In British

British English

British English, or English , is the broad term used to distinguish the forms of the English language used in the United Kingdom from forms used elsewhere...

 slang

Slang

Slang is the use of informal words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker's language or dialect but are considered more acceptable when used socially. Slang is often to be found in areas of the lexicon that refer to things considered taboo...

, a jam butty is a police traffic or fast response car (as opposed to an ordinary panda car

Panda car

The phrase panda car refers to a small or medium-sized police car operated by British police forces. They are used for ordinary patrol work, with larger and more powerful vehicles being used for emergency response, Road Policing Unit duties and as Armed Response Vehicles-History of the term:Panda...

 or patrol car).

The term came into common use in the 1970s, when such cars changed from the traditional blue and white colour scheme to white with a broad fluorescent orange stripe along the side. This colour scheme is reminiscent of jam sandwiched between two slices of white bread, hence the name. The slang was popularised on such TV shows as The Sweeney

The Sweeney

The Sweeney is a 1970s British television police drama focusing on two members of the Flying Squad, a branch of the Metropolitan Police specialising in tackling armed robbery and violent crime in London...

and Minder

Minder (TV series)

Minder is a British comedy-drama about the London criminal underworld. Initially produced by Verity Lambert, it was made by Euston Films, a subsidiary of Thames Television and shown on ITV...

, as well as spreading through the use of CB radio. It is still in common use, although most forces now use different colour schemes with fluorescent stripes and Battenburg markings

Battenburg markings

Battenburg refers to a pattern of high-visibility markings used to maximise conspicuity, primarily used on vehicles of the emergency services, but also in other applications such as uniforms...

.

External links

• Restored examples of many types of UK police vehicles