WorkSafe charges company following death of traffic controller on freeway

News in brief: WorkSafe Victoria has charged a traffic management company over the death of a traffic controller struck on the Eastern Freeway in August 2023. Charges allege the firm failed to provide a safe working method and did not control the risk faced by employees inspecting streetlights beside live roads.

Eastern Freeway fatality: what occurred

The 58-year-old was on duty checking streetlights for malfunctions when his parked utility vehicle was hit by another car.

He died at the scene two years ago, prompting an investigation into how the inspection task had been planned, resourced and supervised.

Charges laid under OHS legislation

WorkSafe said the company ‘faces one charge under section 21(2)(a) of the OHS Act of failing to provide or maintain a safe system of work, and one charge under section 26(1) of the same Act of failing to ensure a workplace under its management or control was safe and without risks to health.’

Both duties flow from the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004, enforced across the state by the regulator. Employers must eliminate hazards where reasonably practicable, then reduce whatever remains as far as practicable.

What the regulator alleges

The safety authority claims the company did not adequately mitigate the risk of severe injury or fatality by establishing a protocol that mandated two employees to jointly inspect streetlights, thereby removing the necessity for workers to exit their vehicles.

Court listing for the case

The case is scheduled for a filing hearing at the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court next week.

Why this news matters for roadside crews

Inspection duties beside high-speed carriageways rank among the most dangerous activities in transport, because a single step outside a cabin elevates strike risk immediately. Regulators therefore expect written controls rather than informal habits.

Documented planning also demonstrates OHS compliance when an incident is later examined, and it gives supervisors something concrete to enforce.

Practical controls worth reviewing

• Two-person inspections: pairing field staff removes any reason to stand on trafficked pavement.
• Vehicle rules in writing: a Company Vehicle Policy sets expectations for parking position, beacons and exclusion zones.
• Task-based risk assessment: a Vehicle Accident SWMS records agreed controls before crews leave the depot.
• Traffic control planning: our management plans product guide explains how site documentation gets built, reviewed and kept current.
• Supervisor verification: spot checks confirm crews follow approved methods, closing any gap between paperwork and practice.

Guidance published by worksafe.vic.gov.au and national material from Safe Work Australia both address roadside hazards, vehicle separation and protective controls for mobile field crews.

OHS compliance takeaways for traffic management firms

Prosecutions of this kind underline three points for safety leaders: assess hazards at task level, record every chosen control, then verify what happens in the field. Health monitoring, hazard reporting and crew briefings all feed one evidence trail that regulators can follow.

Related safety news coverage

• WorkSafe files charges over a school excursion death
• ACT company fined following a crane death
• WorkSafe charges Northland school after a student’s death

News source

Read the original news article here.

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