIM and on a joint basis where appropriate. Businessplanning, performance management and review should build on existingstructures where possible in order to avoid duplication and unnecessaryadministrative burdens.

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4.2 INDEPENDENT FINANCING OF RUNNING COSTS Ongoing running costs for the RCC building and for the on-road Traffic Officerservice will be met by the HA and include:

• building lease maintenance and operations• technology equipment maintenance and replacement• HA vehicle lease, maintenance and operation• HA staff recruitment and training• HA staff costs• HA consumables.• existing and recurring running costs will 'lie where they fall': the HA and

police will fund their own running costs for the functions for which theyare responsible

• police forces may choose to provide staff from the force area in which theRCC is located by funding between regional forces on a pro-rata basis –particularly for monitoring of Automatic Number Plate Recognition(ANPR), Communications, Command and Control, managing intelligenceand CCTV. Any legacy CCTV equipment not required for deploymentelsewhere may be retained within an existing Police Control Office (PCO)if it is technically feasible and cost effective to do so. Maintenance costsfor legacy equipment not required by the HA but operationally beneficial tothe police should be borne by the police

• where appropriate, both organisations will work together to secureappropriate cost recovery arrangements aligned with local safetypartnerships under the guidance of the DfT. Current examples of theseinclude enforcement of temporary restrictions in roadworks, speeds atlocations with a high casualty history, variable speed restrictions fortraffic management purposes, ANPR intercept teams and provision ofother party details for claims for damage caused to the infrastructure.

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4.3 MUTUAL SUPPORT IN DELIVERING DESIRABLE OUTCOMESThe HA and the police will work together to deliver mutually desirableoutcomes. Partnership working produces opportunities that will both benefitfrom, and contribute to, the outcomes of the Roles and Responsibilitiesprogramme. To take maximum advantage of these opportunities, planningneeds to take place at both national and local levels. Examples for jointstrategies to achieve this include:

• ANPR• Road safety• Enforcement (refer to Guidance by Function 1.2.1, 2.1.1, 2.1.4)• Patrol (refer to Guidance by Function 2.1.5)• Education (refer to Guidance by Function 2.3.5).

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The National Guidance Framework is founded on two sets of principles: • a set for establishing the partnership; and• a set for delivering the service (divided between service delivery

enablers and joint operations).This section outlines the principles for delivering the service that relate to jointoperations.

The conduct of joint operations between the police and HA is guided by thefollowing overarching principles: operational flexibility, productive informationand intelligence sharing, compatible command, control and communicationsystems, clear understanding of the lead responsibility for managing incidents.

5. Delivering the service –joint operations

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5.1 OPERATIONAL FLEXIBILITYThe two organisations will work together to support each other in their jointoperation of the English motorway network as follows:

• the National Guidance Framework (NGF), the Detailed RegionalOperating Agreements (DROA), the ACPO Standard NationalMotorway Manual and the associated processes and procedures arethere to help the two organisations provide consistent integratedservices to road-users. The NGF should be followed, unless there isgood reason not to, but must be applied with judgement, flexibility andcommon sense to the wide range of local circumstances

• practical joint solutions to real problems should normally be valuedabove abstract organisational agreements and agreed divisions ofresponsibility

• resilience should be embedded in the partnership. The police willcontinue to operate its current roles, provide advice and fallbacksupport throughout the migration period as the HA develops maturecapabilities in its new roles. The exact details of this will vary fromregion to region and will be enshrined in each DROA

• both organisations should be prepared to share functional roles whenresponding to major incidents, emergencies and other contingencies

• fallback regional planning should seek to ensure operational continuityin the following areas:

• on-road presence by official vehicles• incident management capability• control centre functions• internal and external operational communication.

5.2 PRODUCTIVE INFORMATION AND INTELLIGENCE SHARING• both organisations will freely share operational and managerial

information that they have collected or collated that assists the otherpartner in better meeting its respective responsibilities subject to thedevelopment of a data sharing protocol. Neither organisation will share nor seek sensitive or confidential information that does notpertain to its areas of responsibility

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• information will be collected, processed, stored, shared and disclosedaccording to:

• the provisions of the Data Protection Act and general data securityrequirements

• the Freedom of Information Act and local arrangements forproviding requested information under FOI

• the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act and evidentialrequirements

• the Human Rights Act• guidelines issued by the HA or ACPO

• information obtained from the partner organisation will not be disclosedto a third party without prior consultation with that partner

• there will be shared regional intelligence, employing the NationalIntelligence Model (see section 7 for reference) in line with the agreeddata sharing protocol.

• information should be assessed as to whether it may become evidence and managed appropriately. Material that may becomeevidence should be preserved in a secure, robust, admissible andavailable form (see 5.4.7)

• informal feedback will be used to improve the type and quantity ofinformation exchanged between the organisations

• staff (including contractors) in both organisations will be vetted to asecurity clearance level commensurate with the roles that they areundertaking. Both organisations will employ the same securityclearance hierarchy.

5.2.1 How is operational information exchanged? The HA and police will exchange incident information in cases whereinvolvement of the other party is required to manage the incident (for example,criminality detected by the HA, or damage-only collisions or debris reported topolice via the 999 system). In the early days of operation, this will largely occurvia telephone and fax as is the case now between the police and the otheremergency services. In the medium term there are likely to be significantbenefits in automating this process, by allowing exchange of incident recordsdirectly between command and control systems (where this is technicallyfeasible and cost-effective).

26

The aim should be to support transfer of basic incident details (time/date,incident type, description, location, etc) to the other party. In more complexcases, where exchange of on-going updates to the incident is required,subsequent interaction can continue to be handled manually. As a minimum,the aspiration is to communicate directly by voice and data (to 'screen-shift'initial reports), but regions will approach this goal at different rates. In thelonger-term, more comprehensive automation of this exchange process maywell be desirable. In each case this will be subject to the development of anational data exchange protocol.

5.3 COMPATIBLE COMMAND, CONTROL AND COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS

Effective command, control and communication within and between the HAand police is essential to allow common appreciation of the situation, rapid and unambiguous decision making and accountability, and co-ordinateddeployment of resources to achieve an agreed end-state. These are groupedin four areas:

1. Command is the permanent responsibility for staff and assets and their methods of operation to achieve necessary ends. It cannot beshared or transferred.

2. Control is the authority to direct and deploy resources: it can betransferred temporarily to allow one organisation to direct assets under another organisation's command.

3. Communication is the exchange of information within and betweenorganisations.

4. Standards.

Each of these is discussed in Table 6 opposite:

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1. Command1.1 The HA, its contractors and the police will always maintain command of their own on-road

resources1.2 RCCs, HA contractor control offices and police PCOs - whether separate or collocated at the RCCs

- will act as the main focus for the co-ordination and assessment of information and the directionand deployment of HA Traffic Officers, ISUs and police units respectively

1.3 There may be significant operational benefits to collocating the RCCs, HA contractors and thePCOs: this is preferred, but not essential provided there is sufficient communication between theRCCs, HA contractors and the PCOs.

2. Control2.1 Regional partnerships should retain both command and control within each organisation to ensure

simple and structured responsibility and decision-making. This means that each organisation shouldretain control of the direction and deployment of its own resources. In exceptional circumstances,detailed and agreed in the DROA, an organisation may empower another organisation to deploy itsresources under controlled conditions

2.2 Notwithstanding this, the HA, its contractors and the police should work together to coordinate thedeployment of on-road units

2.3 The Traffic Management Act 2004 s4.1 requires that HA Traffic Officers, when carrying out theirduties, comply with any direction given by a Constable

2.4 HA Traffic Officers are empowered to operate on the Highways Agency's road network to reducecongestion and promote the objectives of road safety. Any direction by a constable must beexceptional and in support of these objectives. The direction should not have an adverse affect onthe network and should be proportionate to the needs at the time and to the priorities for the HATraffic Officer service both nationally and locally. Section 5, sub-section 3, of the Traffic ManagementAct makes clear that the powers of a HA Traffic Officer are provided for:

• movement of traffic• reducing congestion• avoiding danger• preventing damage.

Table 6 Command, control, communications and standards

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3. Communications3.1 The extent of communication between the RCCs and the PCOs will be determined by the DROAs

in line with local technical and operational requirements. Regional partnerships should aspire tofully integrated data systems, but will approach this goal at different rates. The HA and the policewill work together to get the best operational interface that is achievable and affordable within theplanned timescales. As a minimum, the RCCs and the PCOs ought to be able to communicatedirectly with voice and fax

3.2 HA and police forces will exchange auditable incident information in cases where involvement ofthe other party is required to manage the incident (for example, criminality detected by HA, ordamage-only collisions or debris reported via the 999 system). In the early days of operation, thismay occur via telephone and fax, as is the case now between the police and the other emergencyservices. In the longer-term there are likely to be benefits in automating this process, by allowingexchange of incident reports directly between command and control systems (where this istechnically feasible and cost-effective). The aim should be to support transfer of basic incidentdetails (time/date, incident type, description, location etc) to the other party. In more complexcases, where exchange of on-going updates to the incident is required, this subsequent interactionshould continue to be handled manually

3.3 The HA and the police should retain accurate, reliable records for all incident reports that areexchanged between their organisations

3.4 Requests for ISUs will be routed through the RCCs to HA contractors (via their control office -these could be collocated at the RCC or remotely). RCCs must be able to exchange voicecommunications and data directly with HA contractors via their control office. There is norequirement for the PCOs to have a direct link with HA contractors

3.5 The DTI has approved HA use of Airwave for the specific purpose of direct and effectivecommunication because the HA needs to respond to emergencies, is involved in emergencyincidents and requires interaction through instant connection with the emergency services. RCCs,and the PCOs will migrate towards the Airwave radio system to communicate with their on roadresources. Interim radio communication systems should be compatible across the organisationscomposing Regional partnerships where practicable

3.6 To ensure effective and secure inter-agency communications at the scene, police units and HATraffic Officers will have the facility to share HA's Airwave talk-groups for on-road communication atincidents and between control locations

3.7 All operational communication between police and the HA will be via either the Airwave system ordirect to RCCs. Intermediaries and other branches of the HA will subsequently be appraised asnecessary by the RCC.

4. StandardsThe following standards will apply to communication within the partnership.4.1 Use of the NATO phonetic alphabet standard in communicating letters of the alphabet or in spelling

out words4.2 Systematic location description through road, junction, marker post, carriageway and lane number

with mutual recognition of locally agreed place names as described in a local gazeteer4.3 Employment of a national HA call-sign system that is not in conflict with local call signs employed

by the police4.4 The HA standard (or emerging national standard) for incident-type definitions linked to the

developing the National Standard for Incident Recording (NSIR)4.5 The national Airwave status codes as applied by both organisations4.6 Nationally consistent backup and emergency assistance codes recognisable to the police for the

personal safety of HA Traffic Officers4.7 Adherence to national standards on data security and communication.

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5.4 CLEAR UNDERSTANDING ABOUT RESPONSIBILITY FORMANAGING INCIDENTS

Incidents on the motorway network present particular operational andorganisational challenges. Maximising the chances of a successful outcomerequires clear and unambiguous management. This section establishesstandards for (1) which organisation leads in which circumstances; (2) howincident scale is classified; (3) what command structures are used; (4) howthe scene is organised; (5) staff welfare; (6) debriefing procedures and (7)evidence collection.

5.4.1 GENERAL ASSUMPTIONS• the Highways Agency is the 'owner' of the network on behalf of the

Crown, including most land and equipment within the motorwayboundary fences

• incidents are any events on the motorway network that require aresponse by the police and/or the HA (or contractors)

• the police will retain the lead in all incidents requiring the powers andskills of a Constable and falling within the general responsibilities of thepolice. These are known as 'police-led incidents'

• the police manage all police-led incidents. The management of themotorway network away from the immediate incident cordon, includingtraffic affected by it, and the implementation of diversions, will normallybe the responsibility of the HA in its role as the network managerirrespective of which organisation leads at the incident scene2

• the Highways Agency will assume the lead in all other incidents. Theseare known as 'HA-led incidents'

• an incident will only have one lead organisation at any time, althoughthe lead may be passed between the organisations during the incidentmanagement process

• the lead organisation co-ordinates and directs the incident responseand is ultimately accountable for it for the duration of its lead

• the police will assume the lead if the need for police interventionbecomes evident

• The HA recognises the police capability to operate trans-regionally indealing with incidents and will develop its own complimentary capabilitywhere this is appropriate.

In the interests of public safety (such as debris on a livecarriageway), the most appropriate resource for a timely andeffective service response will be deployed.

Table 7 describes who will take the lead role.

2 HA, Police and Local Government Associations are currently reviewing the most appropriate wayin which to provide for the welfare of motorists and other road users stranded on a motorway asa result of an incident. Agreement is expected mid-2005. In the meantime, HA and Police willwork closely to ensure that welfare support is provided to the public, as well as to their own staff,wherever necessary. The assistance of Local Authorities will be sought as appropriate.

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5.4.2 How is incident scale classified?• incidents may be classified by the lead organisation according to scale

from minor, through serious, to major scale. Major incidents are beyondthe routine capabilities of the lead responder and require theimplementation of special arrangements by one or more of theemergency services, the NHS or local authority. Major scale incidentspresent a serious threat to national welfare and security

• the police can lead incident response at any of these levels. The HAwill routinely lead minor and serious traffic management incidents only

• the HA is unlikely to lead major scale incidents as these will typicallyencompass serious injury, and/or require police co-ordination ofmultiple emergency services. It will, however, have a significant role insupporting the police lead for these incidents.

