TSRGD 2016

Changes for on-street

parking controls

Parking Forum

30 March 2016

Simon Morgan

Traffic signing legislation

and guidance

• SI laid before Parliament: 22 March 2016

• Comes into effect: 22 April 2016

DfT Traffic Signs Clutter Task Force

• Sir Alan Duncan expected to report: April 2016

Traffic Signs Manual (estimated dates)

• Prioritise Chapters 3 & 5 (regulatory signs and markings).

– Drafts for peer review: September 2016

– Published final documents: April 2017

• New Chapter 6: traffic signals and crossings:

later in 2017 or early 2018.

TSRGD 2016:

what’s changing

• Radical new structure.

• Fewer complete signs shown.

• Choose symbols and text from different tables.

• More flexibility of wording: “any two of the descriptions”,

“in any combination as appropriate”, “types of user”.

• Fewer specific Regulations and Directions, but those

still applying are mostly in tables close by.

• Incorporates Pedestrian Crossings Regs, area-wide

authorisations (currently only for England) and other

frequently authorised signs.

No requirement to make a TRO for these measures?

Local consultation recommended (but not mandatory)

Any lengths of

single and

double yellow

lines (but not

loading bans).

Mandatory school

entrance clearways

Relaxing the need

for a traffic order

Mandatory with-flow

cycle lanes

Innovations

• Only legally need a single terminal sign

• No repeaters legally required.

• Link between signs and markings removed in most cases.

• Parking bays can be any size and almost any type of white

dotted or solid line, or can be coloured surfacing or edged

with distinctive (flush or raised) pavers.

• No traffic orders for school keep clear or with-flow

mandatory cycle lanes.

• Reduced legal need for electrical illumination.

• Type approval ends. TOPAS a voluntary replacement.

• No DfT permission needed for ‘Stop’ signs.

What’s not changing

• Existing signs can remain indefinitely

• Most existing prescribed signs & markings can

still be used

• Existing authorisations remain valid

• The appearance of most signs does not change

• Traffic Signs Manual (rather than TSRGD)

should be the first reference used and will

become even more important, but will not be

updated for new TSRGD until later.

A new way

to specify parking plates

Options to add panels and to place any of a wide range of

prescribed symbols and legends in any position

Schedule 4 Part 4Symbols and legends used in combination with a white panel

Combining parking plates

From Traffic

Signs Manual

Chapter 3

Option to

combine plates

into a single

assembly.

IHE and BPA

preferred

arrangement.

These becomes legal:

and these:

A new definition of a CPZ

(a) an area—

(i) in which every part of every road is subject to a prohibition

indicated by single or double yellow lines or single or

double yellow kerb markings (except where parking spaces

have been provided, where entrance to or exit from the

road is made, where there is a prohibition or restriction on

waiting, stopping, loading or unloading indicated by a

different traffic sign or where there is a crossing) whether

or not an upright sign to indicate the same prohibition is

placed in conjunction with the line or kerb marking; and

(ii) into which each entrance for vehicular traffic has been

indicated by the sign provided for at item 1 or 3 of the sign

table in Part 3 of Schedule 5;

A new way

to indicate bays

• No legal link between parking plates and

markings: one or the other is sufficient, subject to

guidance and common sense.

• Bays can be marked with almost any solid or

intermittent white line.

• Bays can be indicated with coloured surfacing,

flush or raised pavers, etc.

• Bays can be any length and any width ≥ 1.8 m

(except for blue badge).

Breaking the legal link

(between signs and markings)

• ‘No loading at any time’ could be indicated without

signs, just with double ‘kerb blips’ (as trialled in

Westminster).

• Road marking text (Disabled, Loading only, etc.)

optional on bay markings if vertical sign present.

• Vertical sign could be omitted if road marking

clearly describes a 24/7 restriction.

• Does this avoid the need for a separate plate at

each individual bay or yellow line?

Only the adjudicators know the answer!

London & W. Midlands signs

to be usable anywhere

New TSRGD:

Benefits to authorities

• Fewer signs will be needed, so cost and clutter reduced.

• Initial cost and energy requirement reduced for the signs

no longer to need electrical illumination.

• New TSRGD intended to make it less easy for motorists to

get out of parking tickets and moving traffic offences on

technical grounds (but we’ll see).

• More flexibility, so fewer signs need individual

authorisation, allowing schemes to be implemented

quicker and with less work.

• Was billed as needing less ‘page turning’ to specify a sign

(but DfT lawyer has 3 separate copies open at different

pages!)

Concerns

• Authorities have less certainly over whether new signs

they erect will be enforceable or whether the parking

adjudicators/JPs will find some problem with them.

• Some authorities will be tempted to go for the

minimum cost option, even when drivers need more

than one sign or need a sign to be illuminated. Some

conscientious engineers fear being over-ruled by their

chief officers or elected members on these points.

• The inherent flexibility will cause some regional

variation to occur, making signing less consistent

across the country.