Request ID: FOI-4182-2324 Date published: 12 March 2024
You asked
Background
On or about 11th October 2023, it is believed that Transport for London (“TfL”), as the relevant traffic authority specified in The Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 (the “Act”), purportedly made an order under s.14 (1) (b) of the Act, namely
THE A20 GLA ROAD (SIDCUP BY-PASS, LONDON BOROUGHS OF BEXLEY AND BROMLEY) (TEMPORARY 40 M.P.H. SPEED LIMIT) ORDER 2023 (the "Order").
That Order is evidenced by an information notice dated 11 October 2023 and signed by the Area Manager South - Assets Operations, one . That notice refers to the Order but does not appear to attach the Order itself or provide a link to it.
There are 11 connected requests, as numbered below.
General
1. Please provide information about any accidents on the section of road to which the Order applies (the “Relevant Road”) for the 3 years prior to the date of the Order as follows: for each accident, the time and date and weather conditions; the exact location; the number of fatalities, serious, or minor injuries; and the number and types of vehicle (and pedestrians, if any) involved.
2. Please provide the dates and times of any instances of flooding on the Relevant Road for the 3 years prior to the date of the Order.
The Order
3. Please provide an official copy of the Order as made, stating when it was made, the decision-making body which made it and how and of whom that body was constituted for that purpose, specifying any quorum requirement, and including the persons, natural or legal, of which it was made up on that occasion. (As this specific request is made in respect of the exercise of a legislative function, the names of individuals exercising such a public function should not be withheld).
The legislative decision
4. Please provide copies of any and all minutes in relation to discussions of a proposed temporary speed limit on the Relevant Road prior to the making of the Order, and the minutes relating to the making of the Order.
5. Please provide copies of the evidence before the decision-makers and / or on which they relied in relation to the Order so as to be satisfied in accordance with the Act including section 14 (1)(b) thereof.
Consultation
6. Please provide copies of minutes of any meeting at which it was considered whether and with whom to consult in respect of proposals relating to the Order, and any documents evidencing consultation with persons, specifically or generally, in respect of such proposals, including but not limited to any public consultation, together with any responses received. In the event it were to be asserted that it is too onerous to provide the responses received, please provide a list of all respondents and a detailed summary of the responses.
7. Please also provide copies of any minutes or other documents relating to any consideration of the application (or non-application) of the consultation provisions of the Government's Guidance
“Setting local speed limits" (Updated 18 January 2013 -
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/setting-local-speed-limits/setting-local-speed-limits#section-4-the-legislative-framework) in relation to the proposed Order.
Implementation
8. Please provide any instructions issued by the traffic authority or its officials as to signs to be placed and / or removed so as to inform road users of the implementation of the Order, including but not limited to road signs giving orders and information signs.
9. Please also provide the dates of the installation, removal, or additional installation of such signs.
Enforcement
10. Does TfL know the number of notices of intended prosecution issued and / or the value of financial penalties payable for breaches of the temporary 40 mph speed limit (the “Speed Limit”) imposed by the Order? If so please provide the number and amount for each month since the Order was made.
11. In respect of financial penalties paid in respect of enforcement of the Speed Limit, does TfL stand to receive all or part of such penalties? If so, please specify amounts received or estimates of amounts receivable in respect of such penalties.
We answered
TfL Ref: 4182-2324
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 13 February 2024 asking for information about the A20 speed restrictions.
Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of theEnvironmental Information Regulations and our information access policy. I can confirm that we hold the information you require.