5.4.3 What command structures are used?• command levels will escalate according to the scale and intensity of

the incident and the level of management required to handle it, usingthe UK universal system escalating from Bronze (operational) to Silver(tactical) to Gold (strategic)

• the lead organisation will determine the appropriate command structurewithin this system

• Gold command is where strategic response to the incident isdetermined. Where more than one service is involved, a gathering ofthe respective service providers’ 'Gold Commanders' in overall charge of each organisation will formulate an agreed strategy to respond to the incident. This is normally located in a policecommand centre

Police-led incidents1. incidents involving death or injury

(including securing evidence andinvestigation)

2. suspected, alleged or anticipatedcriminality (including traffic offences)

3. threats to public order and public safety(including hazardous substances)

4. events requiring significant coordination ofthe emergency response

5. occurrences where unusual or aggravatingfactors suggest a police presence isdesirable.

HA-led incidents1. collisions without injury or alleged offences 2. congestion (including that caused by

incidents, adverse weather or excessvolume of traffic)

3. obstructions (including debris, breakdowns, abandoned vehicles, pedestriansand animals)

4. stranded road-users 5. the RCC will retain its responsibilities and

co-ordinate HA-led incidents even whereits contractors, rather than HA TrafficOfficers, are at the scene.

Table 7 Who will take the lead?

Scenario

1. A two vehicle collisionwith no injuries oralleged offences

2. A large multiplecollision with injuries

3. A large passengeraircraft crashes ontothe motorway

Lead

HA - no police presence

police with HA support

police with HA support

Scale

Minor

Serious

Major

Possible commandstructureBronze at scene

Silver and multipleBronzes at the scene

Gold at police control,multiple Silver andBronzes at the scene

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Table 8 Illustrative incident management

• Silver command develops the tactical response and is normally locatednear the scene

• Bronze command has operational responsibility for either a geographicarea or a functional role at the scene

• there may be multiple Bronze and Silver commanders, depending onthe incident’s scale and intensity, but only one Gold commander perorganisation. Commanders are role rather than rank determined. Silverand Gold commanders are not tied to specific locations

• each supporting organisation, including the HA, will form its owncommand structure, mirroring that chosen by the lead organisation (andwill attend Co-ordinating Group meetings if called) in order to provideeffective liaison.

Three examples of incident management are given in Table 8.

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5.4.4 How is the scene organised?• police-led incidents are likely to be organised geographically to aid

coordination of the response, protect evidence and minimise furtherthreats to safety. This may include an inner cordon established by the police and an outer cordon by either service

• the lead HA Traffic Officer and Police Officer at the scene should liaiseand coordinate overall scene management. This may encompass anintegrated assessment of the incident and the required response

• the police will control all traffic and personnel movements within the parameters of the immediate scene and in support of itsinvestigative role

• the HA will assess, plan and implement the restoration of thecarriageway to normality and infrastructure at the scene, andundertake traffic management beyond this, including the approachto the incident scene, the tactical, regional and the wider strategic network

• where necessary and available, HA Traffic Officers will support theimplementation and management of responder marshallingarrangements.

5.4.5 How should staff welfare be managed?Each organisation is responsible for the welfare of its own staff. Care shouldbe taken to ensure all staff likely to have been affected by the incident areincluded in the welfare arrangements, irrespective of whether they attendedthe scene or not. Consideration should be given to joint arrangements wherethis may be beneficial.

5.4.6 How are teams and individuals debriefed after incidents?As part of the performance management framework in the RCC, formalmechanisms need to be put in place to review how incidents are managed -particularly where many agencies are involved and/or when at least one partybelieves improvements could be made to the process and procedures.

Operational de-briefings with the teams that managed the incident (HA, police,contractors, other emergency services and other roadside providers) may beimportant and should be considered with a view to:

• identify areas for improvement• determine best practice• capture intelligence of suspected criminality• supply updated situation reports• feedback to staff on performance.

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5.4.7 Evidence collectionTable 9 sets out the process of evidence collection, capture, management,storage, retention and disposal.

The Highways Agency is not an investigatory body and does not, therefore, asa core function, seek out evidence of offences. The nature of its work will,however, mean that HA staff will become witness to events that may result incriminal proceedings. There will also be circumstances when HA equipment willrecord events, by way of audio and/or visual formats, that become relevant incriminal proceedings. The HA will cooperate with the police in ensuring that anyevidence secured during its operations is made available to investigators. Thiswill include the provision of witness statements from HA staff. There will beoccasions when investigatory bodies will seek assistance from the HA in usingits equipment with a view to securing evidence. The Regulation of InvestigatoryPowers Act controls such activity. The HA will make its facilities available tosuch bodies whenever possible and, in particular, will provide primary access tothe police to its CCTV system for the purpose of criminal investigation.

HA staff are likely to become aware of evidence in the followingcircumstances:

• on-road - by patrolling HA Traffic Officers through direct observation inattending incidents or through observing incidents which provideevidence of an offence

• CCTV - through observing via monitors or recordings circumstanceswhich provide evidence of an offence

• phone - by capturing audio information from telephone calls that aredirected to the RCCs.

In the above circumstances evidence may be captured in the following ways:

• direct observation - will require staff to record evidence in writing in apocket book or other official format

• CCTV - by recording the event or, if not possible, by making a writtenrecord of the event in a manner similar to the above

• Phone lines - by recording the event. If recording is not possible, then bymaking a written record of the event in a manner similar to the above.

Staff, whether in the RCCs or on patrol, may not be aware of the importance ofwhat they have observed. Staff should apply good judgement and commonsense to what is seen and heard when considering what may be evidence. It isbetter to capture details of an event that are not subsequently needed than torisk losing important information. Evidence must be recorded as soon as is

How is evidencecollected?

Table 9 Evidence collection and management

Evidencemanagement

Capturing evidence

34

reasonably practicable and its integrity must be protected at all times if it is to beof use. The Criminal Procedures and Investigations Act requires that all 'materialobtained in the course of a criminal investigation' is disclosed to the defence in acourt case. HA staff should notify the RCC supervisor as soon as practicable ifthey believe that they are in receipt of evidence. The supervisor will liaise withthe police to ensure that they are aware of what is available and thatarrangements need to be made for the evidence to be included in any casepreparation.

The recording of a scene or an individual piece of evidence by any means,whether digital, analogue, film or paper based, should only be undertaken forofficial and authorised purposes. An auditable record should always bemaintained.

No copies of evidential material will be made without the authority of adesignated manager from the incident's lead organisation.

The HA will provide facilities for the initial storage of evidence in the originalformat in which it is obtained. It will be responsible for ensuring that access tostorage is restricted to ensure that the integrity of evidence is maintained. Day today management of storage facilities will be the responsibility of supervisors inthe RCC. (HA storage requirements will be the subject of detailed internalprocedures published elsewhere).

The advice of the police will always be sought with regard to retention anddisposal of anything that may be, or has been, used as evidence.

In order to comply with Appendix F, pages 178 to 183 of the ACPO Road DeathInvestigation Manual, Police Officers investigating incidents involving death onthe road may require detailed technical evidence from HA staff. This couldinclude details of road infrastructure and how it has been managed, eg gritting inwinter. It is not the role of the RCC staff or HA Traffic Officers to provide thisinformation. Any requests to provide such details must be forwarded, withoutdelay, to the relevant HA Area Manager who will coordinate the HA response.

For circumstances other than the above, where the police require a formalstatement from HA staff to support a criminal case or the retrieval of evidencefrom the Agency, this should be co-ordinated through HA line managers.

Retention anddisposal of evidence

Storage of evidence

Evidence regardingthe management ofHA roads andfacilities

Evidencemanagement

Statements regardingother evidentialmatters

5.5 JOINT ENFORCEMENT STRATEGIES UNDER THE PROVISIONS OFTHE TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT ACT

The Traffic Management Act grants to HA Traffic Officers certain powersrelating to traffic matters and supports those powers by creating criminaloffences. In order to ensure appropriate recognition of the status,effectiveness of operation, and compliance with the directions of a HA TrafficOfficer, a degree of consistency in the application of enforcement powers isdesirable. Whilst fully recognising that each case must be judged on its ownmerits, the following guidelines are provided within which such consistencycan be achieved.

HA Traffic Officer supervisors will examine all written reports emanating fromtheir staff to ensure the standard of evidence is sufficient to pass to the police.Those intended for consideration of prosecution will be passed to the police inaccordance with the local DROA having regard to the timescales required forthe serving of a Notice of Impending Prosecution. The offences arising fromthis legislation can be categorised into:

• protection of office (section 10) – Examples of this include assaulting,resisting, obstructing a traffic officer or impersonating or purporting tobe such an officer. Whilst these are unlikely to be regular occurrences,the general presumption will be to report/charge subject to sufficientevidence being available. To support that, all allegations of suchoffences should be passed immediately to the police for considerationof investigation.

• failing to comply with directions (sections 6 and 7) – Examples of thisinclude failure to comply with:

1. HA Traffic Officer directions to stop, keep to a particular line oftraffic or proceed to a particular point

2. temporary traffic signs placed by HA Traffic Officers3. request for name and address of the driver.

Ordinarily prosecutions should only be considered where there is sufficientevidence that the offence:

1. appeared to be a blatant and deliberate disregard of the HA TrafficOfficer’s direction

2. had significant safety implications3. appeared to be accompanied by another offence4. was committed under circumstances targeted by the tasking and co-

ordination group.

Administrative processes detailing the management and transmission of casepapers will be the subject of local arrangements as specified in the DROA.

35

37

This section provides guidance on who does what, where, and when for eachfunction of the new roles and responsibilities of the HA and the police. The HAacknowledges the expertise and experience of the police who have beenresponsible for undertaking all these functions for many years. In order to takeover their new functions, the HA has produced a Safety Strategy, Safety Caseand Safety Plan. Underpinning these documents, the HA, supported by thepolice, has produced its own comprehensive Processes and Procedurestogether with risk assessments.

ACPO acknowledges the status of the HA as a Government Agency and thatthe service has been introduced by Act of Parliament. HA will take onindividual functions as and when they are ready to do so, region by region.Whilst the HA will consult locally with their police partners in relation to thistransfer process, it is acknowledged that the safety and welfare of theAgency's employees, attaching liabilities and the pace of this transfer offunctions remain with the HA.

The guidance is grouped into three sections according to the nature of themotorway functions:

1. real-time control office functions relating to the RCCs and the PCOs -dealing with the gathering and assessment of network information andthe direction and coordination of on-road activity

2. real-time on-road activity pertaining to patrolling and maintaining thenetwork, responding to incidents, tackling criminality and encouragingeffective network use

3. pre-planned central functions involving joint management of thenetwork.

6. Guidance by function

38

Although the guidance is structured by these three functional groups, actualactivity to operate the network will span these divisions - it is not the intentionto suggest otherwise. For example, a serious collision may involve controloffice functions (for example 1.1.1 Handling police-led incidents) and on-roadactivity (for example 2.1.2 Management of police-led incidents and 2.2.5Repairing and improving the infrastructure).

6.1 GUIDANCE STRUCTURED BY ORGANISATIONEach function contains:

• a description of the function's ownership taken from the roles andresponsibilities matrix Chart 2. This indicates primary responsibility, butdoes not imply that other organisations have no part in delivering thatfunction

• an explanation of the meaning of the function and cross-references toclosely related functions

• the rationale for the function• joint guidelines applicable to the HA and the police clarifying who is

responsible for what, when and where• police guidelines detailing the components of the function with police

involvement• HA guidelines amplifying the parts of the function with HA involvement.

6.2 CONTROL OFFICE FUNCTIONS

6.2.1 What are they?Control office functions relate to real-time actions away from the scene todetect and assess incidents on the network and to deploy, control and co-ordinate assets to deal with them.

6.2.2 Who undertakes them?Within the partnership, control office functions will be undertaken by (1) theHA through seven RCCs; (2) HA contractors managed through their owncontrol offices; and (3) the police through PCOs that may or may not becollocated wholly or in part within the RCCs.

6.2.3 How are they delivered?There are significant operational benefits to the collocation of these control officefunctions in terms of effective and integrated working and this is the ultimateaspiration. In the meantime, some RCCs will contain Police Officers undertakingcentralised PCO functions for the police motorway units of the forces composinga regional partnership. Other police forces will maintain separate control roomsthat are linked to the RCC, and each other, through shared procedures and dataand voice communications. Subject to satisfactory contractual arrangementsbeing agreed (including changes to the MAC contract) it may well be beneficial tohave HA contractors collocated at the RCCs as well.

Each of the control office functions in Chart 2 in section 2.3 is outlined in turn.

