Robert Flello – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Flello on 2016-06-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many Highways England traffic officers have been (a) trained to move heavy goods vehicles from live motorway lanes on Smart motorways to emergency refuge areas and (b) not so trained but issued with an instruction manual to move such vehicles.

Andrew Jones

As at 6 June 2016, 910 Highways England Traffic Officers have been trained in the activity of carriageway clearance. This training is appropriate for all vehicle types as it is designed to provide specific criteria which Traffic Officers must follow to determine whether it is safe to remove any vehicle from a carriageway to a place of relative safety.

In addition, all Traffic Officers who work on smart motorway sections are trained in the specifics of that operational environment before they are designated as safe to operate. No operational activity is undertaken by Highways England Traffic Officers without appropriate training and supporting safe systems of work.