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H °acting up the Ml. Andy Carmichael was surprised to be
Page 35
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pulled over by a vehicle whose markings made it look like a cross between an ambulance and a police car. It was a Vosa vehicle, and the officers inside wanted to stop Carmichael because a wheelarch was missing from one of his back wheels.
Carmichael, however, was unaware they had the power to make him pull over; at the back of his mind was the fear of a clever hijack: "They put a sign up saying"Vosa vehicle check, follow me". They were trying to pull me into a motorway service area."
This didn't ring true with Carmichael, who expected to be taken to a clearly marked Vosa check area. Since he was unsure of their identity he refused to stop and the Vosa vehicle followed him, lights flashing. Carmichael says the car even pulled in front of him and decelerated in an attempt to make him stop.
He recalls: "I thought. 'I'm not stopping for orange lights. I'll stop for blue ones. The police will stop me.' Which is what happened. They took me to the industrial estate I was going to anyway." The police left Vosa to deal with the situation, and the Vosa officers gave Carmichael a ticket to say he must get the wheel arch fixed and put his truck through an annual test.
Within their powers
Despite Carmichael's suspicions, these Vosa 'stoppers' were not exceeding their powers. "I thought it was unusual they were pulling me into a services, for example," he argues. "Surely they'd pull you into a marked vehicle checkpoint?" A reasonable assumption but wrong.
"We can stop vehicles anywhere in any region in which we are accredited," a Vosa spokesman explains. And that now means more or less anywhere in England and Wales.
Carmichael had heard that Vosa's power to stop was being trialled in some areas, but asks: "If they're not allowed to do it in all areas, then how do you know if it's allowed where you happen lobe driving?"
It's true that Vosa piloted its new powers in Greater Manchester, London, Northumbria, North Wales, Cambridgesh ire and Staffordshire but that was in 2003.1f the police were ever miffed that someone else had acquired some of their powers,they seem to have got over it:Vosa is now accredited by 42 forces. Almost the only place it does not have the power to stop vehicles is the City of Londonall one square mile of it.
Vosa's marked cars, which it says are all -distinctly liveried" Ford Galaxies, should be easy enough to spot. They have a black and yellow 'battenburg' on the side, orange and yellow chevrons on the rear panel and the Vosa logo on the bonnet, front doors and the rear quarter panels. They also have a roof bar with amber lights and variable matrix signing.
And they can stop you in exactly the same way the police can.
Right to be cautious
But hauliers caution is understandable: it is conceivable that many drivers being flagged down by Vosa might worry about a hijacking attempt however elaborate if they had not come across one of these vehicles before. "Anybody can put yellow stripes and flashing orange lights on a vehicle," says Carmichael. "There's a security issue."
Carmichael also reports that the two Vosa officers did not show him any ID when they came into his cab in the industrial estate in which he eventually stopped. A Vosa spokesman says its officers carry Vosa warrants, which they will produce if requested by the driver. "Vosa officers wear a uniform which includes a highvisibility yellow jacket bearing the Vosa name and logo," the spokesman continues. "This uniform has been agreed with the Association of Chief Police Officers and clearly identifies them as Vosa staff operating under Community Safety Accreditation. In addition, the uniform has epaulettes which bear the words 'Vehicle & Operator Services Agency'."
As CM went to press, Carmichaelwho drives for a Chepstow container firm -was due to attend a formal hearing with Vosa over the incident. But his confusion shows there must be concern over how many truck drivers let alone members of the public are aware of Vosa's powers.
A female motorist driving on her own, for example, would be loath to stop at the behest of an organisation she didn't recognise.And while Vosa was very helpful with CM'S enquiries, the leaflet-based information on Vosa's own website is sketchy and certainly outdated.
The organisation has no figures on how many trucks have been pulled over since stopping powers were introduced, or on how many prosecutions arose from these. Maybe these statistics need to be made public-and perhaps there needs to be more publicity on Vosa's power to stop.
"There hasn't been enough advertising saying Vosa can do these things," says Carmichael. Perhaps Vosa should listen to this driver's comments and consider the possibility of a new awareness campaign outlining its powers. It might be useful for everybody. •