Traffic management and controller police checks

Road traffic controllers are responsible for directing vehicular and pedestrian traffic around a road worksite, an accident scene or other road disruption. By guiding motorists through the "STOP" and "SLOW" signs, they play a crucial road function by ensuring an efficient traffic flow around disruptive sites to keep everyone safe.

Being a traffic controller can be a challenging job. Traffic controllers must always be alert and physically fit to perform their duties. They must also be able to act right when faced with a difficult challenge, like a motorist refusing to obey their direction.

To become a traffic controller, you must therefore be safety conscious and a responsible person. To ensure that, aspiring traffic controllers may go through a series of checks. Examples include:

Traffic control applicants must generally have held an open or provisional driver's licence for at least one of the past five years. Moreover, they must have a good traffic history. An adverse traffic history may result in a rejection. Examples of such offences include:

• ✔ An established record of severe violations like dangerous driving, unlicensed driving, and drinking under the influence
• ✔ Multiple licence suspensions over the past few years

Traffic controllers must not put others at risk. A criminal offence history gives insight into an applicant's criminal history and the potential threat they pose to society.

Also called a police check, a nationally coordinated criminal history check reveals an applicant's criminal history, including convictions, arrests, and even criminal proceedings. Based on this information, the risk the applicant poses to colleagues and members of the public can be adequately assessed before they are accredited as traffic controllers.

Examples of criminal offences that may make you unsuitable to become a traffic controller include:

• ✔ Violent criminal history: examples include sexual assault, common assault, attempted homicide, burglary, manslaughter and a significant drug offence.
• ✔ Offences such as fraud, theft or drug possession

Note that asides from the severity of the offence, the frequency and recency of the offence also play a critical role. Repeated violations prove an established pattern of crime. Moreover, recent criminal offences carry more weight than older ones.

Are you thinking of becoming a traffic controller? Read on to find out how to get a police check for accreditation or employment purposes.

The Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) works with accredited bodies and police agencies to make police checks accessible.

Here is the process for obtaining a police check:

You must first apply for a police check through an accredited ACIC or police agency. Applications are typically online; all you need to do is submit the application form. You will fill in your name, address, date of birth, and purpose of the check. You must also upload four documents as proof of identity. They include:

• ✔ 1 commencement of ID document
• ✔ 1 primary use in the community document
• ✔ 2 secondary use in the community documents
• ✔ A biometric link

After applying, the accredited body or police agency forwards your application to the National Police Checking Service Support System. This IT system, owned and operated by ACIC, runs a name-matching algorithm and pulls out a potential match if the applicant's details match any information held in police records.

If there is a match, it is forwarded to the relevant police agency for further assessment. This assessment is to confirm if the match is accurate. If that's not the case, the police agency returns a 'No Disclosable Court Outcome' to the agency that requested the check. Conversely, if a match is confirmed, it goes through the vetting process. In this stage, the police agency applies the spent conviction scheme to determine which criminal record can be released before sending the final result to the agency requesting the check.

The accredited ACIC agency or police agency informs you once the check result is available.

Yes. A police check can only be carried out with the applicant's informed consent. This is provided on the application form.

70 percent of police checks are returned to applicants within 24 hours. Results are emailed on the same day they are received. Approximately 30 percent of checks may be referred to one or more police agencies and can take longer than 10 business days to be returned, due to the manual nature of this process.

Do you need to get a police check for your traffic control application? Trust ANCC to deliver an efficient service through our:

This platform is suitable for individuals seeking a nationally coordinated criminal history check. Please fill in the online application form, upload the necessary identification documents and pay the associated fee.

Are you a HR manager in a company or accreditation body? Do you need an efficient way to manage police check applications of multiple applicants? ANCC's business portal will be a suitable option. By opening a business account today, you can apply for approval to our platform that allows you to order and track police checks in bulk.