Road Traffic Act 1960

257 General interpretation provisions

(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, the following expressions have the meanings hereby assigned to them respectively, that is to say,—

• " the appropriate Minister " means, in relation to England or Wales, the Minister of Transport and, in relation to Scotland, the Secretary of State;

• " bridge authority " means the authority or person responsible for the maintenance of a bridge ;

• " bridleway " means a way over which the public have the following, but no other, rights of way, that is to say, a right of way on foot and a right of way on horseback or leading a horse, with or without a right to drive animals of any description along the way;

• " chief officer of police " has the same meaning as in the Police Pensions Act, 1921;

• " classified road " means a road classified by the appropriate Minister under the Ministry of Transport Act, 1919, in Class I or Class II, or in any class declared by the appropriate Minister not to be inferior to those Classes ;

• except for the purposes of sections one and eighty-eight, " driver ", where a separate person acts as steersman of a motor vehicle, includes that person as well as any other person engaged in the driving of the vehicle, and " drive " shall be construed accordingly;

• " fares " includes sums payable in respect of a contract ticket or a season ticket;

• " footpath " means a way over which the public have a right of way on foot only;

• " highway authority ", for the purposes of the application of this Act to England or Wales, means, in relation to a road other than a trunk road, the authority (being either the council of a county, the council of a county borough, the council of a non-county borough or an urban district, the Common Council of the City of London, or the council of a metropolitan borough) which is responsible for the maintenance of the road, and, in relation to a trunk road, the Minister, and for the purposes of the application of this Act to Scotland means, in relation to a road other than a trunk road, a county council or the town council of a burgh charged with the maintenance and management of any of the highways therein, and, in relation to a trunk road, the Secretary of State;

• " magistrates' court " and " petty sessions area " have the same meanings as in the Magistrates' Courts Act, 1952 ;

• " the Minister " means the Minister of Transport;

• " owner ", in relation to a vehicle which is the subject of a hiring agreement or hire-purchase agreement, means the person in possession of the vehicle under that agreement;

• " road " means any highway and any other road to which the public has access, and includes bridges over which a road passes;

• " road service licence " has the meaning assigned to it by subsection (1) of section one hundred and thirty-four of this Act;

• " salvage" means the preservation of a vessel which is wrecked, stranded or in distress, or the lives of persons belonging to, or the cargo or apparel of, such a vessel;

• " special road " means a road provided or to be provided in pursuance of a scheme under section one of the Special Roads Act, 1949, or section eleven of the Highways Act, 1959, or to which, by virtue of section nineteen of the last-mentioned Act, that Act applies as if it were a road provided in pursuance of a scheme under section eleven thereof, and includes any part of a special road;

• " statutory ", in relation to any prohibition, restriction, requirement or provision, means contained in, or having effect under, any enactment (including any enactment contained in this Act);

• " test certificate " has the meaning assigned to it by subsection (2) of section sixty-five of this Act;

• " traffic sign " has the meaning assigned to it by subsection (1) of section fifty-one of this Act;

• " tramcar " includes any carriage used on any road by virtue of an order made under the Light Railways Act, 1896 ;

• " trolley vehicle " means a mechanically propelled vehicle adapted for use upon roads without rails and moved by power transmitted thereto from some external source;

and the expressions " public service vehicle ", " stage carriage ", " express carriage " and " contract carriage " shall be construed in accordance with sections one hundred and seventeen and one hundred and eighteen of this Act.

(2) References in this Act to any enactment shall be construed, except where the context otherwise requires, as references to that enactment as amended by or under any subsequent enactment.