Traffic courts up and running in 29 areas

The government has announced that all areas should have a dedicated traffic court within the next 6 months.

Subject to judicial agreement to list all low-level traffic cases together, dedicated traffic courts are being established across the country. The move will mean low-level traffic offences – for example those involving speeding, traffic-light and document offences – can all be dealt with at one local magistrates’ court.

It is hoped that a dedicated traffic court will be able to deal with 100 cases in a single session. This should reduce significantly unnecessary delays and allow local magistrates’ courts to focus on more serious offences.

So far, the courts have been successfully established in 29 areas across the country. The government vision is for dedicated ‘traffic courts’ in all 42 police-force areas.

Speaking about the proposals, Justice Minister Damian Green said:

The safety of the general public is paramount, and we take road safety very seriously, which is why we have recently increased the sentence for causing serious injury by dangerous driving to 5 years imprisonment.

However, low-level traffic offences such as speeding can take up to 6 months from offence to completion which is a huge drain on the smooth running of the criminal justice system, and takes focus away from more serious offences. This is simply unacceptable.

We want all areas to have a dedicated traffic court, and we are on track to reach this target. Traffic courts from West Yorkshire to Sussex have shown how effective and efficient this process can be.

If you would like more information regarding road traffic law, you can contact us directly today, or visit our dedicated service page.