8 October 2015

The highways team working on the M60 smart motorway project for Highways England in Greater Manchester recently got together to raise awareness about road worker safety.

The ‘Aiming for Zero’ event at the AJ Bell Stadium in Salford recently was attended by 360 employees and sub-contractors working on the £208 million project, which is upgrading the highway between junction 8 of the M60 in Trafford and junction 20 of the M62 in Rochdale.

The ‘safety day’ highlighted the risks of working in a highways environment, showcasing the six main areas of risk that road workers are exposed to on a daily basis, including working at height, plant people interface, underground services, lifting operations, electricity and public interface.

The event included a series of health-related sessions focusing on stress awareness, cholesterol levels and stopping smoking, which were delivered through the project’s Occupational Health Nurse and supported by medical professionals working in the construction industry.

The event also highlighted the work being carried out to protect the environment and support the local community and economy, including training plans for apprentices and ongoing support for homeless charity Salford Loaves and Fishes.

The project is being delivered by Costain, Balfour Beatty, Carillion and BAM/ Morgan Sindall in Joint Venture. The motorway scheme will upgrade a 17 mile stretch of the M60 and M62 to a ‘smart motorway’. The upgrade will increase capacity, tackle congestion and reduce journey times for motorists.

Dave Emery, the Project Director, said: “The M60 smart motorway scheme is one of the biggest construction projects currently taking place in the region, so it’s vital we do all that we can to make sure our workforce stays safe. By holding an Aiming for Zero safety day we have collectively made a stand to highlight the issue of risk in the construction industry. The whole team has pulled together to deliver a day that we can be proud of.”

Jon Pilkington, the project’s Health and Safety Manager, added: “It is very important that operatives working on site are healthy and looked after by their employers. The ‘Aiming for Zero’ safety day was an opportunity to showcase the importance of the health and wellbeing of the workforce. The advances in staff training and wellbeing facilities have shown how far the industry has come in the last ten years.”

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