Road Safety Beyond the Workplace

Supporting Safer Communities Through Action

At TMO Highways, road safety is more than a business objective. It is a responsibility.

As an ISO 39001 Road Traffic Safety accredited organisation, we recognise that creating safer roads extends far beyond our own operations and into the communities where we live and work.

Every year our teams travel in excess of 2 million miles across Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and the Midlands, Cambridge and Lincolnshire and London, as well as the UK’s road network, supporting customers and maintaining essential infrastructure. That experience gives us a clear understanding of the importance of safe driving behaviours and the devastating consequences that can result when things go wrong.

Sadly, in 2025, 1,556 people lost their lives on UK roads, with a further 29,901 suffering serious injuries. Behind every statistic is a family, a friendship group or a community whose lives have changed forever.

Whilst no single organisation can solve the challenge alone, we all have a role to play.

That is why we were delighted to support Kenninghall Parish Council through the donation of two new batteries for the village’s Speed Awareness Message (SAM2) device.

Why the Donation Was Needed

Kenninghall Parish Council has operated a SAM2 unit for several years as part of its ongoing commitment to reducing vehicle speeds throughout the village.

The equipment acts as an important visual reminder to road users, displaying their speed and encouraging drivers travelling above the limit to slow down.

However, the existing batteries powering the unit had begun to deteriorate rapidly. The batteries were no longer lasting for the full deployment period, impacting the reliability of the equipment and reducing the amount of speed data that could be collected.

This data is not only important for the Parish Council. It is also shared with the Norfolk Police Speed Reduction Partnership, helping to build a clearer picture of speeding issues and support future road safety initiatives.

Without accurate data, the scale of speeding can become underrepresented, making it more difficult to target future interventions effectively.

Identifying a Local Need

This initiative followed discussions between TMO Highways and Kenninghall Parish Council regarding our ISO 39001 accreditation and wider road safety commitments.

The opportunity arose following our recent work in nearby Banham, where concerns were raised about the performance of the SAM2 equipment.

After speaking with Councillor Mark Barrington, who oversees the scheme on behalf of the Parish Council, it became clear that replacing the batteries could make an immediate and practical difference.

As part of the donation, TMO Highways also provided supporting CoSHH information and safety documentation to assist with the ongoing management and use of the batteries.

Small Investment, Big Impact

The batteries were kindly supplied by our friends at Shield Batteries Group, with special thanks to Moira for providing swift and helpful support throughout the process.

With a total value of approximately £60, the donation may seem modest, but the impact will be significant.

In May 2026 alone, data collected on Garboldisham Road in Kenninghall recorded:

📊 24,852 vehicle movements

⚠️ More than 6,000 speeding incidents

🚗 A maximum recorded speed of 55mph – nearly double the speed limit & during school closing time.

These figures highlight why reliable monitoring equipment remains such an important tool in helping communities understand local road safety challenges and encourage safer driver behaviour.

Supporting Social Value Through Action

This donation forms part of TMO Highways’ wider commitment to social value and responsible business practices.

Our Head of Responsible Business, Kirsty Shrubsall, has led a number of community-focused initiatives throughout 2026, helping ensure that our business continues to make a positive contribution in the areas where we operate.

Whilst large-scale infrastructure projects often attract the headlines, meaningful change can sometimes come from much smaller interventions that directly benefit local communities.

Supporting a parish council’s efforts to monitor speeding may not seem significant in isolation, but every action that contributes towards safer roads has value.

Community Partnership

During the handover, Councillor Mark Barrington and Councillor Ben Green were pictured installing the unit ready for its August deployment.

Kenninghall Parish Council commented:

“We would like to thank TMO Highways for their generous donation of these two batteries for our SAM2 unit, a vital piece of kit to not only reduce speeding in our village but also provide key data for Norfolk Police to build future plans for helping reduce speeding not only in our village but across the wider road network. The new batteries will allow us to confidently review the data at our monthly meetings and continue our efforts to reduce speeding, putting road users and pedestrians at risk.”

Looking Forward

At TMO Highways, we firmly believe that everyone should be able to use the road network safely and return home at the end of every journey.

Whether through industry-leading standards such as ISO 39001, investment in technology, improving driver behaviour, supporting local road safety initiatives or working collaboratively with communities, we remain committed to playing our part in making roads safer for everyone.

Because when it comes to road safety, every journey matters.