A temporary traffic management for the Hammersmith Bridge Repair Work was recently changed to accommodate pedestrians, cyclists and the new social distancing measures in response to the pandemic. Project Centre’s Traffic Engineering Team has adapted its work to meet the government guidelines and keep our daily lives running as smoothly as possible.
Traffic management for Hammersmith Bridge is essential and plays an invaluable role in maintaining road safety.
A crucial element of any change is a road safety audit. As part of the audit, two of our Road Safety Auditors, Fadzil Ismail and Nic Akintujoye, were recently out on the Hammersmith Bridge observing the new changes to ensure safety remained a priority in line with the social distancing measures.
Hammersmith Bridge is currently closed to motorised traffic. In addition, we marked 2m gap lines and ‘keep 2m apart’ along the paths. Nic and Fadzil observed the layout and operation for pedestrians and cyclists, in order to look out for potential hazards. Some of the hazards they are always looking out for include:
- Uneven surface conditions potentially leading to trip or fall hazards
- Narrow or congested pathways for a two-way pedestrians and cyclist movement in both directions, leading to potential injury and possible infection transmission risk
- Misguided markings and signage confusing cyclists and pedestrians
- Restricted space and sightlines
Road safety on Hammersmith Bridge
What can we recommend for avoiding safety risks? Some of the recommendations Nic and Fadzil might make when carrying out a road safety audit include:
- Clear entry and exit signage for paths
- Arrow markings on the surfaces
- Relocating entrances to avoid junctions
- Relocating the ‘cyclists’ dismount’ signage
- We checked that paths have enough lighting
Road safety is paramount in all Project Centre designs. We use our road safety knowledge to assess existing risk while following the current GG119 standards. Additionally we ensure any proposed infrastructure changes (permanent or temporary) will not adversely affect road safety and will minimise accidents for all road users. Several of our Road Safety Auditors are SoRSA and CoC accredited. Find out more about our traffic engineering team.
If you’d like to talk about a project we can support you with, get in touch.