Your questions and our replies are as follows:
Background On or about 11th October 2023, it is believed that Transport for London (“TfL”), as the relevant traffic authority specified in The Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 (the “Act”), purportedly made an order under s.14 (1) (b) of the Act, namely THE A20 GLA ROAD (SIDCUP BY-PASS, LONDON BOROUGHS OF BEXLEY AND BROMLEY) (TEMPORARY 40 M.P.H. SPEED LIMIT) ORDER 2023 (the "Order"). That Order is evidenced by an information notice dated 11 October 2023 and signed by the Area Manager South - Assets Operations, one Gary Oliver. That notice refers to the Order but does not appear to attach the Order itself or provide a link to it. There are 11 connected requests, as numbered below. General
Please provide information about any accidents on the section of road to which the Order applies (the “Relevant Road”) for the 3 years prior to the date of the Order as follows: for each accident, the time and date and weather conditions; the exact location; the number of fatalities, serious, or minor injuries; and the number and types of vehicle (and pedestrians, if any) involved.
Details of recorded collisions on the A20 as requested:
Incident Date & Time
Information
07/12/2020 09:15:00
Location: On A20, 800 metres east of the junction with Sidcup Bypass.
In addition, the petrol station located on the A20 Eastbound, West of Cookham Road has reported a number of collisions in that time period to us, highlighting the risk caused at this location. The details they provided are as follows:
Incident Date: 15.08.2020
A vehicle was travelling along the outside lane of the A20 when it hit surface water, aquaplaned and spun around. The vehicle then proceeded onto the forecourt hitting the bollard in front of pump 1&2. It then spun around hitting a car parked at pump 3. The petrol pump was impacted and emergency services attended the site. The cost of the damage to our property was £10,000. News article and video - https://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/18659874.mercedes-hits-bp-petrol-station-off-a20-swanley-bypass/
Incident Date: 13.02.2022
A vehicle lost control on the duel carriageway during heavy rain, spun around impacting a van driving onto the forecourt. The car then impacted a hooped bollard in front of the pump and launched into the stanchion. Emergency services attended the site. The cost of the damage to our property is estimated £100,000. News article - https://www.kentlive.news/news/kent-news/man-taken-major-trauma-centre-6655286
Incident Date: 23.05.2022
A vehicle lost control on A20 causing a road traffic accident. The vehicle lost control and went into the slip road impacting the barrier. No damage caused to our property.
Incident Date: 27.09.2022
Vehicle aquaplaned across A20 impacting other vehicles No damage caused to our property.
Incident Date: 10.10.22
At 8:15 am a white Mercedes car skidded on the A20 into the entrance of our forecourt and collided into a car filling up at pump 1 . The site was closed temporarily whilst emergency services attended. Costs to be confirmed
2. Please provide the dates and times of any instances of flooding on the Relevant Road for the 3 years prior to the date of the Order.
The safety risk is owing to the inability of water to be channelled into the drainage system due to the carriageway and drainage layout causing water to sheet across the carriageway, leading to aqua-planning and resultant the risk to life. As is shown by the incidents provided in answer to Question 1, a number of the severe incidents reported were in wet weather which led to temporary restrictions being implemented to mitigate the immediate safety issue. We do not have a record of specific dates of each surface watersheeting incident, however we are aware of the severity of the issue owing to the number of incidents recorded since 2020, and the ongoing liaison with the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) and the petrol station owners.
The Order 3. Please provide an official copy of the Order as made, stating when it was made, the decision-making body which made it and how and of whom that body was constituted for that purpose, specifying any quorum requirement, and including the persons, natural or legal, of which it was made up on that occasion. (As this specific request is made in respect of the exercise of a legislative function, the names of individuals exercising such a public function should not be withheld). The legislative decision
Attached is the s14(2) notice, s14(1) order and notice of making. Also attached are the compliance statutory requirements for processing these documents.
Please note that in accordance with TfL’s obligations under the Data Protection legislation some personal data has been removed, as required by Regulation 13 of the Environmental Information Regulations. This is because disclosure of this personal data would be a breach of the legislation, specifically the first principle of the legislation, which requires all processing of personal data to be fair and lawful. It would not be fair to disclose this personal information when the individuals have no expectation it would be disclosed and TfL has not satisfied one of the conditions of Schedule 2 which would make the processing ‘fair’.
4. Please provide copies of any and all minutes in relation to discussions of a proposed temporary speed limit on the Relevant Road prior to the making of the Order, and the minutes relating to the making of the Order.
