Battenburg

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. The name comes from the similarity in appearance to the cross-section of a battenburg cake.

 History

Composite picture of two ambulance vehicles in different light sources showing retroreflective high visibility battenburg markings in light and dark conditions

Battenburg markings were originally developed in the mid-1990s by the Police Scientific Development Branch (PSDB) (now the Home Office Scientific Development Branch (HOSDB)) at the request of the national motorway policing sub-committee of the Association of Chief Police Officers. They were first developed for the United Kingdom police forces to use on traffic patrol cars, although other private organisations and civil emergency services have since started to use the pattern on their vehicles. The brief was to create a livery for motorway and trunk road police vehicles which would maximise the visibility of the vehicles when stopped on scene, both in daylight, and under headlights from a minimum distance of 500 m, and which would distinctively mark it as a police car.

The key research objectives included:

• "Enhance officer and public safety by reducing the likelihood of road accidents where conspicuity of the police vehicle is a factor"
• "Be recognisable as a police vehicle up to a distance of 500 metres in normal daylight"
• "Assist in high visibility policing so as to reassure the public and enhance the potential deterrent benefits of proactive traffic patrol activity"

The research showed the human eye is most sensitive to blue/green shades at night and yellow/green in daylight. The battenburg design typically comprises 2 or more rows of alternating retroreflective squares or blocks, usually starting with yellow at the top, then the alternating colour, along the sides of a vehicle. The battenburg livery is not used on the rear of vehicles, with the majority of users using upward facing chevrons in yellow and red to the rear, in line with the markings used by other road users. While most cars use only two rows in the design, larger vehicles can be marked with more rows.

 Usage

United Kingdom

Close-up of a BMW police motorcycle used by Bedfordshire Police with reflective police markings

In the United Kingdom, the majority of the emergency services have adopted the battenburg style of markings, with nearly half of all police forces adopting the markings within three years of its introduction, and over three quarters using it by 2003.

In 2004, following the widespread adoption and recognition of the battenburg markings on police vehicles, the Home Office subsequently recommended that all police vehicles, not just those on traffic duty, be marked up with a "half-battenburg" livery which formalised a position which had already been undertaken by a number of forces.

In the United Kingdom, the emergency services have chosen or been given certain colours which identify them, with the police continuing to use the blue, whereas ambulances tend to use green and the fire service use red.

The use of these colours in retro-reflective material is controlled by the Road Vehicle Lighting Regulations 1989, with vehicles only legally allowed the use of yellow retro-reflective material, although the emergency services operate under temporary special orders under section 44 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 to use their own colours, with moves currently underway to formalise this in legislation and extend the use of other colours to civilian operators. However, a number of civilian organisations have adopted the pattern, which is not legally protected, and a number of these also use other retro-reflective colours.

An alternative to the use of retro-reflective materials is the use of fluorescent markings, or other non-reflective markings, which at least in the United Kingdom can be used by any vehicle, regardless of ownership or purpose.

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