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| When the bad weather really kicks in, it is down
to the Highways Agency to keep the traffic moving on the Strategic
Road Network with a combination of salt spreaders, snow blowers
– and plenty of communication, as Martin Hobbs, Team Leader
Network Management Policy, explains |
Safe roads, reliable journeys,
informed travellers |
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| "Safer roads, more reliable
journeys and better-informed travellers are the aims of the
Highways Agency this winter" |
The Highways Agency (HA) is responsible for the operation, maintenance
and improvement of the Strategic Road Network in England, which includes
some 5,130 miles of motorway and trunk road. Although this represents
only 2% of the road network, it carries one third of all traffic and
two thirds of all freightThe Highways Agency’s objective is
to deliver a high-quality service to our customers by reducing congestion
and improving reliability, improving road safety, respecting the environment
and seeking feedback from customers.
The key elements that relate to winter service include improved planning
of winter operations, better information to influence travel behaviour
and consideration of innovative techniques to better protect the environment.
As part of its responsibility to maintain the network, the Highways
Agency has to keep the roads in a safe condition during adverse weather,
which includes keeping them free of snow and ice, so far as is reasonably
practicable. We do this by what we call precautionary treatment whenever
there is a likelihood of snowfall or ice formation. Our road weather
information system plays a major part in the decision-making process.
This system includes some 200 weather stations around our network,
which provide real-time data on existing conditions, including road
surface/air temperature, the dew point (temperature at which the road
will freeze), relative humidity, wind speed/direction, precipitation
(drizzle, rain, snow etc) and wetness of the road surface. This data,
together with the weather forecast and maps giving a thermal profile
of the road network, provide our maintaining agents/contractors with
a complete picture of how the conditions are likely to unfold over
the evening and through the night. In deciding what type and time
of treatment is required they also have to consider the traffic level,
time of day and road surface material. The Highways Agency and its
contractors have some 700 salt spreaders and 23 snow blowers operating
out of 150 depots. Given an hour’s notice we can fully treat
the whole of our network within two hours.
This can continue around the clock if required. In a typical year,
we will spread something like 500,000 tonnes of salt. The challenge
we have set ourselves this year is to influence driver behaviour during
severe weather through better quality, more reliable and consistent
messages. This will enable motorists to be able to make better-informed
choices about their travel plans, including whether to travel at all
or perhaps postpone their journeys to a time when the roads are flowing
more freely. One strand of this is to issue a revised Winter Driving
leaflet, produced in conjunction with the Met Office. Included in
the leaflet is advice on safe driving; preparing your car for winter;
what to carry in your car; and other hints and tips. We will also
be making better use of our many variable message signs that have
been installed on our network recently, to inform motorists of conditions.
Safer roads, more reliable journeys and better-informed travellers
are the aims of the Highways Agency this winter. We will provide road
users with the best possible information on weather and driving conditions
in their area and on the network as a whole. But to get the full benefit
from this, it is important that motorists make use of the information,
are well prepared for the winter and drive according to the conditions.
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