The Department for Transport has said that it expects to release a consultation this summer on the long-awaited update to the Safety at Street Works and Road Works A Code of Practice - also known as the Red Book - a vital document that dates back to 2013, Highways can reveal.

DfT officials said the final version could be published in early 2027.

Carried out by Arup and AECOM, the re-drafting of the key guidance and been protracted and at times hotly debated. Highways reported in 2024 that sources close to the process had expected a draft version to be put out to consultation that year.

Highways understands the process ran into difficulty due to debate over what strategy it should take - some originally pushed for a prescriptive tone, based on concepts such as 'must' 'should' and 'can', while others argued for a more risk-based approach.

On top of this, there appears to have been few updates and little consultation with industry throughout the process.

Kealie Franklin, CEO of Association for Road Traffic Safety and Management (ARTSM), commented: ‘We welcome the announcement and look forward to contributing to the consultation when it happens. So far the process has unfortunately been something of a closed shop and consultation with industry appears to have been limited.

'Industry-wide discussion is important because of the specialised nature of so much of this work, which has in the past led to issues in understanding across different areas of the sector. It should be technically fact-checked and expertise provided where necessary.'

Ms Franklin cited the example of training for road works and street works, which could be managed under a National Highways Sector Scheme or by the Highway Authorities and Utilities Committee (HAUC(UK)). Certain differences in these separate syllabuses had raised issues in the sector, she said.

'Hopefully, the Red Book update can ensure that the training is aligned and modernised across the sector. I would like to see it align more clearly with Chapter 8 of the Traffic Signs Manual because there also are currently inconsistencies there, which can cause problems for industry in terms of knowing which guidance to follow. Finally, I hope that it will reference the ARTSM's Guidance on the Use of Portable Traffic Signals – which replaced the "Pink Book" in 2023.'