Road Traffic (Northern Ireland) Order 1981

PART XIV N.I. MISCELLANEOUS AND SUPPLEMENTARY PROVISIONS

Articles 205, 206 rep. by 1995 NI 18

Driver of motor vehicle deemed to be servant or agent of owner in civil proceedings N.I.

207.  Where any proceedings arising out of an accident involving a motor vehicle are instituted against the owner of the vehicle for damages in respect of the negligent driving, control or management of the vehicle and it is shown that at the time of the accident the vehicle was being driven, or in the charge of, some person other than the owner of the vehicle, then that other person shall be deemed, until the contrary is proved, to have been acting as the servant or agent of the owner at the time when the accident occurred.

Inquiries and applications N.I.

208.  The provisions of Schedule 5 shall have effect in relation to any inquiries or applications authorised by any provision of this Order, and section 23 of the Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954 [1954 c.33] shall not apply in relation to any such inquiry or application.

Articles 209-210 rep. by 1997 NI 2

Article 211 rep. by 1995 NI 18

[F1 Prospective exercise of powers N.I.

211A.— (1) Any power under this Order to make an order or give a direction may be exercised before the road to which it relates is open for public use, so as to take effect immediately on the road's becoming open for public use.

(2) The procedure for making an order or giving a direction applies in such a case with such modifications as may be prescribed.

F1 1993 NI 15

Application of Order to hovercraft and trolley vehicles N.I.

212.—(1) For the purposes of this Order [F2 and the Offenders Order], a hovercraft—

(a) shall be a motor vehicle, whether or not it is adapted or intended for use on roads; but

(b) shall be treated, subject to paragraph (2), as not being a vehicle of any of the classes defined in[F3 Article 3 of the Order of 1995].

(2) The Department may by regulations provide—

(a) that any provision of this Order, which would otherwise apply to hovercraft, shall not apply to them or shall apply to them subject to such modifications as may be specified in the regulations;

(b) that any such provision, which would not otherwise apply to hovercraft, shall apply to them subject to such modifications, if any, as may be specified in the regulations.

(3) The following provisions of this Order, that is to say—

• Part II;

• F4 . . .

• F3 . . .

• F3 . . .

• Articles 70 to 79;

• ArticlesF3 . . . F4 . . . 166 to 168,F2 . . . F4 . . . 172, 175 to 177, 180,F2 . . . ;

together with so much of the other provisions of this Order as relate to those provisions shall, without prejudice to the operation of[F3 Article 8 of the Order of 1995], apply in relation to trolley vehicles and the drivers of trolley vehicles as they apply in relation to heavy motor cars and the drivers of heavy motor cars.

(4) Paragraph (3) shall have effect notwithstanding section 7 of the Belfast Corporation Act (Northern Ireland) 1930 [1930 c.ii] .

F2 1996 NI 10

F3 1995 NI 18

F4 1997 NI 2

Application of Order to invalid carriages N.I.

213.— (1) The Department may by regulations provide that in the case of a vehicle which is an invalid carriage complying with the prescribed requirements and which is being used in accordance with the prescribed conditions—

(a) no statutory provision prohibiting or restricting the use of footways shall prohibit or restrict the use of that vehicle on a footway;

(b) if the vehicle is mechanically-propelled, it shall be treated for such purposes of this Order as may be prescribed as not being a motor vehicle.

(2) In this Article—

“invalid carriage” means a vehicle whether mechanically-propelled or not, constructed or adapted for use for the carriage of one person, being a person suffering from some physical defect or disability; and

“footway” means a way over which the public have a right of way on foot only.

F1 1993 NI 15

Application of Order to the Crown N.I.

214.— (1) The Department may make regulations exempting from the provisions of this Order, or of any regulation[F5 or order] made under this Order, vehicles owned or used by or for the purposes of any service of the Crown, and persons driving such vehicles, and for making such modifications of those provisions as appear to the Department to be necessary for the purposes of any such exemption.

(2) References in paragraph (1) to vehicles owned or used by or for the purposes of any service of the Crown, and to persons driving such vehicles, shall include references to vehicles used for the purposes of the Civil Defence Acts (Northern Ireland) 1938 to 1950, and to persons driving such vehicles.

[F6 (3) Subject to the foregoing paragraphs, the provisions of this Order, other than[F7 Article 56], 58(2) and Part VIII, shall bind the Crown.]

F1 1993 NI 15

F5 1997 NI 2

F6 SR 1993/424

F7 1995 NI 18

Application of Order in relation to harbour commissioners N.I.

