New measures brought in to improve road safety in Manchester
In the autumn of 2022 Manchester City Council consulted on proposals which would grant the Council new powers to enforce Moving Traffic Contraventions (MTCs).
These were powers that previously only the police were able to enforce.
Under these new rules the Council is aiming to bring in a range of improvements throughout the city. These include:
- Making roads safer for those walking or cycling
- Reducing congestion
- Improving journey times
- Improving air quality, in line with the Council’s zero-carbon target
- Increased safety and cleaner air around schools
At this stage the contraventions which will be targeted using these powers will be motorists making illegal right or left turns, and motorists which block yellow boxes at junctions.
Enforcement will start from Monday, 20th November, and will be carried out using ANPR (automatic number-plate recognition) cameras installed at key locations in the city.
The first location where enforcement will take place is at the Stockport Road junction with Dickenson Road/Stanley Grove in Longsight. As a busy district centre, it is important that traffic is allowed to flow smoothly especially during peak times.
Two turns have been banned at this location – right turns from Stockport Road into Dickenson Road and right turns from Stockport Road into Stanley Grove. A yellow box at the junction has also been implemented to prevent traffic snarling up and preventing passage through the Longsight district centre.
In the past five years there have been four collisions at this junction resulting in either serious injury or death, underlying the importance of this project.
This location will be the first of seven that have been identified where MTOs will be enforced, with the remaining six going live over the course of 2024. More information on the wider roll out will be made public in the coming months. Extra detail on the chosen locations can be found via the link below.
Motorists found to have ignored the new traffic regulations will be issued with a Penalty Charge Notice of £70, reduced to £35 if paid within 21 days of being issued. Failure to pay within 28 days sees the fine increase to £105.
Councillor Tracey Rawlins, Executive Member for Environment and Transport said: “As a Council we are always looking at ways in which we can improve safety on our roads. Any accident on our roads is one too many which is why it’s important we explore any measures at our disposal to prevent them.
“Following a consultation last year we are looking to utilise our new powers to enforce MTOs across a range of neighbourhoods. As well as improving safety we are also keen to improve our air quality – in line with our zero-carbon aims – as well as reducing congestion and journey times.
“Changes like this bring us a step closer to being a well-connected, cleaner, greener and safer city.”
To gain these powers we needed to carry out a consultation with residents and road users to seek their views. You can see this consultation and the results on the consultations page below.
https://www.manchester.gov.uk/info/200024/consultations_and_surveys/8436/moving_traffic_offences_consultation
To see how this junction works and to understand what we are enforcing against, watch this short video.
Link to consultation which sets out all seven MTO locations.
https://www.manchester.gov.uk/info/200024/consultations_and_surveys/8436/moving_traffic_offences_consultation