HANDLING POLICE-LED INCIDENTS (1.1.1)

39

Police-ledThe central control of police-led incidents. (On-road management of police-ledincidents is covered in 2.1.2.)To ensure public safety, target criminality and reduce congestion

• the police have primacy for incidents involving death or injury, suspected,alleged or anticipated criminality, threats to public order and public safety, andevents requiring significant coordination of the emergency response

• the HA supports the police by managing the traffic flow consequences of theincident beyond the immediate incident cordon and planning networkrestoration across the entire incident scene

• once public safety has been secured, investigations at the scene are completeand there is no longer a police interest in the incident, the police will pass theincident lead to the HA. The HA will continue management of the traffic flow,restoration of the carriageway, removal of vehicles and return to normal operation

• RCCs and the PCOs should maintain separate coherent, compatible andauditable logs of incident events as agreed in the DROAs

• provision of news information on the incident to the media will be a policeresponsibility. The HA will provide the associated traffic and travel information

• the police will implement a command structure appropriate to the nature andscale of the incident

• PCOs will manage the overall response, including the control and deploymentof police units and other support functions and responders, except for trafficmanagement which will be the responsibility of the HA

• HATOs and ISUs will be requested through the RCCs (for ISUs this requestwill be passed to the HA contractor)

• the police should notify the RCCs of all incidents, on or off the motorway, thatare likely to have an impact upon it

• RCCs will pass incidents requiring police intervention to the PCOs (collocatedor detached)

• RCCs will control and deploy HA Traffic Officers and request ISUs (viacontractor) to support police-led incidents

• RCCs will implement tactical signing to manage the regional traffic flowconsequences of police-led incidents, including liaison with local authorities fordiversions off the motorway network

• RCCs should liaise with the NTCC to manage the strategic traffic flowconsequences of police-led incidents

• RCCs should notify the police of all incidents, on or off the motorway, that arelikely to have an impact upon it

• the HA will provide Bronze, Silver and Gold commanders to liaise with thepolice whenever these levels of command are required.

OwnershipDescription

RationaleJoint guidelines

Policeguidelines

HA guidelines

1.1 Incidentmanagement

1.1.1 Handling Police-led incidents

40

HANDLING HA-LED INCIDENTS (1.1.2)

HA-ledThe central control of HA-led incidents. (On-road management of HA-led incidents iscovered in 2.1.3.)To ensure public safety and reduce congestion

• the HA has the lead for incidents without injury or alleged offences, for managingcongestion, removing obstructions and reassuring road-users in need of assistance

• the police will assume the lead if the need for police intervention becomes evident• PCOs will pass incidents where there is no apparent need for police intervention to

the RCC• RCCs will implement their command structure appropriate to the nature and scale of

the incident• RCCs will control and deploy HA Traffic Officers and, where required, request ISUs

(via contractor) and request other roadside service providers to attend• RCCs will implement tactical signing to manage the regional traffic flow

consequences of HA-led incidents, including liaison with local authorities fordiversions off the motorway network

• RCCs should liaise with the NTCC to manage the strategic traffic flowconsequences of HA-led incidents

• RCCs should keep the PCOs informed of progress and pass the incident lead to the police if it escalates or it becomes evident that there is a need for policeintervention. Ideally, the incident record will be passed to the police command and control system and on-going updates exchanged as above. However, where it is not feasible to establish an electronic interface, then manual (phone/fax)methods will be used

• RCCs should maintain standardised incident logs.



Policeguidelines

HA guidelines


1.1.2Handling HA led

incidents

41

EMERGENCY ROADSIDE TELEPHONE CALL HANDLING (1.1.3)

HA-ledReceiving, assessing and actioning calls for assistance from the Emergency RoadsideTelephone (ERT) network and managing other calls relating to the network (including in thiscase both motorway and All Purpose Trunk Road telephones where available)To ensure public safety, target criminality and reduce congestion

• the HA is responsible for maintaining and developing the ERT infrastructure and forreceiving and routing ERT calls at the RCCs. The police will continue to receive androute 999 calls

• the HA and the police will liaise to integrate multiple calls about the same incidentand to confirm the incident location

• where it appears public safety is involved a 'nearest and quickest' response will besought from either the police or HA Traffic Officers irrespective of the leaddesignation for the incident

• the police will pass 999 calls or incident logs relating to potential HA-led incidents tothe RCCs

• the PCO will organise a response when it receives, from the HA, ERT requests forassistance for police-led incidents

• the HA will liaise with roadside service providers to route and action mechanical andrecovery ERT calls appropriately

• the HA will employ a nationally standardised script when taking ERT calls to ensureconsistency and the capture of relevant information and intelligence

• the HA will take into account the vulnerability of the caller• the HA will provide guidance on personal safety consistent with the Highway Code• the HA will pass ERT requests for assistance for police-led incidents to the PCO for

response• all calls on ERTs will be recorded and the tapes stored for at least one calendar

month, unless the contents are required for evidential purposes, in which case theitem will not be disposed of without prior approval of the lead organisation

• the HA will grade calls received and initiate responses as follows:• prompt - those likely to impact public safety or congestion (priority)• routine - those not warranting immediate redeployment of committed staff • deferred - those events that will occur later or include planned diversions,

abnormal loads etc• non attendance - those that can be resolved via telephone where a resource

deployment is not required (Traffic Officer or RCC telephone resolution).



Policeguidelines

HA guidelines


1.1.3 Emergencyroadside telephone

call handling

42

INCIDENT SIGN SETTING (1.1.4)

3 For the purpose of this document, a nodal point is defined as an intersection between HA roadswhere alternative route guidance is available.


1.1.4 Incident sign setting

HA-ledThe setting and cancelling of roadside signals and variable message signs to provide animmediate warning to drivers and effect local diversions around the incident site. (Tacticaldiversion sign setting is dealt with in 1.3.2 and strategic sign setting in 1.3.3.)To ensure public safety, the safety of those managing the incident, and to reduce incident-related congestion

• priorities for signal and message usage are (1) incident management within theimmediate environment (2) driver information on the same link and (3) strategicinformation at nodal points2

• RCCs will set and cancel variable roadside message signs and signals to warn driversof incidents and to effect diversions in the immediate approach to incidents

• the HA will consult the police to confirm setting and cancellation of signs and signalsinitially requested by the police

• Under no circumstances will signals and signs be varied without reference to the officerin charge at the scene unless an immediate safety need becomes evident throughCCTV

• signs and signals should be consistently employed by the HA and the police in line withthe ACPO/HA Joint Guidance on Variable Message Sign (VMS) and Matrix SignalSetting

• the police will request sign and signal setting and cancellation in the immediate vicinityof police-led incidents from the RCC, should they require it

• the police will inform the RCC of incorrectly set signs and signals• the police will notify the RCC as soon as the sign or signal is no longer required• when intending to use the motorway as a route for an emergency response, the police

should contact the RCC to identify any hindrance to their safe timely passage and toseek any assistance that may be available. This will ensure the availability andeffectiveness of their response route and will promote the safety of all road usersincluding other service providers who are on that route

• HA Traffic Officers and contractors will request sign and signal setting and cancellationfrom the RCC for HA-led incidents

• CCTV should be used where possible to verify correct sign and signal setting andcancellation

• the HA Traffic Officers will inform the RCC of incorrectly set signs and signals• RCCs (electronically) and HA Traffic Officers (manually) will set and cancel signs

and signals around the periphery of HA-led incidents in accordance with agreed codes of practice

• at nodal points3 two VMS are provided - on one tactical override has priority and at theother strategic messages have priority but both can be used for a single purpose if notrequired for the other

• RCCs will maintain control of signs upstream of an incident until the next nodal pointwhere traffic is free flowing whereupon control will pass to the NTCC. Should that pointcome under tactical control due to traffic congestion then the RCC/NTCC split will movefurther upstream to the next nodal point. This requires ongoing liaison between theNTCC and the RCC.


Rationale

Joint guidelines

Policeguidelines

HA guidelines

43

LIAISON WITH HA CONTRACTORS/ ROADSIDE SERVICE PROVIDERS (1.1.5)

HA-ledDeveloping and enhancing working relationships with (1) HA contractors (including ISUs, otherManaging Agent Contractors, Term Maintenance Contractors, toll-road operators and privatelyfinanced road operators) and (2) non-contracted roadside service providers (including motoringassistance organisations, recovery operators and motorway service areas)To ensure public safety and reduce congestion

• the HA will provide the main point of liaison for both its own contractors and for non-contracted companies providing services on the motorway network

• the HA will strive to ensure public safety, seek to reduce congestion, and develop themotorway network infrastructure

• the HA will work with roadside service providers to foster effective working relationships,safe and consistent on-road activity, clear protocols and standards, and improvedservices to road-users

• the HA at present has no powers of removal and disposal of vehicles but may supportthe police by utilising existing police contracts4

• the police will request ISU attendance through the RCCs and coordinate their activities atincidents through HA Traffic Officers unless exceptional circumstances dictate otherwise

• the police will normally channel operational issues concerning roadside serviceproviders and HA contractors through the RCC unless there are immediate safetyreasons requiring direct action

• where police liaise with service providers for off-network matters they will notify theRCCs in order to achieve consistency of approach

• requests for ISUs will be made via the RCCs to the HA contractor. HA Traffic Officers willco-ordinate the on-road activities of ISUs (including specifying required outcomes) butwill not seek to determine how it achieves these outcomes unless there are safety orcongestion concerns

• the RCC will be a consultee for contractor activities on the motorway network• the HA should establish national standards for its contractors to ensure the necessary

skills and safety awareness for on-road operations• the HA will provide centralised and systematic feedback to its contractors regarding their

performance in order to foster strengthened performance where necessary• the HA will seek to achieve common standards and procedures across the motorway

network (including privately financed sections)• the HA will liaise with roadside service providers to strengthen the delivery of safe and

effective services and ensure that any agreements struck with roadside serviceproviders are consulted on with the police and local highways authorities for similarapplication on non-trunk roads

• the HA will provide timely network information to both its contractors and roadsideservice providers to assist its provision of effective network services.



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1.1.5 Liaison withHA contractors/ roadside

service providers

4 Vehicle removal and disposal is subject to ongoing work between the ACPO and the HA

44

CCTV USE FOR INCIDENT MANAGEMENT AND CRIMINALITY (1.2.1)

Shared for incident management, and police-led for criminalityThe employment of Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) - including in this case both motorwayand APTR CCTV where available - to manage police-led and HA-led incidents and to targetcriminality. (CCTV use to manage traffic flow is covered under 1.2.2.)To ensure public safety and target criminality

• the police will have priority access to, and control of, the HA CCTV network from withinthe RCC only for use (1) managing the immediate vicinity of police-led incidents safelyand (2) targeting the immediate area of criminality on the motorway network (safetytaking precedence over criminality)

• where legacy systems remain in the PCO, the HA will endeavour to leave sufficientmonitoring and secondary controlling facilities to allow police to take temporary controlover CCTV resources for the purposes of incident management or dealing withcriminality. The facility to control will always be agreed with the RCC and control will bereturned to the RCC as soon as it is no longer required

• the control of longer-term monitoring to address a site-specific criminal investigation willalways be negotiated with the RCC. Arrangements will be made to prevent non-policestaff from accessing the monitoring activity

• the uses above normally take priority over the system's use in (3) managing HA-ledincidents and (4) monitoring traffic flow but should be negotiated between the lead HAand police RCC managers on duty at the time

• the police and HA will work together, and with other agencies, to integrate and operateANPR systems with CCTV

• both organisations will employ the system with regard to:• the provisions of the Data Protection Act and general data security requirements• the Freedom of Information Act and local arrangements for providing requested

information under FOI• the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act and evidential requirements• the Human Rights Act• guidelines issued by the HA or ACPO

• both organisations will ensure any recordings made are logged and retained for at leastone calendar month unless required as evidence for which additional requirements apply

• information obtained from the partner organisation will not be disclosed to a third partywithout prior consultation with that partner

• both organisations will seek opportunities to use the CCTV system individually andjointly to strengthen operational effectiveness with feedback from good and badpractice captured by the system

• evidence collection and management will be in accordance with the guidance at 5.4.7


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1.2.1 CCTV use for incident

management and criminality

45

CCTV USE TO MONITOR TRAFFIC FLOW (1.2.2)

HA-ledThe employment of Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) - including in this case bothmotorway and APTR CCTV where available - to monitor traffic flow. (Use of CCTV tomanage incidents and target criminality is covered under 1.2.1.) To ensure public safety and reduce congestion

• use of CCTV to monitor traffic flow is secondary to its use in managing incidentsand targeting criminality

• both organisations will work together to develop CCTV techniques to monitortraffic flow

• both organisations will employ the system with reference to:• the provisions of the Data Protection Act and general data security

requirements• the Freedom of Information Act and local arrangements for providing

requested information under FOI• the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act and evidential requirements• the Human Rights Act• guidelines issued by the HA or ACPO

• both organisations will seek opportunities to use the CCTV system individually and jointly, to strengthen operational effectiveness including the use of ANPR data



• police operations utilising HA fixed ANPR equipment will be controlled by police stafflocated at the RCC

• forces will retain the ability to view and operate secondary control over CCTVimages within the PCOs, where that ability currently exists, subject to technical andfinancial viability

• in the RCC, the police should only override HA tasking of the CCTV system and/ordeny access to images when there is a justifiable operational requirement to targetcriminality or for managing police-led incidents, with the specific authority of thesenior police duty officer within the RCC

• in the RCC, tasking control and images will be restored to the HA as soon asoperational requirements allow. The police will, where possible, draw trafficmanagement issues detected by its use of CCTV to the HA's attention

• the HA remains responsible for the development, maintenance and operation of theCCTV system that terminates within the RCC

• if available, the HA will use CCTV to manage incidents it leads.

