A former control room operative at Highways England has told ITV News Meridian that staffing was ‘woefully low’ and that the job to monitor the road network, including smart motorways, was stressful.
The ex-employee, who did not want to be identified, said that the work load would lead to increased staff sickness, adding more pressure to the system.
“The number of staff in the room has always been woefully low.
“When additional tasks came along with smart motorways, it did anything but ease the pressure on us. Call waiting times would increase and targets of setting signs swiftly would be more challenging because you were being pulled from pillar to post.
“The job became more pressured, resulting in increased tensions, verbal conflict, long term sickness and people looked for alternative jobs.
“We needed a magic box containing replacement staff, but there wasn’t one.”
full article and video footage here