Dr Joanna White heads up National Highways’ Roads Development Division, a division focussed on intelligent transport systems, energy and road design. At TRANSPORT Smart Class, North of England 2022 – and three years on from her insightful keynote at our 2019 Midlands edition – we were delighted to welcome Jo back to outline what National Highways has learnt from CAV road trials, and how these activities are being scaled up to deliver their connected services roadmap…”part of our Digital for Customer ambitions – from our Digital Roads vision”.
Translating to 34% of UK road traffic, 68% of road freight and four million journeys each day, National Highways currently manage and improve 4,300 miles of motorway and major A-road, 10,000 miles of carriageway and 20,000 bridges and structures, not to mention 100,000 street lights, 150,000 signs, 3,500 electronic messaging signs and 100,000 sensors, including traffic sensors. Since 2015 they have reduced the number of casualties on their roads by 18%.
Digital roads harness data, technology and connectivity to improve the way the strategic road network is designed, built, operated and used. Jo detailed how their Digital Roads vision is focused on three key themes: Digital Design and Construction, Digital Operations and Digital for Customer. She went on to define the drivers behind the vision and the benefits that can be realised, before demonstrating how National Highways’ safety risk assurance for CAV trials has “improved engagement through a single point of contact at National Highways who will help you engage with wider specialists”; “provides a flexible approach, which builds on the Department for Transport (DfT) Code of Practice (CoP): Automated vehicle trialling and other established safety frameworks for CAV trialling organisations”; and “encourages collaboration, knowledge sharing and innovation by working together towards a common goal of robust and proportionate safety risk management”. National Highways’ knowledge and experience of the strategic road network will, “help trialling organisations to identify and assess hazards and manage the safety risks”.
Jo also talked us through specific focus areas of the Connected Services Roadmap and explained how this work can also enable National Highways to deliver net zero highways and fulfill the ambitions in their carbon plan.
If you meet our regular delegate qualification criteria but were unable to join us at Chetham’s School of Music, Manchester, for the live in-person event on September 9th, CLICK HERE and complete the short “Download form” (located at the bottom of the post) to receive a unique link enabling free access to the presentation video recordings and slides (including the film footage and slides from Jo’s keynote).
Those qualifying to receive the rich presentation content from this event include commissioning, procurement, trialling and partnering leads, senior influencers, strategic decision makers and planners from local authorities (e.g. city, borough, metropolitan, district and county councils); public transport operators; regional transport partnerships, sub-regional transport bodies, combined authorities, integrated transport authorities and passenger transport executives; highways authorities and road operators; government and supporting national transport agencies; fleet operators, parking operators, prime contractors etc.
