Pandemic on the roads

The impact of coronavirus is prevalent in everything we all do now – and the changes are significant in road safety.

With lockdown restrictions lifted and the Government urging the UK to return to work, traffic is above pre-Covid-19 levels as people turn away from public transport.

And with more parcels to deliver, our routes are more stop-start than ever before increasing the risk of rollaways.

It’s vital our drivers remain alert and listen to all the safety advice given before setting off on each journey.

Road safety manager Mark Bromhall says: ‘A few months ago, we were talking about the dangers of reduced traffic on the road and the risk that brings. Now traffic levels have increased and are above pre-Covid-19 levels as people try to avoid using public transport – and that brings its own challenges.

‘The Government has announced their active travel plans and are building temporary cycling lanes. There are more cyclists on the road so drivers need to look out for them and keep them safe.

‘We’re also delivering far more parcels and the stop-start nature of those deliveries means we’re having far more vehicle rollaways. That’s really easy to avoid – if you simply leave the vehicle in gear every time you park, the vehicle won’t roll away.’