Highways Agency ‘roadside stop’ pilot goes live

9th October 2014

The DVSA is trialling a joint working pilot with the Highways Agency to stop commercial vehicles at the roadside.  HA Traffic Officers are being trained in stopping officer duties, but incident management will remain their priority.  The DVSA stressed that they will be supporting, rather than replacing, DVSA stopping officers.

The four-month pilot is taking place near Doxey, and started on 1 September.  It is intended to assess whether joint working improves the ability to target high-risk vehicles, and how the additional demands will affect HA Traffic Officers. 

According to the SMMT’s Transport News Brief, the current situation has DVSA making routine stops to check for red diesel, tachograph offences, etc, while the HA deals with incident management – usually redirecting traffic following an accident or a road-blocking breakdown.

The SMMT also reported that the DVSA will now also check for leaks and weak seals on fuel tanks, in addition to its regular duties.  The position and powers of road traffic police are unaffected by the pilot.