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1.2.2CCTV use to monitor

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REAL-TIME TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT (1.2.3)

HA-ledThe integration of a wide variety of data sources to provide a recognised operationalpicture of the motorway network, and to take real-time action to optimise networkoperations through advisory and mandatory traffic management techniquesTo ensure public safety and reduce congestion

• automated real-time traffic management will see the HA build on pilot schemessuch as the M25 Controlled Motorway sections and Active Traffic Managementin the West Midlands

• where possible, mandatory real-time traffic management schemes will beenforced through automated systems such as speed and signal cameras. Thisdoes not preclude direct police enforcement, particularly when cost-recoveryschemes are applicable

• the police will request the override of automatic real-time traffic managementfrom the RCC should it be necessary to do so for police-led incidents or totarget suspected criminality

• the police should support the enforcement of variable speed limits, lanerestrictions and access controls where they cannot effectively be enforcedautomatically and subject to cost recovery and other regional agreements and priorities

• RCCs will operate and manage real-time traffic management schemes• the HA should integrate data from as many available sources as possible in

developing the recognised operational picture• activity and implications not on the motorway network should be considered

when working to optimise operations including local authority roads, othertransport modes and abnormal load routing.



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1.2 Monitoring road network

1.2.3 Real-time traffic

managent

• where there are police-provided ANPR cameras, subject to practicality,depersonalised information can be made available to the HA

• if the police, through their own use of CCTV, become aware of a traffic flowproblem, they will bring it to the attention of the HA

• the HA remains responsible for the development and operation of the motorwaynetwork CCTV system from roadside to the RCC

• the HA will employ the CCTV system to monitor and assess routine traffic flow,including determining the effectiveness of traffic management schemes atroadworks and elsewhere, measuring journey time reliability, and verifying theaccuracy of sign and signal setting

• the HA will, where possible, draw suspected criminality observed by its use ofCCTV to the police's attention.

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PROVIDING NETWORK INFORMATION TO THE MEDIA (1.3.1)

HA-ledThe provision of information on motorway network conditions to road-users via themedia to explain problems and to inform their route planningTo reduce congestion by informing travellers of road network conditions through avariety of delivery mechanisms

• information passed to the media should be accurate, consistent and timely,including the time, location, nature, effect and expected duration of incidents, aswell as recommended diversionary routes

• representatives from both organisations will liaise to co-ordinate the productionand timing of information to the media as detailed in the DROAs and the NTCCDetailed Local Operating Agreements

• for police-led incidents, the police are responsible for providing news informationon the nature and cause to the media and the HA is responsible for providingassociated traffic and travel information

• for HA-led incidents, the HA will provide both nature and cause, and traffic andtravel information to the media

• the police should seek traffic and travel input to news releases for police-ledincidents from the HA

• the NTCC will collect, assess and disseminate strategic road networkinformation to the national media (through national representatives of theGovernment News Network and national Public Relations departments), as wellas directly to the public through a web site and roadside VMS, and via value-added traffic information service providers

• RCCs will collect, assess and distribute regional network information to theregional media as well as providing this information to the NTCC. Detail onregional media handling arrangements will be included in the DROA

• RCCs will liaise with the NTCC in order to provide regional travel news that is consistent. The NTCC and the RCCs shall jointly determine which regionaltraffic incidents warrant national coverage and distribution

• the NTCC will also operate and develop the Travel Information Highway tosupport the exchange of information between transport organisations

• the HA Information Line will provide direct travel information concerning planneddisruptions (including roadworks) and unplanned incidents.


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1.3 Support to drivers

1.3.1 Providing network information

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TACTICAL DIVERSION SIGN SETTING (1.3.2)

HA-ledThe setting and cancelling of variable message signs and signals to implement tactical(local area) diversions. These consist of alternate traffic flow routes within regionsemploying the HA network and/or local authority roads. (Strategic diversion sign settingis dealt with in 1.3.3 and incident sign setting in 1.1.4.)To ensure public safety and reduce congestion

• priorities for signal and message usage are (1) incident management within theimmediate environment (2) driver information on the same link and (3) strategicinformation at nodal points

• RCCs will set tactical diversion signs and signals to implement tactical (localarea) diversions and do so in conjunction with local authorities and police where necessary

• the HA will consult the police to confirm setting and cancellation of signs andsignals initially requested by the police. Under no circumstances will signalsand signs be varied without reference to the officer in charge at the sceneunless an immediate need becomes evident through CCTV. If there is avariation then the officer in charge should be informed as soon as possible

• signs and signals should be consistently employed in line with the ACPO/HAJoint Guidance on VMS and Matrix Signal Setting

• the police will request sign and signal setting and cancellation for police-ledincidents from the RCC should they require it

• the police will inform the RCC of incorrectly set signs and signals• the police will provide input into tactical diversion setting (for example, if there is

a known incident on a diversion route)• RCCs will assist in the development and maintenance of pre-planned tactical

diversions in consultation with local authorities and local police forces, and willinform the NTCC, if requested, of their development and execution

• the NTCC will develop pre-planned strategic diversions for core network andnodal points only

• HA Traffic Officers will inform the RCC of incorrectly set signs and signals• HA Traffic Officers will request sign and signal setting and cancellation from the

RCC for HA-led incidents• CCTV should be used, where possible, to verify correct sign and signal setting.



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STRATEGIC SIGN SETTING (1.3.3)

HA-ledThe setting and cancelling of variable message signs to implement strategic diversions.These consist of major alternate traffic flow routes for the motorway network. (Tacticaldiversions are dealt with in 1.3.2 and incident sign setting in 1.1.4.)To ensure public safety, reduce congestion and improve the overall performance ofstrategic traffic movements

• priorities for signal and message usage are (1) incident management within theimmediate environment (2) driver information on the same link and (3) strategicinformation at nodal points

• the NTCC manages strategic sign setting using VMS at nodal points in order toimplement strategic (wide area) diversions on the network. At each nodal pointa pair of VMS are installed half a mile apart. One has a tactical override and onea strategic override, and when not required the other can be used exclusively fora single message

• the 'hand-over' between tactical and strategic sign setting occurs at the firstnodal point upstream of the incident, unless that strategic decision point isalready under tactical control. In that case, the next upstream strategic decision point will be used for 'hand-over'. This general rule would also apply to dynamic traffic situations – moving tailbacks, abnormal indivisible loads and slow moving vehicles

• the police will request sign setting and cancellation for police-led major incidentsfrom the NTCC through the RCCs, should strategic signs need to be set foroperational purposes

• the police will advise on inappropriate signs• the NTCC will develop pre-planned strategic diversion plans for core network

and nodal points only• the NTCC will coordinate strategic sign setting with the tactical traffic

management requirements of the RCC• HA Traffic Officers will request sign and signal setting and cancellation from the

NTCC through the RCC for HA-led incidents• CCTV should be used where possible to verify correct sign setting• before requesting cancellation of a strategic sign, the RCC will take reasonable

steps to confirm with the originating organisation that it is appropriate to do so.


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6.3 ON-ROAD ACTIVITY6.3.1 What is it?On-road activity relates to patrolling and real-time action at an incident scene todetect and respond to incidents and criminality on the motorway.

6.3.2 Who undertakes it?Within the partnership, on-road activity is normally undertaken by police patrolsand by HA Traffic Officers, contractors including ISUs, other managed activitycontractors and term maintenance contractors.

6.3.3 How is it achieved?For reasons of safety and operational effectiveness it is essential that on-roadactivity employs consistent procedures within and between the partnershiporganisations. This is particularly so in the following areas:

• consistent patrolling and incident management between HA TrafficOfficers, ISUs and Police Officers in line with specific elements of thepolice Standard National Motorway Manual and HA procedures thatpertain to both organisations, and including a harmonised approach to:

• adherence to incident procedures and signing• adherence to the Road Deaths Investigation Manual principles• driving in line with the Highway Code as an example to others• fire management• debris removal• hazardous chemicals management• support to road-users who are in need of assistance• treatment of pedestrians on the network• treatment of animals on the network• provision of emergency aid• signing and coning• handling of media on the network

• vehicle crewing in line with operational requirements and risk assessments,with a general presumption in favour of double crewed HA Traffic Officervehicles whenever possible. Operational staff availability requirements may,however, require single crewing, and these vehicles should be restricted tooperations which can be undertaken by a single HA Traffic Officer withoutcompromising the operator or public safety

• the need to keep each other informed of carriageway hazards andobstructions that threaten safety and operational viability

• While either the HA or police may grant authority to access the hardshoulder, the incident lead should be informed of any intention to do so.

Each of the on-road functions in Chart 2 in section 2.3 is outlined in turn.

MANAGING CRIMINAL ACTIVITY (2.1.1)

51

Police-ledThe deterrence, prevention, detection and prosecution of common law and statutorycrime on the motorway network. (This excludes road traffic offences - these arecovered in 2.1.4.)To target crime on the motorway network, and deny use of the network for criminalactivity

• the police have primacy• the HA will support the police by sharing useful information and intelligence on

suspected criminality and signing for road checks and other operations• evidence will be collected, retained and managed in line with statutory

requirements and the DROAs. Both organisations are responsible for counteringthe threat of terrorism on the network. See table 9, section 5.4.7 for further details

• all crime-related media handling will be led by the police• the police will, where possible, target criminality on the network using

intelligence-led policing including the use of ANPR technology• the police will inform the HA of criminal activity that threatens the network or its

staff on the network• the police will provide evidence of suspected criminal behaviour that could be

prevented by changes to the infrastructure (eg CCTV, boxing in of footbridges,etc)

• the police will advise the HA on the broad categories of information that providemeaningful intelligence and will give feedback on the usefulness of materialpassed to them

• the police will, where feasible, liaise with the HA to minimise the traffic movementconsequences of planned operations to target criminality

• the HA will liaise with the police in undertaking the traffic management of pre-planned police operations and will seek to minimise the traffic movementconsequences of reactive police operations against criminals

• HA staff and contractors on the network (including HA Traffic Officers and ISUs)have no additional statutory policing powers above those of private citizens. It is not their duty to seek out criminality or to apprehend suspected criminals.They may, however, act as private citizens and take reasonable andproportionate action to prevent crime with due consideration to their safety and that of others

• HA staff and ISUs observing suspected crimes in progress should report them tothe police via the RCC

• HA Traffic Officers will capture evidence in pocketbooks, but will not take formalstatements from suspects or witnesses

• the checking of the security of the entire network, including non-public areas,should form an integral part of the HA Traffic Officer patrol duties.


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2.1 General on-road duties

2.1.1 Managing criminal activity

MANAGEMENT OF POLICE-LED INCIDENTS (2.1.2)

Police-ledThe on-road management of police-led incidents on the motorway network (The controloffice handling of police-led incidents is covered in 1.1.1.)To ensure public safety, target criminality and reduce congestion

• the police have primacy for incidents involving death or injury, suspected,alleged or anticipated criminality, threats to public order and public safety, andevents requiring significant coordination of the emergency response

• the HA supports the police by managing the traffic flow consequences of theincident beyond the immediate incident cordon and planning network restorationacross the incident scene

• once public safety has been secured, initial investigations at the scene arecomplete and there is no longer a police interest in the incident, the police willpass the incident lead to the HA. The HA will continue management of the trafficflow, removal of vehicles, restoration of the carriageway and return to normaloperation

• the police will manage helicopter-landing zones with traffic managementassistance from HA Traffic Officers

• the police will manage and coordinate the incident, control the incident cordon,and undertake preliminary investigations

• the senior Police Officer will liaise with the lead HA Traffic Officer to implementthe overall traffic management response at the scene

• should HA Traffic Officers be the first to arrive at what is, or potentially could be,a police-led incident, subject to the protection of life, they will secure andpreserve the scene without interference until the arrival of and sceneassessment by the police

• if first to the scene of a police-led incident, HA Traffic Officers should report theincident to the RCC. Without unduly risking their own safety, they should thenassess the scene and make it safe, protect other road-users and provideemergency aid

• the HA Traffic Officers will not have the level of training and equipment thatwould allow them to undertake the role of the Fire and Rescue Service andshould not take any action which exceeds their responsibility, equipment andtraining

• a HA Traffic Officer will liaise with the senior Police Officer at the scene to act as a HA lead for the traffic management response

• HA Traffic Officers should request additional resources and effect sign andsignal setting through the RCC

• requests for ISUs will be made by the RCCs to the HA contractor. HA TrafficOfficers will co-ordinate the on-road activities of ISUs (including specifyingrequired outcomes) but will not seek to determine how they achieve theseoutcomes unless there are safety or congestion concerns

• HA Traffic Officers and ISUs should guard against the disturbance of potentialphysical evidence and seek police advice if they are in doubt about the impactof their activities.



