Good management and regular improvements to essential safety equipment are moving UK tunnels, some of the oldest and busiest in Europe, to a higher standard of safety. At least one could be on course to be amongst Europe’s safest, says the latest Euro Tunnel Assessment Programme (EuroTAP) report.
The Mersey Kingsway Tunnel, handling 45,000 vehicles a day, narrowly missed out on becoming the first UK tunnel to achieve the top-rated “Very Good” status. However, its improvement programme should propel it to the top level in the next EuroTAP inspection. Across Europe, one in six tunnels tested rated “Poor” or “Very Poor”.
After years of refusing permission for their tunnels to be inspected, the Italian authorities for the first time gave EuroTAP’s inspectors access to a restricted number of tunnels. Of the four opened for inspection, three were rated among the worst in Europe. Autostrada del Brennero broke ranks with other Italian private tunnel operators, who continue to deny access to EuroTAP inspectors, by achieving a “Good” rating for the Piedicastello tunnel on the Brenner motorway in the Dolomites.
Since 2000, The AA Motoring Trust, a leading partner in EuroTAP, has helped to drive the tunnel rating scheme that has encouraged tunnel operators to spend 30 million on improvements and plans for more safety work.
The programme of improvements include:
- Mersey Queensway (rated “Acceptable” in 2002) – currently undergoing a 14 million programme of improvements, including provision of emergency escape routes;
- Mersey Kingsway (rated “Good” in 2005) – future plans include the expansion of the PA system, variable traffic information signs, and automatic traffic congestion detection;
- Blackwall Tunnel southbound (rated “Poor” in 2003) – major improvements include sophisticated safety, communication and information systems, due for completion in August 2005;
- Blackwall Tunnel northbound (rated “Very Poor” in 2003) – consultants have reviewed its safety, resulting in major refurbishment and building work to start in November 2006;
- Rotherhithe (rated “Poor” in 2003) – major improvement work will start in May 2007;
- Tyne (rated “Poor” in 2003) – a public inquiry agreed with EuroTAP recommendations for a second tunnel to separate traffic flows, but construction is still some way off;
- Dartford (rated “Acceptable” in 2004) – automatic fire detection systems have been installed and more work is planned to improve safety procedures, while conforming with the proposed European Directive on tunnel safety.
“The UK has an excellent record for tunnel safety, but tunnel fires in the rest of Europe have killed around 90 people over the last ten years. In fires, vehicle occupants in the tunnels are not spectators to an accident, they are participants in a potential disaster,“ says Paul Watters, head of roads and transport policy for The AA Motoring Trust.
“A fire in a tunnel can be lethal and the heat builds up very quickly. That is why state-of-the-art automatic fire detection and ventilation systems, and emergency exits must be provided. The emergency services must be summoned immediately, and tunnel operators should put emergency plans into operation seamlessly.”
“London tunnels in particular have not been rated as well as they should have been in previous inspections. The 50 million annual surplus from Dartford Tunnel tolls should be earmarked to bring the safety of London’s tunnels up to the standards now becoming the norm in Europe,” says Watters.
Drivers who use road tunnels need to know how to behave and what to do in an emergency. The AA Motoring Trust offers two golden rules:
- Drive safely at the appropriate speed for conditions, leaving plenty of space between your car and the vehicle in front;
- Don’t wait to be told what to do if there is a fire ahead – pull the vehicle over to the left, switch off the engine, leave the keys in the ignition, and move swiftly away from the fire to the nearest emergency exit, or to the tunnel entrance.
View The AA Motoring Trust’s Tunnel Safety Campaign
