Highways England launches Maintenance Assistance Vehicle - MAV

Highways England has developed a vehicle to help replace overhead highway signs that it says will reduce the need to close lanes and roads during work The vehicle uses a hydraulic scissor lift similar to that seen on catering vehicles that load food into the hold of airplanes at airports. Traditionally, signs are taken down and installed using a flatbed truck, crane and cherry picker, taking up to 40 minutes. However, the Maintenance Assistance Vehicle (MAV) can do this in around 20 to 25 minutes by usin
July 7, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
Easier access with the MAV from Highways England
8100 Highways England has developed a vehicle to help replace overhead highway signs that it says will reduce the need to close lanes and roads during work

The vehicle uses a hydraulic scissor lift similar to that seen on catering vehicles that load food into the hold of airplanes at airports. Traditionally, signs are taken down and installed using a flatbed truck, crane and cherry picker, taking up to 40 minutes. However, the Maintenance Assistance Vehicle (MAV) can do this in around 20 to 25 minutes by using a small jib crane which is part of the vehicle.

Road workers have trialled the MAV and have had to shut down fewer lanes for the operation. Highways England said the device provides a safer environment for workers because they are standing on a sturdy platform.

Once the platform is raised to the required working height, the jib crane attaches to the sign on the gantry and lifts it off.  Operatives then detach the sign, place it onto a trolley on the platform and wheel it into the main compartment of the vehicle. The procedure is reversed when installing an electronic sign.

The hydraulically powered scissor lift enables the signs, which are often found on smart motorway gantries, to be serviced at heights of up to 8.5m and in wind speeds of up to nearly 50kph. CCTV cameras enable the MAV driver to park the vehicle in the correct place below the gantry before any maintenance takes place and monitor operatives working at the back.

Highways England said it is examining the best way for its contractors to purchase the machines. It is estimated that if the device were widely adopted it could save up to €5 million a year. Consideration is also being given as to whether it could be used to improve safety for other duties on England’s motorways and major A roads.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Total Styrelf tests start in England
    April 15, 2021
    Resurfacing has started with Total Styrelf eXtreme 100 and Total Styrelf Long Life binders.
    Read More
  • Atlas Copco attachments make short work of the A8 Blaubeurer Weg Bridge
    March 21, 2016
    A reinforced concrete bridge over the Autobahn 8 between Merklingen and Nellingen in southern Germany was demolished overnight due in no small part to the efficient, reliable performance of Atlas Copco hydraulic attachments. In addition to demolition grippers, breakers and pulverisers, the demolition team used the HM 2000 hydraulic magnet to demolish structures and sort demolition waste. There is now nothing to stop the widening of the A8 to six lanes or construction of the parallel high-speed Wendlingen
    Read More
  • Toggenburger takes two Terex cranes to tackle a Swiss tandem lift
    August 21, 2015
    Two of the largest cranes in Switzerland recently were called upon to lift an 884tonne, 162m-long connecting bridge between two buildings at the Coop distribution centre in Schafisheim. “The individual bridge components had enormous gross weights of up to 275tonnes and required us to use working radii of up to 29m,” said Andre Huber, project manager at Toggenburger, the company that took on the task. To get the job done, Toggenburger rolled out its biggest machinery which also happen to be the two lar
    Read More
  • Towering safety presence
    July 18, 2012
    Italian firm TowerLight has launched a new mobile security system for the surveillance, CCTV and security markets. Unveiled at last month’s IFSEC International security exhibition at the NEC in Birmingham, England, the TL Security Tower can accommodate CCTV cameras, Wi Fi systems, surveillance monitoring, infra-red detectors, evidence quality video equipment and public address loudspeakers. Entirely self-contained, the Tower’s power is provided from a series of batteries combined with a built-in generator
    Read More

Highlighted Content