A417 Missing Link scheme clocks up 2,000,000 hours without incident

Reportable incidents refer to Health & Safety Executive (HSE) Regulations, which must be followed if a serious incident, or specified injury, or fatality occurs, and is a standard measure across construction to monitor safety performance, all of which could mean delays to the scheme’s delivery.

Around 500 people each day are working on the £460 million transformation of the A417, an important route between Gloucester and Swindon that helps connect the Midlands/North to the South of England. It's an alternative to the M5/M4 route via Bristol.

Since work began, the improvements scheme has also:

•    poured over 3,050 cubic metres of concrete
•    moved 1.6 million m3 of earth
•    laid 18km of drainage pipes
•    fitted 1,682 tons of reinforced and structural steel
•    laid 10,000 tons of road surfacing
•    progressed building six new bridges

Contractor Kier is carrying out the work for National Highways and is aiming to have the project open for traffic in Spring 2027.
 

Caption: Since the A417 Missing Link scheme hit the ground in Spring 2023, there have been nearly 2,000,000 hours of work with no RIDDOR reportable incidents

Celine Acard, Senior Project Manager for National Highways, said: “Safety is always the number one priority for National Highways. We think nobody should be harmed while travelling or working on our roads and do all we can to try to make that happen.

“For our contractors, Kier, to record over two million working hours without a serious incident is a fantastic achievement. We are pleased that the stringent safety measures put in place on site are paying dividends, and I’m confident that it will continue to do so.”

RIDDOR, which stands for the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013, is a UK law that requires employers and those in control of work premises to report certain workplace incidents HSE. This includes work-related deaths, injuries, specified occupational diseases, and dangerous occurrences (near misses).

Gavin Jones, Project Director for Kier, added: “The health and safety of our people and supply chain is our number one priority, so to see this reflected in this project by achieving no RIDDOR reportable incidents since 2023 is something I am extremely proud of."
 
 
Caption: Around 500 people each day are working on the £460 million transformation of the A417

Among measures taken by contractor Kier to ensure safety include a robust Occupational Health and Safety Management system, with the procedures strictly enforced on site; numerous industry-leading, innovative and award-winning processes, tools, and equipment have been introduced to ensure the health, safety and well-being of all team members; an open and honest culture, where everyone on the project has a voice meant issues and concerns could be dealt with quickly; and lessons learned for improvement.
 
The landscape-led A417 scheme is not only creating a vital transport link in the Cotswolds, but also incorporates world-class environmental practices that respect and enhance the surrounding landscape and habitats, including:

• four miles of new dual carriageway connecting the existing A417 Brockworth bypass with the existing A417 dual carriageway south of Cowley
• a section to the west of the existing Air Balloon roundabout that will follow the existing A417 corridor. However, the section to the south and east of the Air Balloon roundabout will be offline, away from the existing road corridor
• a new junction at Shab Hill, providing a link from the A417 to the A436 towards Oxford and into Birdlip
• a new junction near Cowley, to replace the existing Cowley Roundabout
• the existing A417 between the Air Balloon roundabout and the Cowley Roundabout is being repurposed.

We are converting some lengths of this existing road into a route for walkers, cyclists and horse riders, while retaining other sections to maintain local access for residents.

The latest information on the scheme is available on National Highways’ A417 Missing Link page.

Notes to Editors

National Highways is the wholly government-owned company responsible for modernising, maintaining and operating England’s motorways and major A roads.

Real-time traffic information for England’s motorways and major A roads is available via the Traffic England website, local and national radio travel bulletins, electronic road signs and mobile apps. Local Twitter services are also available.

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