Ready, willing and able

Although highway authorities are prepared for every possible outcome on the road network, unexpected incidents and accidents will occur at some point. Traffic congestion and delays, damage to the highway infrastructure and disruption on the road network are just some of the challenges presented in the wake of an incident.

HTMA members are continuously looking at ways to improve the management of incidents, including sharing best practice, drafting operating protocols and providing training.

HTMA members also fully support the work the Highways Agency (HA) is doing in this arena, such as setting up the Traffic Incident Management (TIM) Development Strategy.

The strategy aims to:

• Establish an integrated traffic incident management capability

• Engender a culture of safety within incident responders and the wider public

• Reduce the impact and frequency of collisions on both the road users and the wider community

• Actively involve other emergency services to deliver a reduction in incident related congestion.

Facts and stats 

Although roads in the UK are some of the safest in Europe - the number of incidents are reducing year on year - accidents do still happen. For example, did you know:

3,201 people were killed on Britain's roads in 2005, 1 per cent less than in 2004.

The number of people seriously injured fell to 28,954, 7 per cent lower than in 2004. Total casualties in 2005 were 271,017, 3 percent fewer than in 2004

Over 70 per cent of road crashes happen on built-up (urban) roads, but over a half of road deaths happen on non-built-up (rural) roads

Source: www.dft.gov.uk 

The devil's in the detail

By their very definition, emergencies and accidents are unplanned events. However, although many can not be predicted or foreseen, contingency plans enable local authorities to be as prepared as possible for the unexpected.

HTMA members are pioneering improvements to contingency planning: basically transforming an unplanned event into a planned response. A contingency plan aims to ensure that the right people are in the right place at the right time with the right information and resources.

A typical contingency plan for a highway department is broken down into two parts - the main document with the principles for managing the incident and the Box of References. The Box of References contains information including: area maps; contact details; weather risk sites; tactical and emergency division routes; and other operational notes.

Let it flow

In the event of an incident, traffic congestion can frustrate motorists, hinder the management of the situation and obstruct emergency services. There are several methods for tackling this problem and releasing trapped traffic, but highway authorities must make a decision on what measure they will use very quickly.

• Rearward relief - this is simply turning the traffic in a controlled manner and allowing them to travel along the same carriageway in the opposite direction. Although this is the most common method of releasing trapped traffic, it can be a slow process and some vehicles, such as lorries, may not be able to turn around easily.

• Turning through the central reserve - this involves directing traffic through the central reserve onto the opposite carriageway.

• Opposing flow - this involves turning traffic through the central reserve onto the opposite carriageway. However, this can result in delays to the opposite carriageway, which will have to be closed off while this occurs, and there is not always an obvious crossing point to use.

• Emergency contraflow - this uses two central reserve crossing points to establish a single lane contraflow. However, it is time consuming to establish and limits capacity on the opposing carriageway.

In some instances it might be sensible to leave traffic in-situ, especially if the diversion route itself will be heavily congested, or the road closure is only temporary. Factors to consider include: the type of central reserve safety fencing in place; the surface material of the central reserve; obstacles adjacent to the carriageway; the amount of traffic to be released; the turning circle of vehicles; weather conditions; the layout of the previous junction; the location of any central reserve crossing points; and the available resources to remove barriers and supply traffic management.

On the big screen

When an incident does occur on the road system, the movement of traffic is a key concern for highway authorities. An incident can affect vehicle speed and rate of flow, exacerbating the problem.

Rubbernecking, when road users slow down when passing an incident to see what is going on, is now one of the main causes on increased related congestion. Incident screens can be used to hide an incident from other road users, reducing instances of rubbernecking and the other knock-on effects of congestion and collisions occurring.

Research commissioned by the HA has found that there is a direct response to the deployment of an incident screen, although it is hard to determine if actual rubbernecking has been reduced. The Traffic Incident Management Programme, which is supported by the HTMA, is also currently trialling the use of free-standing incident screens to see if it can reduce incident related congestion.

Toxic materials

Environmental spillages, often a result of a road traffic accident, can cause a serious issue for highways departments. In 2005 alone, the Environment Agency (EA) dealt with 730 incidents associated with road transport.

Spillages can be caused by road traffic accidents, items being disposed of within the network boundaries and items falling from vehicles using the road network. Spillages are particularly difficult to deal with as they can occur at any locations at any time, making them hard to plan for. Some substances can also be dangerous high-toxic materials, requiring a co-ordinated response from all concerned parties.

In the event of a spillage on the road network, the EA will liaise with the Fire Service, assessing the environmental impact, agree containment and clear up methods. They will also monitor the impact and deploy pollution prevention equipment if the spillage has not been contained on the highways.

After the event

Although the most essential element of incident management is the way the actual event is handled, debriefs can provide valuable insight into the way it was handled and what lessons can be learnt for the future.

Before the debrief, highways authorities should ensure all the correct parties are invited to attend, the person chairing the debrief should familiarise themselves with the main details of the incident, and other attendees should read their organisation's incident log.

During the debrief attendees should keep to the point, avoid the use of acronyms, and focus on good practices as well as what went wrong.