Launching Driving for Better Business into the Public Sector, Highways England hosted a high-level event at the House of Commons on 22nd January 2019 bringing together leading figures to champion improvements in work related road safety across the public and private sector.

Palace of Westminster, Terrace Pavilion

“The Highways England Driving for Better Business programme launches its public sector campaign at the House of Commons on 22nd January 2019”

Barry Sheerman, MP for Huddersfield

“I’ve always believed in great partnerships between the public and private sector and this conference today is about that very partnership.”

Nick Starling
Director and Trustee, Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety

“We know that there are things which contribute to work-related road risk – long hours, maintenance of vehicles, large mileage and so forth. I hope we can all go away from today with some ideas about taking things forward.”

Jim O’Sullivan
Chief Executive, Highways England

“As employers, and supply chain managers, we’ve got to focus on work-related road safety. Public procurement has a very strong role to play in making our roads safer.”

Pauline Reeves
Head of Road User Licensing, Insurance and Safety
Department for Transport

“Road safety isn’t just a matter for government. It’s an issue that requires support from the public sector more widely, and that means organisations making sure they are compliant with current legislation.”

Martin Temple CBE
Chairman, Health and Safety Executive

“We in HSE have the powers to go up the chain of activities to bring to account those people and organisations who fail the drivers and the public through the unreasonable conditions they impose on their drivers.”

Mark Phillips
Chief Executive, Rail Safety and Standards Board

“Since 2007 there have been 18 workforce fatalities in the rail industry but nine of those – 50% – are the result of work-related road traffic accidents. There is a huge advantage in us sharing and collaborating on these really important safety aspects.”

Sean Bone-Knell
Road Safety Lead, NFCC
Director of Operations, 
Kent Fire and Rescue Service

“Having a branded fleet means your vehicles are much more visible across the county, which means driving behaviour comes under much more scrutiny. Improving how we do things has led to better safety and vehicle utilisation as well as significant reductions in fuel use, fleet insurance and emissions.”

James Haluch
Managing Director, Amey Highways

“Adopting the Driving for Better Business framework helped us reduce fault incidents by 38%. We’ve also saved on fuel and, as over 50% of our contracts are cost-reimbursble, that saving gets passed straight back to the local authority.”

Multi-Agency Events: Panel Discussion

Alison Hernandez
APCC Lead for Road Safety and Police and Crime Commissioner for Devon, Cornwall & the Isles of Scilly

“Driving for Better Business is definitely one of the things that we’re really keen for local businesses to do but you need to lead by example so today I’m signing up Devon & Cornwall Police, and my office, to Driving for Better Business and we will be working to drive this through the whole country.”

Paul Keasey
Detective Chief Superintendent at Gloucestershire Police and Chair, National Roads Policing Intelligence Forum

“We need to contact employers more. We always seem to identify the driver because that’s the evidence we have right in front of us. We need to start recognising that firms have a greater responsibility to their workforce, to the people on the roads and to create much safer environment.”

Becky Thomas
Director of Strategy and Policy Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency

“Through our partnerships with Driving for Better Business, Highways England and the Police, we can educate people about what, not just good, but best practice looks like, and then focus our precious resources on the really non-compliant fleets to raise standards.”

Simon Turner
Campaign Manager, Driving for Better Business

“Why on earth would you give public money to a supplier who is potentially operating their fleet in a way that could endanger your local public, either through drivers who are behaving non-compliantly or through poorly maintained, unsafe vehicles – they are endangering your local constituency.”

Stuart Lovatt
Strategic Road Safety Lead, Highways England

“We have a real opportunity here from the public sector to lead by example. I fundamentally believe that this can be the biggest change in road safety in a generation.”

Pauline Reeves
Head of Road User Licensing, Insurance and Safety
Department for Transport

“Better management of work-related road safety is something we all have a responsibility for. If we can come together to deliver this, then the benefits will be something we can all enjoy.”