The River Mersey (Mersey Gateway Bridge) Order 2011

PART 4 OPERATIONAL

Power to operate, use and maintain the new crossing

35.  The undertaker may operate, use and maintain the new crossing.

Restriction on use of the new crossing by certain classes of vehicle or person

36.—(1) No vehicle shall be permitted to enter upon or use any of the bridge roads unless it is a vehicle within a class of motor vehicles contained or referred to in Classes B(a), B(b), C(a), C(b), E(a) or E(b) in Part 2, or any class of vehicle referred to in Parts 3 to 5, of the Schedule to the Road User Charging and Work Place Parking Levy (Classes of Motor Vehicles) (England) Regulations 2001(1) and no person shall be permitted to enter upon or use those roads unless they are a person carried by or within such a vehicle.

(2) The undertaker may at any time suspend the restriction in paragraph (1)—

(a) in relation to any class of vehicle or a vehicle or person within a vehicle of such a class;

(b) for any length of time; or

(c) in respect of all or any part of the bridge roads,

if at any time it considers it necessary or expedient to do so.

Closing the new crossing

37.—(1) The undertaker may whenever in its opinion it is necessary to do so whether in case of emergency or for the purpose of or in connection with the authorised activities close any of the bridge roads whether wholly or partially.

(2) Where the undertaker proposes to close any of the bridge roads it shall except in an emergency—

(a) give not less than 7 days’ notice by advertisement in at least one local newspaper circulating in the area; and

(b) throughout the period of such closure display signs at convenient situations on the roads communicating with any public access road to the new crossing giving warning of the closure.

No mains or pipes

38.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), regardless of anything contained in the 1980 Act or in any other enactment no person shall enter upon, break up or interfere with any scheduled work or the carriageways and footways of the works authorised by this Order except Work No. 2a for the purpose of installing any main, pipe or wire or executing any work in, on or under a work authorised by this Order, except with the consent of the undertaker and in accordance with such terms or conditions and subject to such charges as the undertaker may determine.

(2) The consent of the undertaker to the breaking up of and interference with any of the works or the carriageways and footways of any work for the purposes of installing water mains, water pipes or electric lines in them shall not be withheld unreasonably and any question which may arise as to whether such consent is so withheld or as to whether the terms and conditions subject to which any such consent is given are reasonable shall be resolved by an arbitrator under article 62 (arbitration).

Trespass on the new crossing

39.—(1) Any person who without reasonable excuse—

(a) enters upon any part of the new crossing which is not a carriageway, cycle track or footway; or

(b) trespasses upon any land of the undertaker in dangerous proximity to the new crossing or to any electrical or other apparatus used for or in connection with the operation of the new crossing,

shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale.

(2) No person shall be convicted of an offence under paragraph (1) unless it is shown that a notice warning the public not to trespass upon the new crossing was clearly exhibited and maintained near to the place where the offence is alleged to have been committed or the place at which the trespass upon the new crossing or land is alleged to have begun.

(3) If the tolls payable by any person wishing to use the new crossing are demanded of that person before using it, and that person shall, after those tolls have been demanded (whether by any collector or other person appointed to receive those tolls), refuse or without reasonable excuse neglect to pay those tolls or any part of any toll, the collector or other person so appointed may refuse to permit that person to use the new crossing and may, alone, or with such assistance as that person shall think necessary, stop the person in default from using the new crossing.

Offences and power to make byelaws

40.—(1) The undertaker may make and enforce byelaws regulating the use and operation of the new crossing, the maintenance of order on and about the new crossing and the conduct of all persons including employees of the undertaker while on and about the new crossing.

(2) Without limiting the scope of paragraph (1), byelaws under this article may make provision—

(a) with respect to the payment of tolls and the evasion of payment of tolls;

(b) with respect to requirements for persons in charge of a vehicle that is used on the new crossing to—

(i) display a document in that vehicle; or

(ii) carry in or fix equipment to that vehicle,

and with respect to the failure to do so or the failure to do so in accordance with the undertaker’s requirements;

(c) with respect to interference with, or obstruction of, the operation of the new crossing or other facilities provided in connection with the new crossing;

(d) with respect to the prevention of nuisances on the new crossing;

(e) for the recovery, safe custody and re-delivery or disposal of any property or vehicles left on the new crossing and for fixing the charges made in respect of any such property or vehicles;

(f) to prohibit vehicles from stopping or remaining at rest in prescribed places on the bridge roads or elsewhere in or about the new crossing, except in prescribed circumstances;

(g) to require any person in charge of a vehicle which is at rest by reason of breakdown in a prescribed place on any of the bridge roads to take prescribed steps for reporting that fact and the position and circumstances in which the vehicle is at rest;

(h) to prohibit any person, other than a constable or an appointed person—

(i) from carrying out, or attempting to carry out, a repair, adjustment or refuelling of such a vehicle to which sub-paragraph (g) applies except with permission expressly given by a constable or an appointed person; and

(ii) from moving, or attempting to move, such a vehicle from the position in which it is at rest;

(i) to prohibit persons from carrying out, or attempting to carry out, a repair, adjustment or refuelling of a vehicle;

(j) to empower a constable or an appointed person to remove from its position to a prescribed area a vehicle which is for the time being at rest in a prescribed place on any bridge road—

(i) in contravention of the byelaws;

(ii) by reason of breakdown;

(iii) without any person being in charge of it; or

(iv) with the person in charge of it not being present in or on it;

(k) in the case of a vehicle which is so removed or which at the request of the person in charge of it is repaired, adjusted or refuelled (instead of being removed) by an appointed person, to require the prescribed person to pay a charge of an amount to be determined in accordance with such scales and other provisions as may be prescribed;

(l) to prohibit a person from obstructing any action taken by a constable or an appointed person for the purpose of removing a vehicle in accordance with the byelaws;

(m) to ensure the safety of vehicles passing over the new crossing; and

(n) to restrict and regulate the passage of dangerous goods or traffic on the new crossing.