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52


2.1.2 Management of Police-led incidents

53

MANAGEMENT OF HA-LED INCIDENTS (2.1.3)

HA-ledThe on-road management of HA-led incidents on the motorway network (The controloffice handling of HA-led incidents is covered in 1.1.2.)To ensure public safety and reduce congestion

• the HA has the lead for incidents without injury or alleged offences, formanaging congestion, removing obstructions and reassuring road-users who arein need of assistance

• if first on scene to a HA-led incident, the police should either resolve thesituation or request HA attendance via the PCO (at the RCC if collocated),remaining at the scene only if safety issues so require after the arrival of the HA Traffic Officer

• if, in spite of there being no apparent need for police attendance, a member ofthe public insists on the presence of a police officer, HA Traffic Officers shouldinform the RCC that police presence has been requested and the circumstancesfor this. The RCC should then inform the police so that the police can advise onan appropriate response

• the police will assume the lead if the need for police intervention becomes evident

• the lead HA Traffic Officer will take control and coordinate the incident tomanage the traffic flow, effect clearance and repair of the carriageway, andrestore normal traffic flow

• HA Traffic Officers should request additional resources and effect signal setting through the RCC

• requests for ISUs will be made by the RCCs to the HA contractor. HA TrafficOfficers will co-ordinate the on-road activities of ISUs (including specifyingrequired outcomes) but will not seek to determine how they achieve theseoutcomes unless there are safety or congestion concerns

• the senior HA Traffic Officers should request police assistance through the RCCshould a police interest become evident, making clear the cause and urgency of the request

• the HA will prepare a leaflet explaining the Agency’s role, the statutoryrequirements imposed on drivers regarding stopping, exchanging names,addresses and insurance details, etc, when involved in collisions (including with specified animals) as a form of reassurance that police attendance is notneeded to comply with the law

• HA Traffic Officers will hand these out as part of a pack to all drivers involved in HA-led collisions.



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2.1General on-road duties

2.1.3 Management of HA-led incidents

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ENFORCEMENT OF ROAD TRAFFIC OFFENCES (2.1.4)

Police-ledThe enforcement of road traffic legislation by deterring offences and prosecutingoffenders. (Criminal activity on the network is covered by 2.1.1.)To ensure public safety and the safety of staff operating the motorway network and tomitigate congestion

• the police have lead responsibility for enforcing road traffic offences• HA Traffic Officers have powers under the Traffic Management Act, and in the

execution of their uniformed duties only, to stop and direct traffic to take a certainroute. This may include and may require contravention of a traffic sign

• the police will work with the HA to target police enforcement activities to maximiseroad safety, including at roadworks and traffic management schemes

• mandatory real-time traffic management schemes will be enforced throughautomated systems such as speed and signal cameras where possible. This doesnot preclude direct police enforcement, particularly when cost-recovery schemesare applicable

• pedestrians, and other unauthorised road users on the network without goodcause should be dealt with by the first available resource and directed from thenetwork

• the police will seek to provide feedback on the usefulness of information passedto them by the HA concerning suspected road traffic offences

• the police should support the enforcement of variable speed limits, lanerestrictions and access controls where they cannot effectively be enforcedautomatically (subject to cost recovery, regional agreements and priorities)

• the police will seek to remove unauthorised road users who refuse to leave thenetwork at the request of the HA

• the HA will, where possible, aim to provide automated systems (speed cameras,ANPR cameras and traffic management systems) to enforce traffic regulations onthe motorway network, using existing partnership arrangements where established

• HA staff and contractors on the network (including HA Traffic Officers and ISUs)have no additional statutory policing powers above those of private citizens. It isnot their duty to seek out road traffic offences or to apprehend suspected offenders

• HA staff and contractors observing road traffic offences that pose a threat tosafety should report them to the police via the RCC in accordance with guidelinesoutlined in the DROA

• if HA Traffic Officers encounter pedestrians or other unauthorised road-users onthe network without good cause, they should report them to the police if theyrefuse to leave

• HA Traffic Officers will capture evidence in pocketbooks but will not take formalstatements from suspects or witnesses.


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2.1.4 Enforcement of road traffic offences

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HIGH VISIBILITY PATROLS (2.1.5)

SharedProviding high profile reassurance and assistance to the public, and deterring potentialoffendersReassuring the road user and deterring wrong doing

• the police and HA will both provide high visibility patrols using Police Officers,HA Traffic Officers, and liveried ISUs

• coordinated by National Intelligence Model planning processes (see section7.2), both organisations will undertake intelligence-led deployment and patrollingto maximise the impact on their core responsibilities whilst maintaining a visiblepresence throughout the network

• liveried ISUs will provide additional presence through their normal operation• Police and HA Traffic Officer patrols will inform RCCs immediately (unless

exceptional circumstances prevent them) that they are dealing with an incident when they come upon one whilst patrolling

• the HA Traffic Officer should investigate stationary vehicles and assess whetherthe driver requires reassurance or assistance (ISUs will not have a routine rolein this area). Reassurance and/or assistance should be provided where it isreasonable and safe to do so - reporting to the RCC as always

• the police will have priority access to observation platforms• the police should pass information on observed infrastructure defects to the

RCCs• HA Traffic Officers observing infrastructure defects whilst on routine patrol

should assess them and report their findings to the RCC. These will be passedon to the HA service provider

• HA Traffic Officers will have access to observation platforms, use of the hardshoulder, remaining central reservation cut-throughs, short cuts and worksaccess routes in line with the amended Motorway Regulations

• HA staff and contractors on the network (including HA Traffic Officers and ISUs)have no additional statutory policing powers above those of private citizens. It isnot their duty to seek out criminality or road traffic offences or to apprehendsuspected criminals or offenders. They may, however, act as private citizens andtake reasonable and proportionate action to prevent crime with dueconsideration to their safety, that of other road users, and that of suspects

• ISUs will also have a role in patrolling - if they detect suspicious behaviour,suspected criminal activity or offences that pose a threat to safety they will notnormally involve themselves but will report it to the police via the RCC

• the deployment of patrols shall be done in a coordinated manner to maximisethe benefits of increasing the support to the network.



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2.1 Generalon-road duties

2.1.5 High visibility patrols

DEALING WITH ABANDONED VEHICLES (2.2.1)

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HA-led (Interim ownership: under police direction)The assessment and removal of motor vehicles and trailers left unattended on themotorway networkTo ensure public safety, target criminality and avoid incident-related congestion

• the HA at present has no powers of removal and disposal of vehicles but maysupport the police by utilising existing police contracts

• the first unit to the scene from the police or HA should assess the vehicle anddetermine whether it presents a public safety risk in its current location orcontravenes the Motorway Regulations. If it does, the unit will arrange itsremoval only in strict conformity with the Removal and Disposal of VehiclesRegulations5

• the HA will be routinely responsible for removing abandoned vehicles from thenetwork. The police will be responsible for removing vehicles in which they havean interest due to suspected criminality

• vehicles found on the hard shoulder should normally be considered abandoned(left longer than necessary under the Motorway Regulations) if unattended fortwo hours

• after being classified as abandoned, vehicles on the hard shoulder should beremoved within 30 minutes of their removal being requested during goodvisibility and as soon as possible in darkness or poor visibility6

• the HA will request that a Police National Computer (PNC) check is conductedbefore commencing the removal procedure

• if the police have an interest in a vehicle they will arrange for its investigation,removal and storage

• otherwise, police units will notify the RCC of vehicles they suspect areabandoned to allow the HA to commence the removal procedure

• following legislation, the RCC will arrange removal, storage and disposal ofabandoned vehicles in which the police have no interest and recover theassociated costs in accordance with the regulations and agreements withremoval contractors. These will be stored as per contractual arrangements

• RCCs will determine whether the police have an interest in a vehicle beforeremoving it

• RCCs should maintain a record of vehicles they have removed from the network andarrange for the police to update PNC. As the HA has no update access to the PNC,this will be undertaken by the police

• the HA will retain records of removal and of disposal.



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5 vehicle removal and disposal is subject to ongoing work between the ACPO and the HA6 Section 4 Standard National Motorway Manual for Police Officers

2.2 Controlling traffic flow

2.2.1 Dealing withabandoned vehicles

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REMOVAL OF DAMAGED/BROKEN DOWN VEHICLES (2.2.2)

HA-led (Interim ownership: under police direction)The removal of (1) broken down vehicles and (2) vehicles damaged in incidents on themotorway networkTo ensure public safety and reduce incident-related congestion

• the HA at present has no powers of removal and disposal of vehicles but maysupport the police by utilising existing police contracts

• the HA is responsible for ensuring the removal of broken down vehicles and vehicles damaged in incidents

• the police are responsible for the removal of vehicles in which they have an interest due to their involvement in police-led incidents

• the enforced removal of vehicles must be proportionate, reasonable and compliant with prevailing legislation

• where possible, broken down vehicles should be removed from the hardshoulder within 30 minutes of the request for removal being made during goodvisibility and as soon as possible in darkness or poor visibility. If the vehicle hasdamaged the network, the vehicle and driver details should be recorded wherepossible to assist in cost recovery by the HA

• standards and requirements imposed on vehicle recovery operators by eitherorganisation should be the same

• if there is no interest in a vehicle the police will notify the RCC to arrangeits removal

• HA Traffic Officers should notify the police if they suspect criminal activity• the HA should determine whether or not there is police interest in the vehicle

before removing it• where there is no police interest and it is safe and feasible to do so, HA Traffic

Officers should encourage the vehicle’s driver to remove it or organise itsremoval. In this regard, the services of HA Traffic Officers and RCCs can beused as the conduit for arranging such removal. If this is not possible the HATraffic Officer should arrange for the vehicle’s removal

• it is envisaged that the HA will develop, in partnership with its stakeholders, itsown recovery arrangements for damaged and abandoned vehicles7

• RCCs should maintain a detailed record of vehicles they have removed from thenetwork and arrange the updating of the Police National Computer only wherethe driver is unknown. As the HA has no update access to the PNC, this will beundertaken by the police

• the HA will maintain records of removal and of disposal.



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2.2.2 Removal ofdamaged/broken down vehicles

7 vehicle removal and disposal is subject to ongoing work between the ACPO and the HA

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PROVIDING ROLLING ROADBLOCKS AND TEMPORARY ROADCLOSURES (2.2.3)

HA-led(1) Mobile road closures are rolling roadblocks where official vehicles progressivelyslow the traffic. (2) Temporary road closures involve blocking lanes or the entirecarriageway with vehicles, signs and cones following damage; to remove debris,animals or vehicles; to undertake roadworks; and to protect those working on it.To ensure public safety, safety of workers on the motorway network and to limitincident-related congestion

• the HA will routinely provide both mobile road closures and temporary roadclosures for incidents and roadworks on the motorway network

• the police will provide mobile and temporary road closures when they are first atthe scene and the situation presents an immediate danger to public safety

• signing and coning should be undertaken as required by the first responding unitto the scene. ISUs will then replace and return the initial signs and cones

• signing and coning for ad-hoc incidents should be consistent between allorganisations and the broad principles of Chapter 8 of the Traffic Signs Manual

• at police-led incidents the senior Police Officer will request the lead HA TrafficOfficer to close and reopen the required elements of the carriageway employingthe RCC and ISU as required

• HA Traffic Officers will plan and execute mobile road closures at the request ofthe senior Police Officer at the scene for police-led incidents

• at police or HA-led incidents HA Traffic Officers will specify the desired outcomeand co-ordinate ISU activity to execute temporary road closures. HA TrafficOfficers will not seek to influence how the outcome is achieved unless there isan over-riding public safety or congestion reason to do so

• HA contractors will implement routine (non-incident-related) temporary roadclosures in liaison with the RCCs, with HA Traffic Officers providing mobile roadclosures where necessary

• HA Traffic Officers have no powers on local authority roads or powers to imposelocal diversions unless directed to act by the police or by agreement with local authorities.


Rationale

Joint guidelines

Policeguidelines

HA guidelines


2.2.3 Providing rollingroadblocks/temporary road closures

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CLEARING DEBRIS AND ANIMALS (2.2.4)

HA-ledThe removal of foreign material from the motorway network To ensure public safety, reduce incident-related congestion and protect the environment

• the HA routinely takes the lead. The police have the lead for items with evidentialvalue and for coordinating the response to suspected hazardous materials

• the first unit to the scene should assess the foreign material and determinewhether it presents a safety risk in its current location and manage it appropriately

• suspected hazardous chemicals should be treated with extreme caution, whetherspilled or contained. Any information that can be gathered without risk to theresponding officers should be passed to the RCC for onward transmission to the PCO

• if foreign material presents a safety risk and cannot be moved manually, thenassistance should be requested via the RCC from the Fire Service, EnvironmentAgency and specialist responders

• live animals will be treated in a manner appropriate to the risk that they presentwhilst avoiding unnecessary suffering. The HA will coordinate and arrange fortheir removal and the assistance of specialists (such as vets). Specialist services(eg firearm units) will be requested from the police if the live animal presents animmediate threat to public safety

• police units detecting foreign material not presenting an immediate danger shouldreport it to the RCC for removal

• police will remove body tissues from the scene of accidents in accordance withcoroner instructions

• once the scene has been made safe, police units should be replaced by HATraffic Officers and the control of the incident passed to the RCCs

• the HA is responsible for managing the traffic flow consequences of foreignmaterial on the carriageway

• the HA has responsibility for removal and disposal of foreign material from themotorway estate, normally employing ISUs

• the HA shall have responsibility for clearing the carriageway of body tissues(those not of interest to the police for evidential purposes) having due regard tobiohazards and current contractual arrangements

• low-risk debris on the verge is always a HA responsibility• HA procedures govern operation of a national system to record and handle

personal property recovered from the motorway estate. Found property willnormally be held at the RCC, but formal processes will be agreed locally andreferred to in the DROA. Successful maintenance of a found property system willrely on good communication within the partnership and with the public. This willsupport the requirement to provide suitable access for property to be reclaimed.

