Chapter 21 Transportation, vehicle movement and lifting operations

Driving to and from sites and the movement of plant, vehicles and people around sites might not immediately appear to be the highest priority in terms of health and safety compared with things such as confined spaces, chemicals, excavations and the like. It does, nevertheless, present us with hazards which need to be controlled just like any other hazards that we will encounter and the potential for harm is equal to any of these so called high risk areas. Examining road traffic accidents only, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (ROSPA) published figures for 2012 in Great Britain showing 1754 fatalities and 23039 serious injuries, some involving people travelling to and from work and possibly in the course of their work.