Confused swan surviving on a wing and a prayer until traffic officers swoop in
It was almost a swan song for this confused bird who was dodging high speed traffic and causing chaos on the busy M1 until National Highways traffic officers turned up.
The swan was first spotted on the verge alongside the northbound carriageway of the M1 near Northampton. But within minutes it had wandered onto the carriageway and into the path of the mid-morning traffic.
Caption: Watch footage of this swan being saved by traffic officers by clicking here
Footage captured on National Highways’ CCTV cameras, shows vehicles coming to a complete stop in an effort to avoid the bird as it swanned around the four lanes.
It is shooed over to the verge but it isn’t long before the swan starts to head back out into the path of oncoming traffic.
Fortunately traffic officers Adrian Woods and Simon Quigley from the nearby National Highways’ Watford Gap Outstation were dispatched and set about keeping the swan and road users safe.
Adrian explained:
“Unfortunately, when the roads are wet or there is a haze over the carriageway, swans think it is a body of water and land on the road. It is a bit of a shock when they hit the ground so the swan was a bit confused and it’s ego bruised.”
Simon carried out a rolling road block which brought the traffic safely to a stop for a few minutes. Adrian was then able to capture the bird using a swan bag which traffic officers carry in their vehicles.
Once safely strapped in they took the swan to a small lake just off junction 16 of the motorway at Northampton and it was swiftly able to swim around happily.
Caption: The swan is released at a nearby lake and soon back in the swim of things
Adrian, who has been with National Highways for seven years, said:
“This is the fourth swan rescue I’ve had to deal with and we are trained how to deal with the situation and use the bags.
“The incident was dealt with in around 10 minutes with traffic back under way and the bird taken to a nearby lake where it was soon swimming away happy as Larry and seemed quite unscathed by the excitement. It was a happy ending all round.”
Caption: Adrian with the rescued swan in the traffic officer vehicle
Traffic Officers are often first on the scene when an incident happens and create a safe working area by implementing emergency traffic management.
As well as dealing with the occasional animal on the loose, they clear obstructions and spills, help remove broken-down vehicles and work in partnership with the police and other blue light services, by managing road closures when there’s a serious incident.
Their priorities are to keep themselves and other road users safe and to re-open the road as soon as possible. Find out more information about the frontline service here
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.
For further information please contact National Highways' press office (24hrs) on 0844 693 1448 and select the most appropriate option:
Option 1: National enquiries (9am to 5.30pm) and out of hours for urgent enquiriesOption 2: North West (9am to 5.30pm)Option 3: Yorkshire and North East (9am to 5.30pm)Option 4: West Midlands (9am to 5.30pm)Option 5: East Midlands (9am to 5.30pm)Option 6: East (9am to 5.30pm)Option 7: South East (9am to 5.30pm)Option 8: South West (9am to 5.30pm)