OwnershipDescriptionRationaleJoint guidelines

Policeguidelines

HA guidelines


2.2.4 Clearing debris,animals and found property

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REPAIRING AND IMPROVING THE INFRASTRUCTURE (2.2.5)

HA-ledIdentification, assessment and repair of defects to the motorway network infrastructure(road surface, roadside furniture and road structures), routine maintenance and pre-planned improvementsTo ensure public safety, maintain the infrastructure and reduce congestion

• the HA has responsibility for repairing defects, routine maintenance and plannedimprovements to the network

• the first unit from either organisation detecting a defect should assess whether itpresents an immediate threat to public safety. If it does then immediate actionmust be taken to deal with the affected part of the carriageway

• all defects should be reported to the RCC. The RCC will record them and passthem on to HA contractors. HA contractors will then initiate remedial measuresfor safety critical defects, or programme them for routine maintenance

• the HA will undertake planned infrastructure improvements after consulting thelocal police on safety and security aspects

• if a vehicle has damaged the network, the vehicle and driver details should berecorded where possible to assist in cost recovery by the HA via its contractors

• police patrols detecting defects should report these via the RCC who will thenpass on to HA contractors to address

• HA service providers will be notified of defects requiring immediate attention inorder to restore the safety and normal traffic movement as quickly as possible

• the HA will prioritise major repairs and improvements as planned works, utilisingits contractors, and seeking to minimise the traffic movement consequences

• HA Traffic Officers should capture evidence of damage to the network to supportcost recovery

• HA Traffic Officers will capture evidence in pocketbooks but will not take formalstatements from suspects or witnesses

• roadworks should be planned having regard to abnormal load movements andthe availability of unrestricted alternative routes.



PoliceguidelinesHA guidelines


2.2.5 Repairing andimproving the infrastructure

ESCORTING CERTAIN VEHICLES (2.3.1)

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SharedThe creation of a planned or reactive mobile traffic exclusion zone to protect or escortvulnerable or security-sensitive vehicles and convoys, and to facilitate the passage ofessential service vehicles (such as gritters) using the motorway networkThe safety and expediency of the vehicles concerned and the safety of other road-users

• the police will conduct all high speed and security-related escort duties• HA Traffic Officers may conduct other escort duties• escort routes and timings should be determined to maximise safety and

expediency whilst minimising disruption to other road-users • The two organisations will inform each other of planned escort routes and timing

where possible• the police will screen and plan high speed and security-related escorts.

• the RCCs may screen and plan other escort duties• signals and messages as detailed in the joint VMS and Matrix documents should

be used to support the safe movement of loads.


Rationale

Joint guidelines


2.3 Other services

2.3.1 Escortcertain vehicles

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ESCORTING ABNORMAL LOADS (2.3.2)

HA-ledThe planned escorting of unusually large or heavy vehicles using the motorwaynetworkThe safety and expediency of the vehicles concerned and other road-users

• hauliers may provide their own escort vehicles except on rare occasions wheneither HA Traffic Officers or police vehicles might provide the escort at cost

• the police may escort abnormal loads where there are exceptionalcircumstances and on a case-by-case basis

• in accordance with local arangements, PCOs will notify the respective RCCs of allknown escorted abnormal movements on the core network

• the HA does not intend to provide a routine escorting function• HA Traffic Officers may choose to escort abnormal loads for exceptional safety

reasons and to minimise congestion• the RCCs should set advisory signals and signs as required• if the abnormal load requires a cross-boundary escort, NTCC shall provide

overall real-time operational co-ordination and take overall responsibility for anystrategic traffic information needing dissemination. This is a contractualrequirement.



Policeguidelines

HA guidelines

2.3 Other services

2.3.2 Escorting abnormal loads if required

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MONITORING ROADWORKS (2.3.3)

HA-ledAssessing compliance of all motorway roadwork schemes with effective and safe trafficmanagement. (Planning roadworks is covered in 3.1.5.)To ensure public safety, safety of workers on the network and to reduce congestion

• the HA leads on monitoring roadworks to ensure that they are as safe aspracticable for both road-users and contractors and that their impact on trafficflows is minimised

• traffic regulations at roadworks will, where possible, be enforced throughautomated systems. This does not preclude direct police enforcement whenrequired to ensure road safety

• all patrols, both police and HA Traffic Officer, should actively monitor temporarysignage ensuring its validity and prompt removal when it has served its purpose

• the police will normally channel operational issues concerning roadworksthrough the RCC unless there are immediate safety concerns

• the police may choose to support manually the enforcement of traffic regulations at roadworks where automatic enforcement is not feasible and safety risks are high

• HA Traffic Officers will ensure that contractors working on the network properlysign and cone their roadworks and that superfluous signs are promptly removedfrom the network

• RCCs will also monitor the operation of roadworks via the CCTV system• the HA will feedback lessons learned from monitoring roadworks into its

roadwork planning systems and to its contractors to improve operations.



Policeguidelines

HA guidelines

2.3 Other services

2.3.3 Monitoringroadworks

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SPECIAL EVENTS (2.3.4)

SharedPlanning and executing the response to foreseen events that could disrupt normaltraffic flow on the motorway network (such as sports events, bank holidays and publicprotests)To ensure public safety and minimise congestion on the network

• the police take the lead for the overall management of threats to public ordersuch as public protests and strikes

• the HA will assist in managing the traffic flow consequences• the HA is responsible for traffic management for other special events not

normally threatening public order (such as bank holidays or sports eventsgenerating high traffic volumes)

• both organisations will share information to identify potential special events• the HA and the police will develop joint responses where appropriate and

include relevant third parties (such as local authorities and event organisers)• both organisations will review the effectiveness of their individual and joint

responses and implement the lessons identified• the police will involve the HA when public order related special events threaten

normal traffic movement on the motorway network• the police will involve the HA in the planning of events likely to impact on the

operations of the network• the NTCC will develop pre-planned strategic diversions for special events in

liaison with the RCCs• for special events, HA Traffic Officers may be available to be deployed to assist

the movement of traffic• RCCs will seek the cooperation of local authorities to develop pre-planned

tactical traffic management plans for special events in their regions• RCCs will liaise with event organisers.



Policeguidelines

HA guidelines

2.3 Other services

2.3.4Special events

SharedSeeking and developing opportunities to influence driving behaviour to improve roadsafety, reduce incident-related congestion, and inform users about how the motorwaynetwork is managedTo enhance public safety and reduce incident-related congestion

• the HA and the police will coordinate their road-user education efforts andintegrate them where possible, especially for public safety education

• the HA and the police should cooperate in providing and staffing joint customerinterfaces, for example, information points at service areas

• the HA and the police will seek coherence with the initiatives of other agenciesincluding the Department for Transport, Driver Standards Agency, road-userinterest groups, roadside assistance organisations, service area operators, andlocal authorities

• the police will normally concentrate on public safety (specifically casualtyreduction) and crime reduction messages

• the HA will normally focus on public safety and congestion reduction messages• the HA will additionally lead in explaining the changing roles and responsibilities

for operating the motorway network as well as the new technologies andtechniques employed to do so.




ROAD-USER EDUCATION (2.3.5)

65

2.3 Other services

2.3.5 Road-usereducation

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6.4 CENTRAL FUNCTIONS

6.4.1 What are they?Central functions relate to pre-planned activities that enable control andoperation of the network to best effect.

6.4.2 Who undertakes them?This will normally be undertaken by staff from the HA and the police at theregional partnership level. Policy and standardisation issues will be escalatedthrough the partnership governance hierarchy as necessary. Policies thathave the potential for national application should be escalated to the NationalPartnership Board for ratification.

6.4.3 How are they achieved?Central functions should be developed jointly and encompass third partycontributors where it is sensible to do so. Their effectiveness should bereviewed in light of their real-time impact on the network.

Each of the central functions in Chart 2 in section 2.3 is outlined in turn.

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DEVELOPING NATIONAL PROTOCOLS AND STANDARDS (3.1.1)

SharedThe development and agreement of protocols and operating standards to achieve theeffective joint operation of the motorway networkTo ensure public safety, target criminality and reduce congestion in an effective andconsistent manner

• the operational protocols between the HA and the police will be established throughnational agreement and applied locally through the DROAs based on the guidancecontained in this document

• protocols and standards should aim to provide a broadly consistent level of servicewithout compromising regionally specific requirements

• these should be built into the performance guidance contained in section 7 of thisdocument

• where possible, new protocols, standards and guidance should draw on existingmaterial to capture good practice and avoid duplicative work. A list of references isprovided at Appendix B

• the police and the HA should seek joint contracts and multi-regional contracts withthird parties where consistency, economies of scale and combined negotiating powercan deliver a net benefit to both parties

• the police will assist the HA in developing relationships with contractors who supportfunctions that are being partly or wholly transferred from the police

• the police will involve the HA in non-motorway developments where partnershipcollaboration is appropriate and beneficial

• the HA will need to adjust arrangements with its existing contractors to reflect its newresponsibilities and deliver desired performance levels

• the HA will reflect this NGF and the principles of the Roles and Responsibilitiesprogramme, where appropriate, in agreements with partner organisations. ACPO willbe consulted on these HA agreements where it is approporiate to do so.


Rationale

Joint guidelines

Police guidelines

HA guidelines

3.1 Planning and control functions

3.1.1 Develop protocols and standards

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CONTINGENCY PLANNING (3.1.2)

SharedGeneric and location-specific response plans for unexpected disruptions and events onthe motorway network, either influencing the network or requiring the network as partof a responseTo ensure public safety and minimise incident-related congestion

• the police and the HA should share contingency plans between themselves as partof the partnership process. These should cover location-specific (for example,Heathrow approaches) and generic incidents on, or influencing, the network (suchas extreme weather)

• both organisations should also support the development of non-networkcontingency plans requiring the network as part of the response

• both organisations will exercise the plans jointly and with the other agenciesconcerned, and adjust the contingency plans according to the lessons identified

• following implementation of a contingency plan, both organisations will undertakejoint reviews of their effectiveness and adjust the plans accordingly

• each organisation remains responsible for the resilience of its own functions andwill review these periodically

• these plans ought to follow the standard 16-point formatting style• the police will co-ordinate major and emergency scale contingencies on the

network• it may not be possible to share some information on contingency plans with the HA• the police should review its existing contingency plans to ensure alignment with its

revised roles and responsibilities• the NTCC will develop pre-planned strategic diversion routes for contingencies• the HA will work with local highway authorities to develop pre-planned tactical

diversions for contingencies in its regions• the HA will coordinate exclusively traffic-based contingencies on the network.



Police guidelines

HA guidelines

3.1 Planning andcontrol functions

3.1.2 Contingencyplanning

ROUTING OF ABNORMAL LOADS (3.1.3)

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HA-ledRoute planning for unusually heavy vehicles seeking to use the motorway networkThe safety and expediency of the vehicles concerned and other road-users

• both the police and the HA are authorised to approve abnormal load routes with a view to ensuring public safety, preventing damage to the infrastructureand expediting the load whilst at the same time minimising disruption to otherroad-users

• load routings should be co-ordinated between the HA and the police• dependent on width and length (not height), there are varying levels of

authorisation required and notice periods• the police authorises the routing of wide loads• the HA provides authorisations for extraordinarily heavy loads.

OwnershipDescriptionRationaleJoint guidelines

Police guidelinesHA guidelines


3.1.3. Routing ofabnormal loads

PLANNING FIXED TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT (3.1.4)

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HA-ledThe planning of permanent changes to the motorway infrastructure and signingEnsure public safety, maintain the infrastructure, educate road-users and reducecongestion

• the HA is responsible for planning such changes but has a statutory obligation toconsult the police if there is a requirement to implement a Traffic RegulationOrder

• as a matter of course, the HA informs the police of all changes to road layout• the police will provide informed operational advice on the safety of the

implementation and operation of planned fixed traffic management schemes aswell as for design changes to enhance network security and reduce theopportunity for criminality

• as a matter of course, the HA will consult local highway authorities, local policeforces, its own NTCC organisation, and others affected on the local and nationaltraffic flow impact of planned changes.

OwnershipDescriptionRationale

Joint guidelines

Police guidelines

HA guidelines


3.1.4 Planning fixedtraffic management

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PLANNING FOR ROADWORKS (3.1.5)

HA-ledPlanning the location and timing of motorway roadworksImproving or maintaining the infrastructure whilst ensuring the safety of road-users andcontractors and minimising disruption to motorists

• the HA leads on planning and implementing roadworks, consulting the policewhere appropriate

• the police will work with the HA on developing roadwork plans to share theirexpertise with regard to the safety, location, congestion, timing and security risksof major roadwork schemes

• area teams will develop roadwork plans in association with the RCCs, in termsof location, timing and diversions and in consultation with the police, localauthorities and the NTCC

• roadworks should, where possible, not conflict with special events, other workson diversion routes and alternative abnormal load routes, or other plannedroadworks or streetworks.

OwnershipDescriptionRationale

Joint guidelines

Police guidelines

HA guidelines


3.1.5 Planningfor roadworks

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This section addresses the rationale and principles for a joint performancemeasurement framework, the functions of a shared intelligence capability, thekey performance indicators, the non-financial benefits, and the analytical toolsto support performance improvement.

7.1 RATIONALE FOR A JOINT PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENTFRAMEWORK

The roles and responsibilities programme represents a profound change inthe way that the motorway network is operated. This change createsopportunities for the Highways Agency and the police to focus more on coreactivities to the benefit of the public. There is a danger, however, that the fullbenefits will not be realised due to operational priorities distorting behaviours.

