
"We have to be very careful about how we travel at the best of times -"
-- Arthur Weasley to
Harry
(GF6)
On Level Six of the Ministry of Magic lies the
Department of Magical Transportation
(OP7). This is the Department
that handled the complicated problems of transporting folks to the World
Cup, including setting up a network of
Portkeys all over
Britain and
working out where it was safe to
Apparate
into the area without being seen
(GF6).
Apparition Test Center
(OP7)
To legally Apparate,
a witch or wizard must be of age and must successfully pass a test to
acquire a license. To pass the test, the candidate must successfully
Apparate to a
specified destination without splinching himself or herself
(GF6,
HBP22).
The Ministry of Magic offers a 12-week series of
Apparition
lessons from a Ministry of Magic instructor, presumably each year.
The cost for these lessons in
Harry's sixth year
was 12 Galleons.
The lessons begin in January and are open to all students who will be
of age on or before 31 August (that is, before the next school year begins).
The lessons take place every Saturday; extra, heavily supervised practice
sessions can be arranged
(HBP17).
Broom Regulatory Control
(OP7)
Broom Regulatory Control
is part of the Department of Magical Transport
(OP7), but it is not clear
what functions they perform. Since underage students are permitted to fly
on broomsticks without any formal licensing process, licences do not appear
to be a requirement for broomstick use. It is possible, though only a speculation,
that Broom Regulatory Control concerns itself with whether broomsticks
meet adequate safety standards rather than whether the users meet a specified
level of competence - e.g., whether broomsticks have adequate
Braking Charms,
for example, or whether the
Flying Charm on a
broomstick is up to standard.
Floo Regulation Panel
(GF4)
/
Floo Network Authority
(OP7)
The Department of Magical Transportation regulates, controls, and appears to
maintain the Floo Network (see).
The Floo Regulation Panel
(GF4) controls which fireplaces
are connected to the Floo Network.
This apparently cannot be done by even a qualified wizard without privileged
access and/or special magical tools, because
Sirius Black had to break into a
wizarding house to use the Network
rather than simply starting a fire in the cave where he was hiding at the
time and using that
(GF19). Connecting a
fireplace to the Network does not require that the
Floo Network Authority visit that fireplace, and can be done temporarily for
as short a period as a single afternoon, as was once done with the fireplace
at number four, Privet Drive
(GF4) and with fireplaces at
Hogwarts during
Harry's sixth year
(HBP17). Ordinarily
such a temporary connection may be difficult to arrange;
Arthur Weasley had "a
useful contact at the Floo Regulation Panel" arrange the
temporary connection for
number four, while the
Hogwarts connection
was part of a security measure to protect students returning to
school after the Christmas holidays.
The Floo Network Authority maintains and regulates the
Floo Network. Employees of the
Floo Network Authority have the ability to monitor Floo connections, and
can eavesdrop on Floo conversations in a manner analogous to wiretapping
a Muggle telephone. Witches and wizards working for the
Floo Network Authority are referred to as
Floo Network Regulators
(OP28).
It is against regulations for a Muggle fireplace to be connected to the
Floo Network
(GF4), probably
due to the likelihood of violations of the International Confederation
of Wizards' Statute of Secrecy in the event of a connection becoming active.
However, it is not clear how the regulations define a "Muggle household";
in this case, number four was
considered a Muggle household although a wizard was then in residence. The
regulation may be that at least one legally adult witch or wizard must be
in residence in a household for it to qualify as a wizarding household,
and/or that he or she must be the property owner/ leaseholder, but this is
speculation rather than fact. It is somewhat disquieting that a connection
to number four could be arranged
without the knowledge or consent of the people living there, and without
(as far as we know) any enchantments being required at the
Privet Drive fireplace to establish
the connection.
Portkey Office
(OP7)
Portkeys have to
be authorized (OP3,
OP36); this is presumably
the Office in charge of that. Since
Portkeys are
ordinarily made from objects that can pass as litter - objects that
might appear on the Registry of Proscribed Charmable Objects, in other
words, and which the Muggle Artifacts Office would have to worry about -
it's not surprising that the Portkey Office keeps track of them.
Ministry Cars navigate traffic with magical ease
(PA5,
HBP6).
|