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News Story 10 News Headlines.
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This Article was written by James Chapman: [Political Correspondent:] it was publish in Britain on 6th. January, 2004... by 'The Daily Mail'. 
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Hard-pressed motorists face new flood of £100 fines...
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Tens of thousands of motorists will be hit with £100 fines after traffic wardens are handed a range of extra powers by the Government.  For the first time they will be allowed to crack down on moving traffic offences, rather than only giving tickets to stationary vehicles.  The Tories last night condemned the 'Super Traffic Warden' scheme as the latest in a series of blatant money-making exercises by the Government.
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They warned Ministers they were 'pushing their luck' by crippling voters with a vast range of stealth taxes and fines.  Under the proposals, local authority traffic wardens will be able to issue fines for 20 different offences.  This is a far greater number than had been expected.  They include driving in bus or cycle lanes, blocking yellow box junctions and driving in a pedestrian zone.  Drivers caught committing any of the offences by a new network of traffic cameras will also be fined.
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'Real sense of grievance'

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The fines are expected to be sent out by post after a number-plate has been recorded by a warden or a camera.  There is not yet any detail about what equipment will be available to wardens to record the offences and identify the perpetrators.  Councils will be allowed to keep at least some of the revenue raised, likely to be hundreds of millions of pounds a year.  
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Tory transport spokesman Damian Green predicted last night that over-zealous traffic wardens would slap penalties on tens of thousands of motorists.  He condemned the measures as a means of raiding the wallets of already hard-taxed motorists.  'Of course, bad and illegal driving should be punished,' he said.  'But there are always circumstances where an emergency has occurred or a mistake has been made.
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'Under these plans, there will be no assessment of the individual circumstances by trained police officers.  The danger is that the whole system will be bought into disrepute, just as has happened with speed cameras.'  Currently only police officers can issue penalty notices for breaches of traffic regulations such as driving the wrong way down a one-way street.  But the Traffic Management Bill, which was discussed by the Commons yesterday, transfers powers from the police to local authorities in England and Wales.
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The Government insisted that only the means of enforcement, by council attendants, was new - not the fines themselves.  Offenders are unlikely to be further punished by having penalty points added to their driving licences.  Transport Secretary Alistair Darling flatly rejected the claim that his plans were a revenue-raising exercise.  He said the transfer of powers was aimed at helping to 'keep traffic moving.'  
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But critics pointed out that he appeared to be already having to plead with local authorities and traffic wardens not to adopt too draconian an approach.  'The public, I think, will stay with us if they believe these measures are there to help them by reducing accidents and congestion,' Mr Darling told MPs.  'What the public will not put up with is where they feel people have gone slightly beyond that.'  But the Tories said Mr Darling's promise of a 'light touch' flew in the face of what had happened in the case of speed cameras.
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The number of speeding tickets handed out is expected to have tripled from one million a year in 2000 to three million by next year, Mr Green said.  The Treasury, meanwhile, is benefiting by about £20million a year from fines revenue.  Increasingly, motorists suspect the cameras are being used to raise revenue rather than to improve road safety.  Mr Green told MPs there were 'special circumstances and exceptions' to some traffic offences, which trained police officers would recognise, but cameras and wardens might not.
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In these cases, he warned, a 'real sense of grievance' would be created.  But Mr Darling insisted the changes would free police to concentrate on more serious matters.  'They have got better things to be doing,' he told the Commons.  He insisted that traffic wardens would be properly trained for their new duties.  The Bill will also establish a force of 1,000 uniformed 'highways officers' who will carry out some of the duties performed by traffic police on motorways and A roads.  
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The first of the officers will go into action on the M42 in the West Midlands later this year.  They will have the power to set up diversions, establish temporary speed limits and put down cones.  The legislation is also designed to tackle the problem of endless road-works by imposing a permit system on utility companies.
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New Powers
The super wardens will enforce 20 motoring regulations which are currently dealt with by the police.  The same offences will also be monitored by a new network of traffic cameras.
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The offences include: not driving or turning in the direction indicated by an arrow on the road: turning right or left where not permitted: making an illegal U-turn: not giving priority to vehicles coming in the opposite direction: ignoring a no entry sign: ignoring a sign prohibiting all vehicles: entering a pedestrian zone: waiting in a pedestrian zone: driving a motorcycle in a prohibited zone: exceeding a goods vehicle weight restriction: ignoring one-way signs: driving in a bus or cycle lane: ignoring box junction markings.
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Roadworks   
The legislation is also designed to tackle the menace of roadworks.  Councils will be given powers to manage when and where street works are carried out.  From now on, any utility company wanting to carry out street works will be required to apply for a permit.  Councils could stop roads being dug up repeatedly by banning work until a specified date.  Fines of up to £5,000 will be imposed on firms that fail to repair roads properly or miss deadlines for completing works.  But the Tories say only about five per cent of works are actually carried out by utility companies.  The majority are ordered by the councils themselves, they claim.
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Highway patrols
The highways Agency will set up a 'task force' of 1,000 uniformed officers carrying out many of the routine duties now performed by traffic police on motorways and A roads.  They will conduct round-the-clock patrols, releasing up to 550 police officers for other duties.  However, they will not assume the police's criminal powers, such as dealing with speeding drivers.  They will also be encouraged to pick up broken-down vehicles, at an expected cost to the driver of £105.  There are fears they will 'race' recovery vans from organisations such as the AA and the RAC to be first at a breakdown.
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Traffic czars
Every council will be required to have a 'traffic manager' who is responsible for ensuring that traffic flows smoothly.  This official will be required to review the phasing of traffic lights and traffic calming schemes within the council's boundaries to ensure they are effective.  The traffic manager will also have to oversee roadworks projects and ensure that disruption is minimised.  The Transport Secretary will be given the right to impose new traffic managers on local authorities in cases where he is not satisfied with their choice.
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