TRAFFIC AREA OFFICES AND BADGE CODES

With the introduction of the 1930 Road Traffic Act the Country was split into 13 Traffic Areas.

Each was given a distinguishing letter, as shown in the list below.

The location of the issuing office is also shown.

A - NORTHERN - NEWCASTLE

B - YORKSHIRE - LEEDS
C - NORTH WESTERN - MANCHESTER
D - WEST MIDLANDS - BIRMINGHAM
E - EAST MIDLANDS - NOTTINGHAM
F - EASTERN - CAMBRIDGE
G - SOUTH WALES - CARDIFF
H - WESTERN - BRISTOL
J - SOUTHERN - READING
K - SOUTH EASTERN - EASTBOURNE
L - SCOTTISH (SUB AREA) - ABERDEEN
M - SCOTTISH - EDINBURGH
N - METROPOLITAN - LONDON

PSV Badges when originally issued, were of an oval enamel design, on a leather hanging strap, and had the same distinguishing letter with the number underneath.

An example of an early Drivers Badge from the Northern Traffic Area is shown below.

These hanging badges were replaced on 1st January 1935 by the more familiar round badge.

The reason for this change was believed to be because when Drivers were swinging the starting handle on the old type buses, the badge flew up in to their face and caused injury. How true this is I do not know, but it sounds reasonable.

They were originally made of a material called 'Traffolyte', and then later in Formica, and much later in Plastic.

The font style differed over the years as did the shade/colour of the edge, as different manufacturers were used.

The badge numbering started at 1001

An early badge, again from the Northern Traffic Area, is shown below. This would be the 2088th badge issued in c1935/6.

Traffic Area Map 1933

Below are the addresses and Counties covered by the 12 different Traffic Area Offices.

The 2 digit badge code is shown after the name of the office.

Further down it shows 'xx Drivers Badge' or 'xx Conductors Badge', if you click on that, it will take you to the badge page for that area, and Driver or Conductor.

Please report any broken links through the Contact Me page.

NORTHERN TRAFFIC AREA (AA)
Low Friar House
36-42, Low Friar Street
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE1 5XR

'AA' DRIVER BADGES

'AA' CONDUCTORS BADGES

COUNTIES COVERED
Cumberland, Durham, Northumberland, Westmorland, part of North West Lancashire and part of the North and West Riding of Yorkshire.

YORKSHIRE TRAFFIC AREA (BB)
Hillcrest House
386 Harehills Lane
Leeds
LS9 6NF

'BB' DRIVER BADGES
'BB' CONDUCTORS BADGES

COUNTIES COVERED
Yorkshire (except the parts included in Northern Traffic Area), part of north east Derbyshire, and part of north west Nottinghamshire.


NORTH WESTERN TRAFFIC AREA (CC)
Arkwright House
Parsonage Gardens
Deansgate
Manchester
M60 9AN

'CC' DRIVERS BADGES
'CC' CONDUCTORS BADGES

COUNTIES COVERED
Anglesey, Caernarvonshire, Cheshire, Denbighshire, Flintshire, Merionethshire, Montgomeryshire, part of north west Derbyshire, and Lancashire (except the part included in Northern Traffic Area).


WEST MIDLANDS TRAFFIC AREA (DD)
Cumberland House
200 Broad Street
Birmingham
B15 1TD

'DD' DRIVERS BADGES
'DD' CONDUCTORS BADGES

COUNTIES COVERED 
Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, and Worcestershire.


EAST MIDLANDS TRAFFIC AREA (EE)
Birkbeck House
14-16 Trinity Square
Nottingham
NG1 4BA
 
'EE' DRIVERS BADGES
'EE' CONDUCTORS BADGES

COUNTIES COVERED 
Nottinghamshire (except the part included in Yorkshire Traffic Area), Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, a small part of north-west Huntingdon and Peterborough, Oxfordshire, Rutland, part of south-west Bedfordshire, part of north-west Berkshire, Buckinghamshire (except the part included in Metropolitan Traffic Area), Derbyshire, (except the parts included in Yorkshire and North-Western Traffic Areas), and Lincolnshire (except the south part of Holland which is included in Eastern Traffic Area).


EASTERN TRAFFIC AREA (FF)
Sussex House
Hobson Street
Cambridge
CB1 1NR

'FF' DRIVERS BADGES  
'FF' CONDUCTORS BADGES

COUNTIES COVERED
Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely, Norfolk, Suffolk, Bedfordshire (except the parts included in East Midland and Metropolitan Traffic Areas), Essex (except the part included in the Metropolitan Traffic Area), Huntingdon and Peterborough (except the part in the East Midland Traffic Area) and the south part of Holland (Lincs).