It is important, therefore, that measurement systems ensure that the benefitsare being realised, and that feedback mechanisms are put in place toguarantee that resources are targeted at the areas of greatest need.

What follows is broadly consistent with the police National Intelligence Model(NIM) tailored specifically to reflect the general objectives and overallprinciples of partnership working. Where possible, it uses language that iscurrently in common use within the police.

7. Performance

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7.2 PRINCIPLES OF THE JOINT HA/ACPO PERFORMANCEMEASUREMENT FRAMEWORK

There are five key principles of performance management in this context:• there should be a clear distinction between strategic (to be used

by senior management) and tactical (to be used as an operational tool)information

• the performance measurement system should be aligned withoperational priorities

• in principle, staff should benefit from good operational performance• in most cases, baseline performance measures will be established in

advance of the operation• the performance measurement system should clearly distinguish

between benefits that are relevant to the police, benefits relevant to theHA and those benefits that are joint.

In setting performance measures, thought should be given to the behavioursthat will be affected as well as the outcomes required. A performancemeasurement framework should provide a balanced view of achievements.

Taking the police National Intelligence Model as a basis, the HA/ACPOperformance measurement framework can be represented by Figure 4 below.

Business Planning

Governmentand LocalObjectives

PerformanceManagement

BusinessExcellence

Model

IntelligenceProducts

KnowledgeProducts

SystemProducts

Prioritseintelligence

work

Productionof

intelligencework

Tasking &Coordination

meeting

Joint Tasking & CoordinationPoliceCriminality

Road casualtiesTerrorismAnti-social behaviour

Reassurance

HARoad SafetyCongestionInformation

AssetsResources

OutcomesPolice

CommunitySafety

Reduced CrimeControlledCriminality

Public confidence

HASafe Roads

ReliableJourneysInformedTravellers

Figure 4 HA ACPO performance measurement framework

Business

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As with the police National Intelligence Model, there are four maincomponents to the link between joint operations and achieving the desiredbenefits.

1. The joint tasking and coordination process - this represents the jointHA/ACPO process for sharing intelligence at a strategic and at a tacticallevel. The purpose is to review the intelligence to prioritise resourceallocation and deployment. Strategic tasking will be directed by theRegional Partnership Forum (see 4.1). Tactical tasking will be conducted atthe Joint Operations Meetings

2. Four key levels of network intelligence products - these are: a. strategic reviews of performance of the motorway operation at the

RCC level. These provide high-level information about trends inperformance and will inform the joint development and prioritisation ofresources between the police and the HA. This will normally beproduced quarterly

b. tactical reviews of performance at supervisor level. This is anoperational review of performance at a local level and will normally beundertaken fortnightly. It will inform local deployment decisions on aday-to-day basis

c. user group profiling will be employed when there is evidence thatproblems are arising in certain user groups of the motorway network.Patterns of behaviour will be routinely reviewed and reports producedon an ad-hoc basis

d. geographical profiling to address situations where problems arise incertain geographic areas

3. Knowledge management products - these are tools that staff in the policeand HA can access that are the repository for joint knowledge. Theseinclude, amongst others, common standards and protocols, trainingmaterials, guidance, best practice guides, and the DROAs. These will beaccessed from a secure access HA-provided extranet

4. Performance management products - in order to direct resources to theareas of greatest mutual benefit, systems must be developed to underpinthe operation. Access to congestion monitoring devices and subsequentdata, CCTV images, criminal intelligence database (restricted access),feedback from on-road resources (police, HA Traffic Officers and ISUs),ANPR and analytical tools will provide the enabling infrastructure to monitorand improve performance.

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7.3 THE NEED FOR SHARED INTELLIGENCE In order to manage and direct the partnership’s data gathering, analysis anddissemination, an intelligence process needs to be developed between the HAand the police forces within a region which will:

• provide traffic operations specialists to advise on network operation and optimisation, problem analysis and resolution

• deal with criminality on the network• provide real-time intelligence on how the network is operating through

owning and operating the performance measurement system• capture knowledge and experience to identify and promulgate

best practice• own the benefits realisation process• provide management information • share appropriate intelligence between the police and the HA• gather and share intelligence between the HA and its contractors• identify research needs to inform national policy.

Intelligence sharing will be most effective if it is managed within a tasking andcoordination process that reflects NIM and engages HA and police staff intwo-way communication across the organisations and up and down thegovernance structures (see Figure 5 below).

National Partnership

Board

ProductsJoint Police HA

Regional Partnership

Forum

PCOs

Police patrols

National control strategy

Regional network control

strategy and annual plan

Tactical tasking and operational

plans

Joint operations meetings

Regional performance management

processes

RCC

HA Traffic Officers

Force Tasking & Coordination

process

Figure 5 The outline for a possible tasking and coordination structure

All connecting lines depict two-way flow of information

7.4 THE KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORSIn order to realise the benefits, baseline levels of performance will be established (as defined in the Network Operations Partnership Agreement).

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3 year target To achieve a 5%reduction in incident-related congestion(in the areas thatthis serviceoperates) in threeyears (measured bythe seconds perhour lost)(The most recent fullyear of data prior tofirst service)

To achieve anoverall 15%increase in proactiveroads policing(priorities will bedetailed in localHA/police DROAs -particularly roadsafety and recordedoffences(Baseline the mostrecent full year ofdata prior to firstservice)

Reduce the overallnumbers of fatal,serious and slightcollisions on themotorways wherethis serviceoperates, by 15%(The average forthe most recentthree full years ofdata prior to firstservice)

Key performance indicators (where HA Traffic Officers are fully operational)1. Incident-related congestion (HA benefit) - increasing the resource available to

support the core network will improve overall response times. Increasing the numberof vehicles patrolling the motorway network, coupled with improvements in the CCTVinfrastructure, will up the number of incidents detected in the first instance by a patrolvehicle rather than reported by motorists and, in some cases, prevent incidents fromoccurring at all. The additional support available for incident management should havea positive impact on clear-up times. There are obvious links between incidents andcongestion, but to date little work has been undertaken to establish hard measures ofmotorway network performance - specifically to separate out congestion caused byother factors such as road conditions, roadworks or volume of traffic. Some work hasbeen undertaken to establish this relationship in the Birmingham area. Source data: traffic flow, incident and roadwork information.

2. Freeing up police resources to target criminality (police benefit) - There aresignificant potential benefits to the police. There is a real risk, though, that this initiativewill be seen as an opportunity to reduce the numbers of police that support themotorway network. Measurement systems need to be put in place to ensure that thequality of the current service is at least maintained, and that the introduction of HATraffic Officers actually frees up police resources. The next level of proof required isthat this additional resource is actually redirected into targeted activity derived fromapplication of the National Intelligence Model, such as the detection of criminality. Thisrequires monitoring systems to be put in place to establish the number of offences ofvarying types that are currently detected on motorways. One would expect this toincrease following the introduction of the HA Traffic Officer service. A key, enablinginfrastructure is CCTV, especially when linked up with ANPR systems. Source data: police computer systems

3. Improvements in road safety (joint benefit) - there are a number of potential roadsafety benefits which, taken together, should reduce casualties. These include:• a more concerted approach to the enforcement of road traffic offences • more protection for police, HA staff and contractors working on the motorway network• more visible patrol vehicles that will prevent and deter poor quality driving• a reduction in secondary collisions from swifter clearance of incidents• improved detection and clearance of debris• improved education• better standards and protocols• increased resources applied to proactive network and traffic management.

Source data: DfT Stats19 data (towards overall 2010 targets)

7.5 SETTING TARGETSPrinciples of target setting:

• Non-financial indicators will be used routinely to monitor performancebut no targets will be set other than for the key performance indicatorsfor the introductory period. No targets will be set in the first year ofoperation. The first year will be monitored closely and will beundertaken on a ‘best endeavours’ basis

• Road classifications and thus indicative response times will be agreedin the DROAs depending on the network characteristics - in general,the percentage of incidents that are attended to in 15 minutes forheavily trafficked roads and 25 minutes for lightly trafficked roads forprompt graded response will be a standard measure across the HAservice. The break point between 15 minutes and 25 minutes forresponse times will be set at approximtely 1,200 vehicles per hour perlane. In terms of Average Annualised Daily Traffic, this broadly equatesto 48,000 on a two-lane (D2) motorway, 72,000 on a three-lane (D3)motorway and 96,000 on a four-lane (D4) motorway

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Measurement• HA staff survey• Police feedback

• HA intelligencelog

• Accuracy of signlog

• Public survey

• Public survey• Response times

• Intelligence unitin place within theRCC

• Police intelligencelog data, notpersonalinformation

• Standards audit

Measuring the non-financial benefitsCulture change - a fundamental transformation in attitudes and behaviours isrequired to create a joint operational culture between the HA and the police.

Network intelligence - increasing the resources dedicated to monitoring the networkwill provide real-time intelligence on the network status.

Better signing - greater consistency of sign and signal setting will improve the safetyof the general public and roadside service providers by improving credibility and thuscompliance. It will improve the quality of information to motorists - allowing them toavoid areas of serious congestion.

High visibility patrols - there is evidence that the public find uniformed patrols asource of reassurance. Local agreements with the police will set out clear guidelineson how the Agency and the police will work together to maximise impact.

Performance measurement - the HA does not routinely monitor congestion in aconsistent manner across the network. The new RCCs will adopt standard reportingand monitoring arrangements that will allow comparisons to be made across thenetwork.

Intelligence gathering - increasing overall levels of support to the network willincrease the capability to detect criminal behaviour. ANPR systems, allied to CCTV,have a proven track record in detecting crime when suspect vehicles make use of themotorway road network.

Common standards across the network - by adopting common standards andprotocols, the overall levels of service provision will be improved. These will beestablished to ensure that the motorist receives a consistent service across theentirety of the English motorway network. These protocols will also be shared withother highways authorities in Scotland and Wales and with local authorities.

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HA Police Shared

• Response times will be monitored but not have the status of 'targets'and will be used to build a knowledge base for considering deploymentstrategies, resourcing levels etc.

7.6 TARGETS FOR THE DETAILED REGIONAL OPERATINGAGREEMENTS (DROAS)

1. Baseline 1 full year prior to First Service 1 full year prior to First Service The average of 3 full yearsprior to First Service

To achieve a 5% reduction inincident related congestion forthe areas in which the TrafficOfficer service operates

To achieve an overall 15%increase in proactive roadspolicing through use of thetime freed-up by the transfer of functions

Reduce by 15% the overallnumber of fatal, serious andslight injuries on the roadswhere the Traffic Officerservice operates

2. Timescales Within three years of FirstService

Within three years of FirstService

Within three years of FirstService

5. Primary indicators Incident related congestion bylink or route

The aim being to reducecongestion by identifying,taking action on andmonitoring, the stretches ofthe strategic road network ineach region, that through non-recurrent congestion, have thegreatest impact on road users

Numbers of arrests andnumbers of FPNs issuedthrough use of the time freed-up by the transfer of functions

The aim being to demonstrate,within each Force, that freed-up time is being used forproactive policing

Number of collisions (in whichpeople were killed, seriouslyinjured or slightly injured) permile per annum by route

The aim being to reducecasualties by identifying,taking action on and thenmonitoring, the stretches ofthe strategic road network inthe region where most injurycollisions occur

3. Primary data source Journey Time Database Individual police force recordsfor numbers of arrests andFPNs issued

Stats 19 data

4. Baseline availability National for the motorwaynetwork

Police force National

6. Supporting indicators Response times from'detection' to arrival on scenefor 'prompt' grade calls only(together and separately forboth heavily and lightlytrafficked roads)

Complaints received about thestandard of driving for HATraffic Officers whilstresponding to 'prompt' gradecalls

Number of collisions involvingHA Traffic Officers whilstresponding to 'prompt' gradecalls

Scene clearance time fromarrival of Traffic Officers (orwhen scene released bypolice) to no carriagewayobstructions (i.e. the normalstate)

The number of deployments tothose incidents which formedpart of the transfer of functions

The number of hours deployedto incidents which formed partof the transfer of functions

The number of hourscommitted at injury collisionscenes on the roads where theTraffic Officer service operates

Demonstrable increases inother operational results(beyond arrests and issue ofFPNs) attributable to timefreed up by the transfer offunctions

Response times for'immediate' graded calls on theroads where the Traffic Officerservice operates

Number of collisions (in whichpeople were killed, seriouslyinjured or slightly injured) permile per annum by link

7. People indicators

8. Public perception indicators

Staff levels, turnover and attendance levels for RCC staff and Traffic Officers. Injuries on duty forTraffic Officers and contractors.

Awareness of Traffic Officer Service, letters of complaint & appreciation, feedback from police,number of offences reported under the provisions of the Traffic Management Act, Road UserSurvey, focus groups

Key performance indicators

To support the development of the new Traffic Officer service, the HA has chosen to monitor additional indicators that relate to thepeople who provide the service and to public perception:

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7.7 EXAMPLES OF ANALYTICAL TOOLS TO IMPROVE PERFORMANCE

Analysis toolsActivity-Based Costing - to identify whether or notpolice resource is being freed up from ancillary tasksto focus on core priorities. For example, the original roles and responsibilitiesreview found that only 5.3% of roads policing time wasspent dealing with crime (see right).

This can be used to identify whether or not resourcesare being freed up from ancillary tasks.

