Commentary on Sections Section 7 – Enforcement of moving traffic contraventions in Greater London
62.Section 15 of the 2006 Act envisaged that traffic restrictions imposed under section 14 would be enforced under civil procedures in accordance with provisions in the 2004 Act, which included the methods by which the penalty charge level for contraventions must be set. Only the provisions relating to parking contraventions are in force.
63.Section 7 achieves the civil enforcement objectives of the 2006 Act for moving contraventions in Greater London – including enforcement of “Games Lanes” reserved for official traffic – by enabling London traffic authorities to use their existing local civil enforcement powers to enforce contraventions of orders and notices made in accordance with sections 14 and 16 of that Act.
64.The relevant provisions of the London Local Authorities and Transport for London Act 2003 (“the 2003 Act”) are applied with appropriate modifications by the new sections 16A and 16B inserted into the 2006 Act by subsection (1). The modifications include the arrangements by which the penalty charges will be set, namely that the ODA will set the levels following consultation with the London local authorities and Transport for London, which will be subject to the Secretary of State’s approval. Reserve powers are given to enable the Secretary of State to set the level in the event that the ODA fails to do so or he disagrees with the level they propose. The modifications also confer power on the ODA (instead of on the borough councils and Transport for London as in the existing section 4(10) of the 2003 Act) to determine the “specified proportion” by which the amount of a penalty charge will be reduced if paid within 14 days (see section 4(8)(iv) of the 2003 Act). Finally the Secretary of State is empowered to determine by which method the ODA will publicise the penalty charge levels.