Road worksites safety: Evidence-based traffic control measures

On 1 July 2025 iMOVE held the latest in its series of project outcome webinars, Making road worksites safer with evidence-based traffic control measures, based on the completed project with Transport for NSW and Deakin University, Working near traffic: Work zone end of queue study.

A recording of the webinar is embedded below.

Background

Crashes at road worksites pose a significant danger to workers and motorists like. Existing research from Australia and international jurisdictions shows that rear end crashes in an end of queue scenario is one of the most common types of crash.

This webinar will present the outcomes of a Transport for NSW and Deakin University project that aims to increase overall safety for both workers and the public within road worksites. It provides a solid evidence base through testing of different traffic control measures for end of queue scenarios.

The objectives of the study are to:

• Reduce the frequency of end of queue crashes at road worksites.
• Reduce the severity of the injuries in the less likely event that an crash does occur

The project included a comprehensive on road trial of 33 combinations of treatments across 13 worksites in conjunction with road maintenance activities and supported by Transport’s Road Maintenance Team. The findings of this project will provide valuable insights for making roadwork sites safer for motorists and road workers alike. You can find more information about the project objectives here.

Topics and speakers

• Introduction – Alistair Lunn, Executive Director, Road Maintenance and Delivery, Transport for NSW

Alistair Lunn is the Executive Director Regional Road Network Maintenance within Transport For NSW. Alistair has nearly 30 years’ experience in the Road Maintenance and Construction across regional NSW.

Leading a team of over 2000 transport employees and even more contractors and council partners Alistair is accountable for the maintenance and delivery of capital improvements across over 20000km of the state road network and delivering the budget of over $1.5Billion. Alistair is a leader recognised for building a strong culture of safety and collaboration across Transport for NSW.

Based in Regional NSW Alistair has a passion for reducing the regional road toll and recognises the impact that road trauma has on our team as well as communities. It is critical we understand and manage the impacts our work has on that road toll.

• Research presentation – Associate Professor Ashim Debnath

Associate Professor Ashim Debnath is the Associate Head of School (Research) at the School of Engineering, Deakin University. He is also the Director of the Safe Future Mobility Research Lab, where he leads a multidisciplinary research team in Transportation Engineering and Road Safety research.

An expert in road safety, traffic management, roadworks, and vulnerable road users — including cyclists, motorcyclists, and pedestrians—A/Prof Debnath has built a strong collaborative track record with industry and government. He has secured over $5 million in research funding and led high-impact projects for key organisations such as Austroads, the Office of Road Safety, iMOVE Australia, Transport Accident Commission, and the state transport departments in Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, and Western Australia.

His research has informed and shaped national transport policy and practice across multiple areas, including the harmonisation of temporary traffic management devices, evaluation of Minimum Passing Distance laws for cyclists, design guidelines for incident response vehicles, intersection safety treatments evaluation, and best practices for roadwork safety.

Webinar video

Final reports

Also available for this project, is a wrap-up article and downloadable reports. Find them at: Roadworks zones: Increasing safety for roadworkers and drivers