Vehicle idling: guidance for local authorities
This guidance supports local authorities in tackling vehicle idling offences by providing information on the applicable regulations and the process for issuing Fixed Penalty Notices.
1. Vehicle idling powers – what are they
Vehicle idling causes localised air quality issues, with vehicles emitting unnecessary air pollutants. Regulation 98 of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986[1](“the Construction and Use Regulations”), requires drivers to stop a vehicle engine from running unnecessarily while the vehicle is stationary to prevent noise and exhaust emissions, and section 42 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 makes it an offence to fail to comply with this requirement (“a stationary idling offence”).
The Road Traffic (Vehicle Emissions) (Fixed Penalty) (Scotland) Regulations 2003[2] (“the 2003 Regulations”) provide local authority officers with enforcement powers in relation to stationary idling offences for the purpose of improving local air quality in Scotland. The aim is to shift driving behaviours and to provide local authorities with an additional tool for managing air quality in their area.
Use of these powers is not mandatory and local authorities are best placed to make the decision on whether to use them, taking into account their specific circumstances and priorities with regard to local air quality management.
Regulation 12(1) of the 2003 Regulations gives local authority officers the power to require a driver to stop the running of the engine of a vehicle if an officer has reasonable cause to believe that a driver is committing a stationary idling offence, and regulation 12(2) makes it an offence not to comply with such a request. The power in regulation 12(1) can only be exercised in respect of a vehicle with the engine running on a public road, including any carpark to which the public have unrestricted access. The 2003 Regulations do not afford any powers of entry and access to private property. Regulation 12(2) makes it an offence not to comply with a request made using the power in regulation 12(1).
Regulation 14(1) gives local authority officers the power to request identification information from driver’s required to stop an engine under regulation 12(1), and regulation 14(2) makes it an offence not to provide this information.
Under regulation 13 of the 2003 Regulations, local authority officers have powers to issue a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) to a driver who has committed or is committing a stationary idling offence as an alternative to criminal prosecution for that offence.