The
Highway Code is the official road user guide for
Great BritainGreat Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
. In Northern Ireland the
Highway Code for Northern Ireland applies while the Republic of Ireland has its own
Rules of the Road-External links:* is the official online home of the Irish Rules of the Road* on the official Irish Government website...
. It contains 306 numbered rules and 9 annexes covering
pedestrianA pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, whether walking or running. In some communities, those traveling using roller skates or skateboards are also considered to be pedestrians. In modern times, the term mostly refers to someone walking on a road or footpath, but this was not the case...
s,
animalAnimals are a major group of multicellular, eukaryotic organisms of the kingdom Animalia or Metazoa. Their body plan eventually becomes fixed as they develop, although some undergo a process of metamorphosis later on in their life. Most animals are motile, meaning they can move spontaneously and...
s, cyclists, motorcyclists and
driversDriving is the controlled operation and movement of a land vehicle, such as a car, truck or bus.Although direct operation of a bicycle and a mounted animal are commonly referred to as riding, such operators are legally considered drivers and are required to obey the rules of the road...
. As well as the rules and annexes, there is information on
road signsRoad signs in the United Kingdom conform broadly to European norms, though a number of signs are unique to Britain and direction signs omit European route numbers.-History:...
,
road markingsRoad surface marking is any kind of device or material that is used on a road surface in order to convey official information. They can also be applied in other facilities used by vehicles to mark parking spaces or designate areas for other uses....
, vehicle markings and
road safetyThe term road traffic safety is about the risk of a person being killed or seriously injured while using the road network as a pedestrian, cyclist, motorist or user of on road public transport...
. The annexes contain information on vehicle maintenance, licence requirements, documentation, penalties and vehicle security.
The current recommended retail price of the book, as of 2010, is £2.50. Most copies are bought by learner drivers, who are expected to learn the manual for their
driving testThe United Kingdom driving test is a test which all United Kingdom learner drivers must pass to obtain a full driving licence. Different tests are available for users of different vehicles, from car drivers, to motorcyclists and HGV drivers. In Great Britain it is administered by the Driving...
. In
MaltaMalta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
, the road regulations are also known as the Highway Code.
History
The first edition was published on 14 April 1931, with a price of one
pennyThe English Penny, originally a coin of 1.3 to 1.5 g pure silver, includes the penny introduced around the year 785 by King Offa of Mercia. However, his coins were similar in size and weight to the continental deniers of the period, and to the Anglo-Saxon sceats which had gone before it, which were...
, and as of 2004 over one million copies of the modern code are sold each year.
It was published in its entirety for the first time in 1934. During the preparation of the code the
Ministry of TransportIn the United Kingdom, the Department for Transport is the government department responsible for the English transport network and a limited number of transport matters in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland which are not devolved...
consulted 'extensively' with the Pedestrians Association.
The latest edition of the Highway Code was released in September 2007 and contained new advice such as the risk of smoking while driving and information for novice drivers.
The code
Certain rules in the Highway Code represent various
road trafficTraffic on roads may consist of pedestrians, ridden or herded animals, vehicles, streetcars and other conveyances, either singly or together, while using the public way for purposes of travel...
laws and must be obeyed. Others are not compulsory, but advisable.
The Road Traffic Act 1988 says:
A failure on the part of a person to observe a provision of the Highway Code shall not of itself render that person liable to criminal proceedings of any kind but any such failure may in any proceedings (whether civil or criminal, and including proceedings for an offence under the Traffic Acts, the [1981 c. 14.] Public Passenger Vehicles Act 1981 or sections 18 to 23 of the [1985 c. 67.] Transport Act 1985) be relied upon by any party to the proceedings as tending to establish or negative any liability which is in question in those proceedings.
The Highway Code applies to England, Scotland and Wales; regional specific signs such as
driver location signsDriver location signs are English highway route markers, first introduced in 2003, that complement distance marker posts. Both types of marker post display the distances from a nominal start point in kilometres...
in England or bilingual signs in Scotland and Wales are not covered in the code.
See also
- Green Cross Code
The Green Cross Code is a brand created by the UK National Road Safety Committee to raise awareness of pedestrian road safety in the UK...
- Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions
- Vienna Convention on Road Traffic
The Vienna Convention on Road Traffic is an international treaty designed to facilitate international road traffic and to increase road safety by standardising the uniform traffic rules among the contracting parties...
- Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals
The Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals is an international treaty designed to increase road safety and aid international road traffic by standardising the signing system for road traffic in use internationally.This convention was agreed upon by the United Nations Economic and Social...
External links