Amey has pioneered a new approach to reversing safely, working collaboratively with Fleetclear on a bespoke safety solution.
Reversing traffic management vehicles is a dangerous highways operation, with the usual controls seen in a depot environment not being suitable during the installation and removal of traffic management on dual carriageways. This activity requires vehicles to collect cones in reverse, often to a distance of 4km, and often at night. Amey has worked with Fleetclear to introduce the reverse radar auto-braking solution, specifically configured for traffic management, lane closure and impact protection vehicles. The auto-braking solution creates a secure and controlled stop when hazards are detected in the reversing path. As an additional safety layer, an external audible and visual warning system has been installed to the vehicle to warn the driver and operatives to prepare for an emergency braking event.
Andy Denman, Highways Sector Director at Amey said: “Safety is our number one priority and I’m pleased to see this new safety solution being installed in all of Amey’s 18 tonne and 7.2 tonne traffic management vehicles used across the network.
“In 2022, we experienced two near misses when circumstances changed the plan on site and a traffic management lorry came into contact with an employee. There are already a number of controls that should prevent this from happening; however, this solution provides additional support for our employees to remove the potential for human error when working in a live environment.
“This is a major step forward for Amey in protecting the public and our highways operatives, utilising the latest in digital technology, and we would like to see this become the minimum safety standard in the industry. We continually work with our employees, supply chain and clients to develop new solutions and assess innovative ways of working to improve safety across all of our operations.”
Mike Crowther, National Key Account Manager at Fleetclear added: “Fleetclear have worked collaboratively with Amey to develop this bespoke version of our Auto Stop Reverse Radar system. The system is designed to suit Amey operational requirements across several vehicle types and we are delighted to be working closely with contracts across the UK to facilitate the roll out.”
“This new system utilises the industry’s most sophisticated heavy-duty object detection radar system and is capable of detecting 16 stationary and moving targets simultaneously.”
“In conjunction with the Reverse Radar systems, the vehicles are also fitted with ‘Fleetclear Connect’, a web-based application which enables Amey to proactively monitor the activation of the Auto Stop Radar through a powerful event reconstruction feature with synchronised event data, telematics and embedded video. Another prominent step forward for Amey in the highways sector.”
This bespoke safety solution was trialled over a three-month period on two contracts, providing on-site testing and introducing additional features to tailor the offer. This innovative safety solution will be rolled out across Amey’s highways contracts during Spring. Further roll-out to the wider industry and sharing of good practice is planned later this year.