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REGULATION 28 REPORT TO PREVENT FUTURE DEATHS

THIS RESPONSE IS BEING SENT TO:

1. The Senior Coroner for Hertfordshire, Mr Geoffrey Sullivan of The Old Courthouse St Albans Road East, Hatfield, Hertfordshire AL10 0ES in response to a ‘Regulation 28 Report to Prevent Future Deaths’ following an inquest hearing into the death of Mr Vichai Tonpradit that concluded on 11 October 2016.

1 HIGHWAYS ENGLAND

I am Mr Jim O’Sullivan, Chief Executive of Highways England Company Limited of Bridge House, 1 Walnut Tree Close, Guildford, SURREY GU1 4LZ.

2 CORONER’S MATTERS OF CONCERN

The MATTERS OF CONCERN were identified as follows:–

a. The raised section of the tarmac separating the slip road from the main carriageway on the A1(M) approaching Junction 6 northbound is potentially hazardous; and

b. At the same location, the visual marking (solid white line) from the previous road layout is potentially confusing.

3 DETAILS OF ACTION TAKEN

a. The raised section of kerb separating the off slip road from the main carriageway on the A1(M) at Junction 6 northbound is addressed at point 6a. below.

b. Having reviewed the road markings at the location it would appear that since the incident on 10 November 2015 the road marking referred to was covered over by applying a bituminous material to obscure the redundant solid white line and this is no longer visible.

4 DETAILS OF FURTHER ACTION PROPOSED

The government announced as part of the Roads Investment Strategy 2015-2020 the proposal for a Smart Motorway for the A1(M) Junction 6 to 8. The introduction of the Smart Motorway scheme for this section of the A1(M) would alter the existing road layout at Junction 6 northbound and southbound. The preferred operating model for smart motorways is “All Lane Running”. This means the existing hard shoulder would be converted into a traffic lane providing three lanes for traffic with the addition of regular refuge areas in place of the hard shoulder for emergency use. As part of this scheme Highways England will assess a wide range of information about the road to establish the nature of any current issues along this section. This will assist us in developing an outline design concept and determine the Smart Motorway operating system best suited to this section of road. The start of works is currently programmed for March 2020.

5 TIMETABLE FOR ACTION

Date Action

March 2020 Start of works on the Smart Motorway – All Lane Running scheme on the A1(M) Junction 6 to 8

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6 EXPLANATION AS TO WHY NO ACTION IS PROPOSED

a. Highways England (as far as we have been able to ascertain) was not a party to the inquest hearing on 11 October 2016. The ‘raised section of tarmac’ identified as a matter of concern by the Senior Coroner, is a specifically designed and installed section of raised kerbing to separate the off slip road from the main carriageway at Junction 6 of the A1(M) northbound.

The extension of the kerbing separating the slip road and main carriageway was introduced as part of a ‘pinch point’ scheme in 2015 to reduce congestion on this part of the strategic road network. The scheme was designed and constructed to the specified standards laid down in the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (DMRB) and these standards remain current today. In addition, the scheme was subject to the Road Safety Audit process in accordance with the requirements of HD19/15 as directed by the DMRB Volume 5 Section 2.

7 SAFETY OF ROAD USERS

We apologise unreservedly for the lack of response on behalf of Highways England to the Senior Coroner’s Regulation 28 Report dated 12 October 2016. The safety of our road users is an imperative for our business in what we set out to achieve, and a core value of our organisation in how we go about it. The action we have taken and plan to take in the near future is designed in this light to help to prevent future deaths on our network.

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05 October 2018 Signed:

, Asset Development Manager on behalf of