SOUTH WALES TRAFFIC AREA (GG)
Dominions House
Dominions Arcade
Queen street
Cardiff
CF1 4XW

'GG' DRIVERS BADGES
'GG' CONDUCTORS BADGES

COUNTIES COVERED
Brecknockshire, Cardiganshire, Carmarthenshire, Glamorgan, Monmouthshire, Pembrokeshire, and Radnorshire.


WESTERN TRAFFIC AREA (HH)
The Gaunts' House
Denmark Street
Bristol
BS1 5DR

'HH' DRIVERS BADGES
'HH' CONDUCTORS BADGES

COUNTIES COVERED 
Cornwall, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Wiltshire and Dorsetshire (except the part included in the South-Eastern Traffic Area), and a small part of West Hampshire.


SOUTHERN TRAFFIC AREA (J)
Somerset House
Blagrave Street
Reading
Berkshire

THIS TRAFFIC AREA WAS SHORT LIVED AND WAS CLOSED ON 31st DECEMBER 1933.

'J' DRIVERS BADGES
'J' CONDUCTORS BADGES - THERE ARE NO PICTURES OF 'J' BADGES AS YET.

COUNTIES COVERED
The administration Counties of Oxford, Berkshire, Wiltshire, Dorset, Southampton, and the Isle of Wight.
So much of the administrative county of Bucks as comprises the borough of Chepping Wycombe, and the urban districts of Beaconsfield, Marlow, and Slough, and the rural districts of Eton, Wycombe and Hambledon.
The County boroughs of Oxford, Reading, Bournemouth, Portsmouth, and Southampton.
THE AREA BEING MERGED INTO THE SURROUNDING AREAS. 


SOUTH EASTERN TRAFFIC AREA (KK)
Ivy House
1-5 Ivy Terrace
Eastbourne

'KK' DRIVERS BADGES
'KK' CONDUCTORS BADGES

COUNTIES COVERED
Hampshire (except the small western part included in the Western Traffic Area), the Isle of Wight, Kent and Sussex (except the parts included in Metropolitan Traffic Area), Berkshire (except the part included in the East Midland Traffic Area), part of south-east Dorsetshire, and south-west Surrey.



SCOTTISH TRAFFIC AREA (SUB OFFICE) (LL)
Northern Division
Greyfriars House
Gallowgate
Aberdeen AB9 2ZS

THIS OFFICE WAS CLOSED AT THE END OF MARCH 1984 AND THE WORK TRANSFERRED TO THE EDINBURGH OFFICE.

UNUSED 'LL' DRIVERS BADGES WERE SUPPLIED TO OTHER OFFICES TO BE ISSUED WHEN BADGES BECAME SHORT TOWARDS THE END OF BADGE ISSUE IN 1991.

KNOWN OFFICES TO ISSUE 'LL' BADGES WERE BIRMINGHAM, AND LONDON.

'LL' DRIVERS BADGES
'LL' CONDUCTORS BADGES

COUNTIES COVERED 
Aberdeenshire, Angus, Banffshire, Caithness, Clackmannan, Fife, Inverness-shire, Kincardine, Kinross, Moray, Nairn, Orkney, Perth, Ross and Croarty, Suthland, and Zetland.


SCOTTISH TRAFFIC AREA (MM)
24 Tophichen Street
Edinburgh
EH3 8HD

'MM' DRIVERS BADGES
'MM' CONDUCTORS BADGES

COUNTIES COVERED 
Argyll, Ayrshire, Berwickshire, Bute, Dumfriesshire, Dunbartonshire, East Lothian, Kirkcudbright, Lanarkshire, Midlothian, Peeblesshire, Renfrewshire, Roxburgshire, Selkirkshire, Stirlingshire, West Lothian, and Wigtownshire.


METROPOLITAN TRAFFIC AREA (N) PSV BADGES & (T) TROLLEYBUS AND TRAM STAFF.
P.O. Box 643
Government Buildings
Bromyard avenue
Acton
London W3

'N' DRIVERS BADGES
'N' CONDUCTORS BADGES

'T' DRIVERS BADGES

'T' CONDUCTORS BADGES

COUNTIES COVERED 
Hertfordshire, Greater London, Surrey (except the part included in South Eastern Traffic Area), part of south Bedfordshire, part of south-east Buckinghamshire, part of south-west Essex, part of West Kent, and the northern part of Sussex.

Metropolitan Area Map

PCV Drivers Badges

DoT letter re PSV Badge records.

The issuing of PSV Badges was discontinued on the following dates:-

CONDUCTORS BADGES on the 31st July 1980.

DRIVERS BADGES on the 31st March 1991.