Intelligence-led road safety - to target resources onthe areas where the needs are the greatest. For example, the chart to the right (from Stats 9 data)shows that some junctions around the Birminghambox have five times more casualties per mile thanothers.

This can be used to target education, engineering andenforcement measures.

Intelligence-led deployment of resources byday/month - to align HA Traffic Officers and policewith periods (days and months) when they will bemost needed.For example, by establishing links between incidentsand congestion, baseline performance measures canbe established (see right for incident-relatedcongestion).

Particularly useful to monitor the impact of HA TrafficOfficers and in rostering.

Intelligence-led deployment of resources by timeof day - to align resources by time of day. Forexample, by establishing links between incidents andcongestion (over and above ‘ambient’ congestion),baseline performance measures can be established(see right for incident-related congestion).

Also useful to monitor the impact of HA Traffic Officersand in rostering.

Examples (illustrative but based on real data)

Non-incident

linked activities

45.6%

Management/

Supervisory Duties 4.8%

Other

13.3%Crime

Incidents

5.3%

Non-Crime

Incidents 31.0%

0

50

100

150

200

250

M5

01

M4

21

2

M4

20

1

M5

44

a

M5

34

M5

23

M5

12

M4

26

7

M6

44

a

M4

25

6

M4

24

5

M4

23

a

M4

23

3a

M4

22

3a

M6

10

10

a

M6

91

0

M6

89

M6

89

M6

78

M667

M6

4a

Stats 19 incidents around the Birmingham

box by motorway link between 1986 and 2002

Motorway Link

Average number of

tenths of sec lost per km

%vel km travelled in

particular hour of the day

Number of traffic events in

average week in particular

hour of the day

0

5

10

15

20

Incident related congestion

by hour of day

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1 0 11 1 2 1 3 1 4 1 5 1 6 1 7 1 8 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 3 2 4

Hour of the day

0

5

10

15

20

Incident related congestion by day of the week

Day of the week

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

Average number of

tenths of sec lost per Km

% vel km travelled on

particular day of the week

Average number of traffic

events on particular day

of the week

81

Analysis toolsUnderstanding the underlying trends in casualtydata - to understand how driver behaviours are changing.For example, the chart to the right shows how theaverage age of motorcycle casualties (all roads) hasincreased over time, whereas the age of mopedcasualties has decreased.

Can be used to inform the marketing and educationprocess.

Understanding how sections of motorway haveperformed in comparison to national trends - tounderstand the comparison to long-term trends.For example, the chart to the right illustrates howcasualties in the Birmingham box have followed thenational trend - a rapid increase over time, followed by aslight fall in recent years.

Can be used to track performance against long-term trends.

Finding patterns in existing data - to inform policydecisions. For example, the chart to the right (from a large numberof ANPR stops) indicates a higher proportion of arrestswere made from stops of older vehicles.

Operational information can be used to targetenforcement activity. Intelligence led roads policing canbe a shared activity in the intelligence unit.

Comparing performance with comparable areas - to identify high performing areas. For example, theevaluation of the effectiveness of ANPR at targetedlocations. The chart to the right illustrates the differencein performance between areas and how performance hasincreased over time. This technique can be used toidentify and promulgate good practice.

Where interventions have been made, the effect can bemonitored.

Examples (illustrative but based on real data)

20

25

30

35

40

1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002

Car

Moped

Motorcycle

Average age of driver involved in accident

4000

6000

8000

10000

1985 1990 1995 2000 2005

On english motorways

On Birmingham box

multiplied by 20

How the number of Stats

19 accidents have varied

over time

0 50 100 150 200 0 50 100 150 200 250

North Yorkshire

Herfordshire

Cambridgeshire

Warwickshire

City of London

Leicester

West Yorkshire

Cleveland

Avon & Somerset

Cheshire

Lancashire

Staffordshire

Kent

Northumbria

Hampshire

Lincolnshire

Greater Manchester

Merseyside

Northamptonshire

Metropolitan

West MIdlands

Nottinghamshire

North Wales

City of London

Warwickshire

Cambridgeshire

North Yorkshire

Cheshire

Staffordshire

Hampshire

Leicester

Northumbria

Avon & Somerset

Lancashire

West Yorkshire

Herfordshire

Kent

Northamptonshire

Greater Manchester

Cleveland

Merseyside

Lincolnshire

Metropolitan

North Wales

West MIdlands

Nottinghamshire

Weeks 7-12 Arrests/ FTE = 90 Weeks 13-18 Arrests/ FTE = 100

Arrests per FTE (by force) Arrests per FTE (by force)

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

Arrests by year of car

To

tal a

rre

sts

Arr

ests

pe

r 1

00

sto

ps

19

83

1

98

4

19

85

1

98

61

98

7

19

88

1

98

9

19

90

19

91

19

92

19

93

19

94

19

95

19

96

19

97

19

98

19

99

20

00

20

01

20

02

20

03

Total ArrestsArrests per 100 stops

82

7.8 CONTRIBUTION TO POLICE EFFICIENCYThe transfer of police functions to the HA offers an opportunity for individual policeforces to achieve:

• non-cashable efficiency gains • improvements to the front line policing (FLP) measure (which will also count

as non-cashable efficiencies)• cashable efficiency gains.

The Business Case for the Roles and Responsibilities programme estimated anoverall £20m benefit for the police service based upon activity analysis calculationsfor on-road functions. In addition, there are as yet unquantified savings to beachieved in police control rooms.

Furthermore, as the pilot studies for ANPR have demonstrated, the deployment ofANPR technology delivers increases in police productivity for offences brought tojustice and for property recovered. The combination of freed-up police time and theuse of ANPR on the strategic road network provide significant opportunities forindividual police force efficiency plans.

Increases in efficiency flowing from the transfer of functions to the HA should beincluded in force efficiency plans.

Where implementation of the Traffic Officer service in a force area is expected toincrease the time spent by officers on front line policing, forces need take no separateaction to measure this change - it will be reflected in changes to the FLP measure.However, much of the time previously spent on functions transferred to the HA mayalready have been counted as front line policing. Forces will therefore need toundertake their own activity analysis prior to and post implementation of the newTraffic Officer service in their area in order to demonstrate the officer (and staff) timereleased.

The way in which the released officer and staff time is used may deliver further non-cashable gains. If the time is simply redeployed to other roads policing activity, orelsewhere, there will not be a further efficiency gain, just the increase in resourcesthat should deliver a proportionate increase in outputs. However, if the time isredeployed, for example, to further exploit ANPR there should be a more thanproportionate increase in outputs that can be scored as a further efficiency gain.

Where control room resources are released, there may be cashable as well as non-cashable gains. If the number of officers or staff required in the control room isreduced this would be a cashable efficiency gain.

Each police force should consider the approach that will best suit their efficiency plan.

8. Moving forward

83

The NGF should not be treated as a set of constraining rules. Rather, it is aframework to enable the delivery of an exciting new service and for both thepolice and the HA to realise significant new potential. It is encumbent upon allthose involved to take the principles of partnership forward and to make themost of this potential.

Moving forward is not however without its challenges. This is a significant stepfor both organisations and requires culture change, flexibility, sharing and newapproaches to optimise the value of resources.

A willingness to work together, imagination and innovation will help to addressthese challenges and to exploit the opportunities that partnership offers. TheNGF should facilitate this way forward and should never be viewed as an endin itself. The focus for the NGF and the focus for all of us, is an improvedservice on the motorway network for the public.

85

AcronymACC

ACPO

ANPR

APTR

Bronze

CCTV

Command

Control

TermAssistant Chief Constable

Association of Chief PoliceOfficers

Automatic Number PlateRecognition

All Purpose Trunk Road Network

Bronze command

Closed Circuit Television

Command

Control

MeaningPart of a police force chief officer team

For details see www.acpo.police.uk

A system that captures the VRM of vehicles from images thatcan be used, amongst other things, to target criminality andmonitor congestion.

Roads for which the Secretary of State is the highwayauthority.

Base incident command level with operational responsibilityfor either a geographic area or a functional role at the scene.

Remote imaging system.

The permanent organisational responsibility for staff andassets and their methods of operation. It cannot be transferredbetween organisations.

The authority to direct and deploy resources. It can betransferred temporarily to allow one organisation to directassets under another organisation’s command.

APPENDIX A: GLOSSARY

86

DROA

ERT

FPN

Gold

HATO

HA-led

Incident

ISU

LHA

Major

Detailed Regional OperatingAgreement

Emergency Roadside Telephone

Fixed Penalty Notice

Gold command

Highways Agency Traffic Officer

HA-led incident

Incident

Incident Support Unit

Local Highway Authority

Major incident

A local agreement that interprets this national documentfor local circumstances - there will be seven of thesecovering all of the RCC regions.

Dedicated network of telephones on motorways and majortrunk roads for use by road-users to call for assistance.

A penalty issued by a Police Officer to a driver for a trafficoffence, such as speeding.

Highest incident command level in overall charge of eachorganisation. Formulates the overall strategy to respond tothe incident and is normally located in a police commandcentre.

New on-road traffic managers provided by the HA.

All incidents that are not police-led, including:• Vulnerable road-users, break downs and

abandoned vehicles• Collisions without injury or alleged offences• Congestion (including that caused by incidents,

adverse weather or excess volume of traffic)• Obstructions threatening road-user safety (including

debris, pedestrians and animals).

Any event on the motorway road network that requires aresponse by the police and/or the HA or its contractors.

Contractor providing on-road service to undertake signingand coning, debris clearance and minor repairs (also usedgenerically within this document to include sweepers, gullyemptiers and other technical specialists.)

Local authority organisation (for example county council orunitary authority) with responsibility for maintaining localroads.

Incidents beyond the routine capabilities of the leadresponder requiring the implementation of specialarrangements by one or more of the emergency services,the NHS, or the local authority.

87

NTCC

PCO

Police-led

PNC

RCC

Silver

STOC

VMS

VRM

National Traffic Control Centre

Police Control Office

Police-led incident

Police National Computer

Regional Control Centre

Silver

Senior Traffic OfficersConference

Variable Message Signs

Vehicle Registration Mark

Control office provided by TiS that gathers anddisseminates national network information for the wholecore trunk road network and undertakes strategic trafficmanagement on it.

Generic name for the location at which police commandand control routinely takes place. These may be collocatedat the RCCs.

Police-led incidents are defined as those requiring policeintervention including:

• Incidents involving death or injury (includingsecuring evidence and investigation)

• Suspected, alleged or anticipated criminality(including traffic offences)

• Threats to public order and safety (includinghazardous substances)

• Events requiring significant coordination of theemergency response.

For details see www.pito.org.uk

HA building that acts as a control office to gather andassess regional network information and deploy and co-ordinate resources to manage both the network andcriminality. Integrated RCCs are manned and operated byboth HA and police staff.

Intermediate incident command level responsible for thetactical response, normally located near the scene.

ACPO-authorised regional meeting of roads policing headsfor each force.

Roadside signs that can be set with a range of advisorymessages.

Number plate.

88

Reference

Civil Contingency Act 2004

Data Protection Act

Design Manual Roads and Bridges

Draft HA Radio Procedures

Draft HA Radio Talk Groups, Call Signs, Status Codes and Incident Codes

Freedom of Information Act

HA Procedures

Highway Code

Joint ACPO and HA Policy and Procedures for the use of VariableMessageSigns

Media Handling Guidance

APPENDIX B: References

Organisation

Parliament

Parliament

HA

HA

HA

Parliament

HA

HMSO

ACPO/ HA

ACPO/ HA

89

National Guidance Framework between The Association of Chief PoliceOfficers, the HA and Traffic Information Services (TiS) Limited fortheOperation of the HA's National Traffic Control Centre

National Policing Plan 2005-2008

Network Operations Partnership Agreement

(Draft) Regional Network Contingency Plan

Road Death Investigation Manual

Roads Policing Control Strategy

Road Traffic Acts and Motorway Regulations

Standard National Motorway Manual for Police Officers

Strategic Roads 2010: HA 10 Year National Roads Strategy

Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions – Traffic Signs Manual

Traffic Management Act 2004

ACPO/TiS/HA

Home Office

ACPO/ HA

HA

ACPO

ACPO

DfT

ACPO

HA

DfT

Parliament

90

We are particularly grateful to the members of the development group whoseknowledge, time and enthusiasm allowed the development of the NationalGuidance Framework:

Name OrganisationStefan Kowal HA - police liaisonKeith Grima Central Motorway Police Group (West Midlands)John Pearson Greater Manchester PoliceIan Lomax Greater Manchester PoliceGary Bacon HA - team leaderNeil Hewitt HA - team leaderBarry Westwood HA - Delivery Coordinator

The authors of this agreement can be contacted on the following numbers:

Robert CastlemanHAFederated HouseLondon RoadDorking Surrey RH4 1SZ

Telephone: 01306 878250Mobile: 07710 958 553Email: [email protected]

APPENDIX C:

Acknowledgements

and Contacts

91

Rodney BrownACPO/ HA partnershipRoom C64, BroadwayBroad StreetBirminghamB15 1BL

Telephone: 01494 711481Mobile: 07884 113166Fax: 01494 711477Email: [email protected]

Adrian GainsPA Consulting Group123 Buckingham Palace RoadLondonSW1W 9SR

Telephone: 0207 730 9000Fax: 0207 333 5458Email: [email protected]

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