The Locomotive Acts (or Red Flag Acts) were a series of Acts of Parliament in the United Kingdom to control the use of mechanically propelled vehicles on British public highways during the latter part of the 19th century. The first three, 'The Locomotives on Highways Act 1861', 'The Locomotive Act 1865' (or 'Red Flag Act') and the 'Highways and Locomotives (Amendment) Act 1878' all contained very restrictive measures for road vehicles. The 'Locomotives on Highways Act 1896' provided legislation that allowed the automotive industry in the United Kingdom to develop soon after the development of the first practical automobile. The last 'locomotive act' was the 'Locomotives Act 1898'.
The 1865 act required all road locomotives, which included automobiles, to travel at a maximum of 4 mph (6 km/h) in the country and 2 mph (3 km/h) in towns and have a crew of three travel, one of whom should carry a red flag walking 60 yards (55 m) ahead of each vehicle. The 1896 Act removed the need for the crew of three and raised the speed to 14 mph (23 km/h).
Read more about Locomotive Acts: Background
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