215.— (1) Except to the extent provided by this ArticleF8 . . . the provisions of this Order shall not have effect in relation to the Belfast Harbour Commissioners or other harbour commissioners having in relation to their harbour area powers similar to those of the Belfast Harbour Commissioners for restricting access to, and regulating motor traffic on, roads, and no road vested in, or under the control of, any such harbour commissioners shall be deemed for the purpose of this Order to be a road to which the public has access.

(2) A road vested in or under the control of the Belfast Harbour Commissioners or any such other harbour commissioners shall be deemed for the purposes of the following provisions of this Order to be a road to which this Order applies—

• Sub-para. (a) rep. by 1995 NI 18

• Sub-para. (b) rep. by 1996 NI 10

• Sub-paras. (c), (d) rep. by 1995 NI 18

• Sub-para. (e) rep. by 1997 NI 2

• Sub-para. (f) rep. by 1995 NI 18

• Sub-para. (g) rep. by 1997 NI 2

(h) Article 172;

(i) Article 175.

(3) For the purpose of the said provisions as applied by this Article to a road in the Belfast Harbour Estate a member of the Belfast Harbour Police shall have the same powers as a member of the Royal Ulster Constabulary has in relation to other roads.

(4) Where within the estate of the Belfast Harbour Commissioners an accident occurs involving the driver of a motor vehicle who if the accident had occurred elsewhere would have been under a duty to report it at a police station or to a constable that driver shall report the accident at a Belfast Harbour police station or to a Belfast Harbour police constable.

F1 1993 NI 15

F8 1997 NI 2

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 Art. 215 excluded (23.11.2009) by Taxis Act (Northern Ireland) 2008 (c. 4), ss. 54(4), 59; S.R. 2009/352, art. 2, Sch.

Article 216 rep. by 1997 NI 2

Savings N.I.

217.— (1) Nothing in this Order shall authorise any person to use on any road any vehicle so constructed or used as to cause a public or private nuisance, or shall affect any liability of the driver or owner of a vehicle whether under statute or common law.

(2) The provisions of this Order relating to public service vehicles shall, except as is otherwise expressly provided by this Order, be in addition to and not in derogation of any other enactment (including this Order) applicable to motor vehicles or to any class of such vehicles.

Para. (3) rep. by 1995 NI 18

(4) Nothing in this Order shall prejudice or affect any powers exercisable by Order in Council under section 2 of the Motor Vehicles (International Circulation) Act 1952 [1952 c.39] .

(5) Schedule 6 (which contains futher savings) shall have effect.

F1 1993 NI 15

General provisions as to regulations N.I.

218.— (1) The Department may make regulations prescribing anything which is to be prescribed and providing for any matter in regard to which regulations may be made under the provisions of this Order.

(2) Save as is otherwise expressly provided by this Order, all regulations and orders made under this Order shall be subject to negative resolution.

(3) Without prejudice to the provisions of section 17(3) of the Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954 [1954 c.33] , any regulations made under this Order may be of a local, as opposed to public general, nature and may be limited in their application to a particular area.

F1 1993 NI 15

Transitional provisions N.I.

219.— (1) For the purposes of any provision of this Order relating to a second or any subsequent offence, an offence committed under any statutory provision which is repealed and replaced by this Order shall be deemed to have been committed under the replacing provision of this Order as if that replacing provision had been in force at all material times.

(2) Any reference in any document (whether express or implied) to a statutory provision repealed by this Order shall, except where the context otherwise requires, be construed as, or as including, a reference to the corresponding provision of this Order.

(3) Any period of disqualification imposed under any statutory provision repealed by this Order shall, if that period is current on the date of the commencement of the corresponding provision of this Order, be deemed to have been imposed under that corresponding provision.

(4) Where a period of time specified in any statutory provision repealed by this Order is current at the commencement of the corresponding provision of this Order, that provision of this Order shall have effect as if it had been in force when that period began to run.

(5) Any reference in this Order (whether express or implied) to a thing done or falling to be done, or omitted to be done, or to an event which has occurred, under or for the purposes of or by reference to a provision of this Order shall, except where the context otherwise requires, be construed as including a reference to the corresponding thing done or falling to be done, or omitted, or to the corresponding event which occurred, as the case may be, under or for the purposes of or by reference to the corresponding provision of the statutory provisions repealed by this Order.

(6) Any reference in this Article to a statutory provision repealed (or repealed and replaced) by this Order includes a reference to a statutory provision repealed by the Road Traffic Act (Northern Ireland) 1970 [1970 c.2] .

(7) Nothing in this Article shall prejudice the operation of the Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954 in relation to this Order.]

F1 1993 NI 15