Interview with a Traffic Officer
	Name: Richard Hill
	Position: Traffic Officer
	Location: Strensham, Worcestershire

Richard joined the Highways Agency in March 2004 from a manufacturing and service industries background, most recently as a driver transporting prisoners.

One of 80 on-road Traffic Officers in the West Midlands, he works 8 hour shifts between 6am and 10pm, on a nine-day pattern, including six days on and then three days off. (Shift patterns may vary to cover 24 hour a day service).

Duties include patrolling parts of the M5, M40 and M42 motorways, removing debris from the carriageway, assisting stranded motorists and supporting the police in managing major motorway incidents.

Richard explains more: “My job is to act as the eyes and ears of the Highways Agency on my patrol route on the West Midlands motorways.”

“It's a great job. My patrol partner and I experience something new every time we go out on patrol. Our customers are everyone who uses the motorways, from motorcyclists to heavy goods vehicle drivers. You have to have good communications skills and be able to adapt to an ever-changing and sometimes unpleasant, even dangerous environment.

“It's extremely rewarding knowing that you have made a difference to someone's day. This can range from offering practical safety advice on the hard shoulder to making sure that a customer's recovery company is on the way.

“The reality of the job is that you could be picking up a piece of debris from the hard-shoulder at six in the morning with the rain pouring down. But that's part of the job, and contributes to providing safer roads and more reliable journeys for the travelling public.

“I have especially enjoyed talking to members of the public. Because we are a new service I explain who we are, what we do and how we are working closely with the police, freeing up their time so they can catch more criminals on the roads.”

Richard's advice to people considering applying to be a Traffic Officer:
“This job does have an element of risk, because you are dealing with unknown variables, which include people and vehicles travelling at high speeds very close to where you are working.

“Traffic Officers help to manage the motorways, and are able to offer assistance in a number of different ways. We have some legal powers to stop and direct traffic but do not have any enforcement powers, as we are not police officers. If you like helping people and want a great degree of job satisfaction, along with good career prospects, then becoming a Traffic Officer could be for you.”