(3) Byelaws under this article may—

(a) designate places on the new crossing at which tolls (other than tolls with respect to which a prepayment has been made) are to be paid or become due to be paid;

(b) make provision as to the persons by whom, and the manner in which, such tolls or other charges are to be paid;

(c) make provision for securing that vehicles in respect of which tolls are payable do not use the new crossing without payment of the tolls; and

(d) make provision for preventing a vehicle which—

(i) having used the new crossing; or

(ii) being about to use the new crossing,

has arrived at the place at which a toll is payable in respect of it from proceeding beyond that place without a toll having been paid.

(4) Byelaws made under this article shall provide for a notice specifying—

(a) the categories of vehicles in respect of which tolls are payable; and

(b) the amount of the tolls in respect of each category,

to be displayed at each place designated in accordance with sub-paragraph (3)(a).

(5) Byelaws under this article may provide for it to be an offence for a person to contravene, or to fail to comply with, a provision of the byelaws and for such a person to be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale.

(6) Without prejudice to paragraph (5), where the undertaker considers it expedient to do so it may prosecute legal proceedings in respect of offences under this Order.

(7) Without prejudice to paragraph (5), a person who without reasonable excuse—

(a) refuses or fails to pay a toll for which that person is liable; or

(b) attempts to evade payment of such a toll,

shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale.

(8) Without prejudice to the taking of proceedings for an offence included in byelaws by virtue of paragraph (5), if the contravention of, or failure to comply with, any byelaw under this article is attended with danger or annoyance to the public or the undertaker or hindrance to the undertaker in the operation of the new crossing, the undertaker may summarily take action to obviate or remove the danger, annoyance or hindrance.

(9) Byelaws under this article shall not come into operation until they have been confirmed by the Secretary of State.

(10) At least 28 days before applying for any byelaws to be confirmed under this article, the undertaker shall publish in such manner as may be approved by the Secretary of State a notice of its intention to apply for the byelaws to be confirmed and of the place at which and the time during which a copy of the byelaws will be open to public inspection; and any person affected by any of the byelaws may make representations on them to the Secretary of State within a period specified in the notice, being a period of not less than 28 days.

(11) For at least 28 days before an application is made under this article for byelaws to be confirmed, a copy of the byelaws shall be kept at the principal office of the undertaker and shall at all reasonable hours be open to public inspection without payment.

(12) The undertaker shall, at the request of any person, supply that person with a copy of any such byelaws on payment of such reasonable sum as the undertaker may determine.

(13) The Secretary of State may confirm with or without modification, or may refuse to confirm, any of the byelaws submitted under this article for confirmation and, as regards any byelaws so confirmed, may fix a date on which the byelaws shall come into operation; and if no date is so fixed the byelaws shall come into operation after the expiry of 28 days after the date on which they were confirmed.

(14) The Secretary of State may charge the undertaker such fees in respect of any byelaws submitted for confirmation under this article as the Secretary of State may consider appropriate for the purpose of defraying any administrative expenses incurred by the Secretary of State in connection with such confirmation.

(15) A copy of the byelaws when confirmed shall be printed and deposited at the principal office of the undertaker and shall at all reasonable hours be open to public inspection without payment, and the undertaker shall, at the request of any person, supply that person with a copy of any such byelaws on payment of such reasonable sum as the undertaker shall determine.

(16) The production of a printed copy of byelaws confirmed under this article on which is endorsed a certificate purporting to be signed by a person duly authorised by the undertaker stating—

(a) that the byelaws were made by the undertaker;

(b) that the copy is a true copy of the byelaws;

(c) that on a specified date the byelaws were confirmed by the Secretary of State; and

(d) the date when the byelaws came into operation,

shall be rebuttable evidence of the facts stated in the certificate.

(17) The provisions of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988(2) in relation to evidence shall apply to the prosecution of offences under this provision.

(18) Byelaws made under this article may be varied or revoked by subsequent byelaws and byelaws made under this article may also vary or revoke any byelaws made under any other provision in respect of the new crossing at any time.

(19) In this article—

“appointed person” means a person appointed by the undertaker who may only act as such when wearing a uniform of a description approved by the undertaker;

“breakdown” in relation to a vehicle, includes mechanical defect, lack of fuel, oil or water required for the vehicle, and any other circumstances in which a person in charge of the vehicle could not immediately, safely and without damage to the vehicle or its accessories, drive it under its own power away from the new crossing; and

“prescribed” means prescribed by byelaws made under this Order.

(1)

S.I. 2001/2793.

(2)

1988 c. 53.