Mersey Tunnels Police
Encyclopedia
Mersey Tunnels
The Mersey Tunnels connect Liverpool with the Wirral Peninsula, under the River Mersey. There are three tunnels: the Mersey Railway Tunnel , and two road tunnels, the Queensway Tunnel and the Kingsway Tunnel...
in Merseyside
Merseyside
Merseyside is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 1,365,900. It encompasses the metropolitan area centred on both banks of the lower reaches of the Mersey Estuary, and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wirral, and the city of Liverpool...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
(between Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
and the Wirral
Wirral Peninsula
Wirral or the Wirral is a peninsula in North West England. It is bounded by three bodies of water: to the west by the River Dee, forming a boundary with Wales, to the east by the River Mersey and to the north by the Irish Sea. Both terms "Wirral" and "the Wirral" are used locally , although the...
) on behalf of the Merseyside Passenger Transport Authority
Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive
The Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive is the Passenger Transport Executive responsible for the coordination of public transport in the metropolitan county of Merseyside, England...
.
Role and powers
Mersey Tunnels Police officers hold the office of constableConstable
A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions.-Etymology:...
. Unlike most police forces in the UK, the force is answerable to the Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive
Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive
The Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive is the Passenger Transport Executive responsible for the coordination of public transport in the metropolitan county of Merseyside, England...
rather than the Home Office
Home Office
The Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
. The Executive also appoints the force's officers who are formally sworn in as Police Constables by a Justice of the Peace
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
.
As of 2010 the force consisted of around 55 officers across the various ranks.
The force's jurisdiction consists of the tunnels themselves, marshaling areas, entrance/exit roads and all Mersey Tunnels premises. Officers execute their duties in accordance with The Mersey Tunnels Bylaws.
The tunnels force have primary responsibility for these areas, meaning they enforce the Mersey Tunnels bylaw
Bylaw
By-law can refer to a law of local or limited application passed under the authority of a higher law specifying what things may be regulated by the by-law...
s and like all other forces the various and relevant UK statute law/legislation although perhaps by the nature of the role primarily the Road Traffic Act. Mersey Tunnels Police officers are the first line responders to any incidents or emergencies within the tunnels or premises although certain incidents and enquiries of a serious nature may be dealt with by Merseyside Police
Merseyside Police
Merseyside Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing Merseyside in North West England. The force area is 647 square kilometres with a population of around 1.5 million...
in accordance with local agreements between the two forces.
Vehicles
The force uses a small range of vehicles. The newest models bought in 2010 being the Land Rover Discovery IV (3 litre) and Ford S-MaxFord S-MAX
The Ford S-Max is an MPV/saloon produced by the Ford Motor Company for the European market and by Chang'an Ford Automobile Co., Ltd for the Chinese market. Introduced at the 2006 Geneva Motor Show, the S-Max went on sale alongside the new generation Galaxy in June 2006. It is intended to be...
. Additionally, the force has some older Ford Galaxy
Ford Galaxy
The first Galaxy was designed as a joint venture product between Ford and the Volkswagen Group. Produced at the joint-venture AutoEuropa plant in Palmela, Portugal, the vehicle was badge-engineered to create three vehicles: the Ford Galaxy; by Volkswagen Passenger Cars as the Volkswagen Sharan;...
and Land Rover Discovery IImodels which are also planned to be replaced in the second half of 2010 with Ford and Land Rover Freelander
Land Rover Freelander
The Land Rover Freelander is a compact crossover SUV made by Land Rover.The current generation is sold as the LR2 in North America and as the Freelander 2 in Europe...
vehicles.
Media coverage
In recent years, the force has faced severe criticism from the mediaThe force was heavily criticised by the Merseyside coroner
Coroner
A coroner is a government official who* Investigates human deaths* Determines cause of death* Issues death certificates* Maintains death records* Responds to deaths in mass disasters* Identifies unknown dead* Other functions depending on local laws...
for its handling of a pursuit in which two 14 year old boys were killed in 2003 after crashing a stolen car into a roadblock set up by Mersey Tunnels officers. The coroner went so far as to recommend that either the policing of the tunnel should be altogether transferred to Merseyside Police, or tunnel officers should be trained to national policing standards.
Mersey Tunnels Police also faced criticism in the tabloid
Tabloid journalism
Tabloid journalism tends to emphasize topics such as sensational crime stories, astrology, gossip columns about the personal lives of celebrities and sports stars, and junk food news...
press in March 2009, after a driver was allegedly pulled over by a Tunnels officer for laughing behind the wheel; however the force has no official record of this incident.
See also
- List of police forces in the United Kingdom
- Law enforcement in the United Kingdom
- Mersey Tunnels Police
- Port of Liverpool PolicePort of Liverpool PoliceThe Port of Liverpool Police is a small police force with the responsibility of policing the Liverpool, Bootle, Birkenhead, Ellesmere Port and Eastham Dock Estates and Freeports, as well as the Manchester Ship Canal areas in the north- west of England....
- Merseyside PoliceMerseyside PoliceMerseyside Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing Merseyside in North West England. The force area is 647 square kilometres with a population of around 1.5 million...
- Mersey TunnelsMersey TunnelsThe Mersey Tunnels connect Liverpool with the Wirral Peninsula, under the River Mersey. There are three tunnels: the Mersey Railway Tunnel , and two road tunnels, the Queensway Tunnel and the Kingsway Tunnel...