Concern over use of guidelines on roadworks

The Department of Transport has admitted it has concerns over whether local authorities are fully complying with guidelines for carrying out roadworks.

In a statement to the Public Accounts Committee, the Secretary General of the Department of Transport, Julie O'Neill, said she was concerned over the extent to which guidelines for safety at roadworks were being enforced.

She said there was also a question over whether the guidelines need to be updated.

To address this, a newly established team of road safety experts is to review guidelines governing how local authorities carry out roadworks. This follows growing concern at their possible role in a series of fatal crashes.

There have been a number of high-profile fatal crashes where the families of the deceased believe roadworks or a temporary surface may have had a contributory role.

These concerns were not allayed when a Health and Safety Authority (HSA) inspection of local authority roadwork sites discovered "inadequate" safety plans at road surfaces in 20 of the 29 authorities, following over 100 site inspections.

The expert technical group will include experts from the Department of the Environment, the HSA and National Roads Authority. It was established following a meeting on September 18th.

The members of the group will examine the existing guidelines for local authorities and suggest improvements or clarifications. The work of this body of experts is expected to take several months.

Their findings will be given to the City and County Managers Association and the Local Government Management Services Board - representative bodies for local authorities.

These two bodies and the Department of Transport will use the technical group's findings before drawing up new, stronger and more transparent best practice rules if required.

The Department of Transport is keen that the new guidelines are transparent, effective and do not create additional layers of bureaucracy.

The department also stressed that local authorities will remain responsible for carrying out roadworks into the future.

Following the establishment of the technical group, the Department of the Environment also wrote to all local authorities asking for an immediate update on any ongoing roadworks in their area where a temporary dense bitumen macadam (DBM) surface has been laid and which remains in an unfinished condition.

The NRA does not allow this material to be used for extended periods.

The examination of the rules governing roadwork sites is taking place in the context of the development of a new risk management framework for local government. The basis for this has been set down according to HSA criteria.

Concern at the management of roadworks by local authorities and their contractors has been growing for some time, following concerns that it may have played a role in a number of high-profile fatal crashes.

Following its inspection of local authority roadwork sites last year, the HSA drew up an internal report that found very poor traffic management at many sites.

This report found that drivers were ignoring temporary speed limits around roadworks because councils were not enforcing them.

More than a quarter of all traffic plans prepared by local authorities were deemed inadequate because they failed to address the hazards associated with a particular roadworks site, the HSA found.

And only 78 per cent of roadworks sites provided adequate warning to motorists of roadworks ahead.

This was despite the local authorities having prior notice of the visits.