Improving safety at road works : how far can you go? : the Dutch situation.

This paper deals with the developments in the field of the measures taken during road works on motorways in the Netherlands during the last 6-7 years. In December 1995 the latest Guidelines for Measures during road works on Motorways (Richtlijnen voor Maatregelen bij Werken in Uitvoering op Autosnelwegen (rl-MWA)) were published and these were followed by a number of supplements. These guidelines have a greater focus than previously on the organisation of a safe work place for the road worker who is responsible for installing the workzone and for the road worker working in the workzone. In addition to this there are further stringent preconditions for the safety of the road user and for the flow of traffic. Immediate reason for the preparation of these guidelines was the new technical developments, changing legislation and regulations, political involvement and number of serious accidents involving road workers. The impulse that was given in 1995 to the introduction of wide-ranging measures in order to promote the safety of the road worker has by no means missed its target and has without doubt also contributed to the fact that measures for road works now form an essential part of the work itself and are not merely at the bottom of the list. The costs of these measures in relation to the work to be carried out have therefore increased considerably. So much so, that some people are wondering whether it can go any further. In Chapter 1, this paper briefly deals with the Dutch road network, traffic flow and safety and the most important elements of these guidelines. In Chapter 2, the developments of the last 6 years are explained. Chapter 3 deals with the question about how far we can go with constantly upgrading the safety requirements when organising work areas, and when a limit is reached with regard to this. And, what are the developments that can be expected in the (near) future? (A) For the covering abstract of the conference see ITRD no 207828. The reprints are also available at the web - http://www.vti.se/pdf/reports/K18APart1.pdf; http://www.vti.se/pdf/reports/K18APart2.pdf and http://www.vti.se/pdf/reports/K18APart3.pdf.