BSI publishes new PAS standard for traffic management and safety barriers

The British Standards Institution (“BSI”) has licensed the production of a new safety standard for traffic management and safety barriers in the workplace. The Publicly Available Specification 13, Code of practice for safety barriers used in traffic management within workplace environments with test methods for safety barrier impact-resilience (“PAS 13”), is intended for use in workplaces where there is a risk of collision between vehicles or machinery and pedestrians.

According to the BSI, around 50 people are killed and more than 5,000 injured each year in accidents involving workplace transport in the UK. It is hoped that PAS 13 will go some way to addressing this by outlining good practice traffic management procedures and safety barrier standards. Written by an independent expert panel, the document focuses on segregating traffic in workplace environments. PAS 13 includes methods and procedures for arrival, reception, unloading and movement of vehicles, and also provides guidance on the safety barriers to be used, including their impact resilience and appropriate dimensions and positioning.

PAS 13 was published on 28 February 2017 and can be purchased from the BSI website.