Minutes from the A20 Sidcup Road Continued Safe Operation meeting are attached which detail the progression of the temporary and permanent scheme. Please note that some information in the minutes has been removed as it is subject to a statutory exception to the right of access to information under regulations R12(5)(a) – international relations, defence, national security & public safety (in this instance specifically public safety) and regulation 12(5)(b) – the course of justice, the ability of a person to receive a fair trial or the ability of the public authority to conduct and inquiry of a criminal or disciplinary nature – (in this instance specifically the course of justice).
5. Please provide copies of the evidence before the decision-makers and / or on which they relied in relation to the Order so as to be satisfied in accordance with the Act including section 14 (1)(b) thereof.
The attachments detailing the Engineering Interim Design Options and the minutes of the Continued Safe Operstion (CSO) meetings provide the evidence by which the decision to implement a Section 14 order was based on.
Consultation 6. Please provide copies of minutes of any meeting at which it was considered whether and with whom to consult in respect of proposals relating to the Order, and any documents evidencing consultation with persons, specifically or generally, in respect of such proposals, including but not limited to any public consultation, together with any responses received. In the event it were to be asserted that it is too onerous to provide the responses received, please provide a list of all respondents and a detailed summary of the responses.
No such consultation was undertaken nor was consultation required to implement an Emergency Traffic Order under Section 14. The Temporary Traffic Regulation Order was implemented because of the likelihood of danger to the public and serious damage to the road due to flooding. We have not run a public consultation on a scheme to alter the speed limit on the A20. However we did notify key stakeholders of the TTRO being proposed. The attached file is the list to who we notified (not consulted) that the order was being implemented. Both Bromley and Bexley Councils were notified.
The attached minutes document the progression of the temporary scheme. The Engineering Interim Designs note detail the recommendation to implement the 40mph speed restriction under a Section 14 TRO.
Implementation 8. Please provide any instructions issued by the traffic authority or its officials as to signs to be placed and / or removed so as to inform road users of the implementation of the Order, including but not limited to road signs giving orders and information signs.
Instruction to remove 50 roundel (email - FW: 50mph sign on slip into BP station, nearside A20 Sidcup bypass, Kent Bound)
9. Please also provide the dates of the installation, removal, or additional installation of such signs.
The speed limit signage changes were made over three nights from 26 September 2023 under an Emergency Traffic Order in response to the serious safety risk posed by surface water flooding.
To ensure drivers were aware of this change, we installed three Variable Message Signs on 4 October warning of the new 40mph limit, alongside ‘New Speed Limit in force’ signs several months ahead of enforcement taking place.
TfL were notified on 24 January that an incorrect 50mph sign had been placed at this location by an unauthorised third party. This was quickly replaced on the same night with the correct 40mph signage and we are investigating how the incorrect sign was installed.
In response to public feedback and some incorrect media coverage, we also installed some ‘Speed reduction due to skid risk’ signage at the location on 6 February 2024.
Enforcement 10. Does TfL know the number of notices of intended prosecution issued and / or the value of financial penalties payable for breaches of the temporary 40 mph speed limit (the “Speed Limit”) imposed by the Order? If so please provide the number and amount for each month since the Order was made.
11. In respect of financial penalties paid in respect of enforcement of the Speed Limit, does TfL stand to receive all or part of such penalties? If so, please specify amounts received or estimates of amounts receivable in respect of such penalties.
Please see our answer to Qu 4 as above – the same exceptions apply to this part of your request.
Income resulting from the issue of fixed penalty notices for speeding offences is paid to HM Treasury, not TfL or the Police. Some income from speed awareness courses completed by drivers comes back to TfL and the Police to offset the costs of the safety camera operation, including police enforcement activity.
If this is not the information you are looking for, or if you are unable to access it for any reason, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal as well as information on copyright and what to do if you would like to re-use any of the information we have disclosed.
Yours sincerely
Sara Thomas FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London
