Dock traffic lights and interlocks in Greater London

In short

Dock traffic lights are red and green signals mounted outside and inside a loading bay to tell the driver and dock staff when it is safe to move or load. Interlocks are control links that stop equipment operating out of sequence, for example preventing the door opening until the trailer is restrained, or the leveller operating until the door is fully open.

Why do sites in Greater London choose this?

Sites around Greater London that run night shifts often find traffic lights easier for drivers to read than staff waving or knocking on the cab door. Loading docks in Greater London where drivers wait in their cabs for a hand signal can replace guesswork with a clear red and green light at every bay.

Older docks in Greater London with separate door and leveller controls can be brought into a proper sequence by adding interlocks that stop equipment working out of order.

Before anything is ordered, we visit your site in Greater London for a free survey and then send a written quote with a fixed price. From that point we manage the installation, coordinating delivery, access and any other trades. Fitting is done by specialist installation engineers engaged and managed by us, at times that suit your operation, including out of hours where agreed. You get a tested installation, a demonstration for your team and the manufacturer documentation.

What does HSE guidance say about stopping drivers leaving too early?

HSE guidance (followed by HSENI in Northern Ireland) says there should be safeguards against drivers driving away from a loading bay too early, and it names traffic lights as one of the measures. Vehicle or trailer restraints, and the person in charge keeping keys or paperwork until it is safe, are the others listed in HSE's guide to workplace transport safety (HSG136) and its loading factsheet.

Traffic lights are a signal, not a physical barrier, so they work best as part of a clear procedure or alongside a restraint. Your risk assessment should decide the combination. In Northern Ireland the regulator is HSENI.

Interlocks also touch on door safety law. Under regulation 18 of the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992, or the Northern Ireland 1993 equivalent, powered doors need suitable and effective features to prevent them trapping anyone. Interlocks must never bypass those features, and door control work should respect BS EN 12453, the standard for safety in use of power-operated doors.

Read more in our guide to preventing drive-away and trailer creep.

How do inside and outside dock traffic lights work together?

Inside and outside dock lights always show opposite colours: when the driver sees red, dock staff see green, and the other way round. Each light is aimed at a different person, so each one only ever gives one instruction.

Outside light, facing the driver: red means stay on the bay because loading is in progress; green means the bay is clear to leave or to reverse on to.
Inside light, facing dock staff: green means the trailer is in place and it is safe to open the door and load; red means do not open the door or enter the trailer.

Lights can be switched in three main ways:

Manually, by a switch beside the door, relying on dock staff to change it at the right moment.
By door position, so opening the door automatically turns the outside light red.
By the restraint, so the light only changes when the trailer is physically held.

Towns we cover in Greater London

We provide dock traffic lights and interlocks right across Greater London. Pick the town closest to your site from the list below.

Guide price

£650–£3,400 per bay, ex VAT

Budget range for supply and fit. The written quote after a free survey is the fixed price. All guide prices.

What do the rules in England mean for the work?

Powered doors and dock equipment installed in England may carry the UKCA or the CE mark, and doors are covered by the product standard BS EN 13241. We hand over the relevant documentation for each item fitted in Greater London. Planning and Building Regulations questions are never assumed either way: we check what applies at survey, so you know before work is booked.

Questions

Do you cover Greater London for dock traffic lights and interlocks?

Yes. We take on dock traffic lights and interlocks for businesses in Greater London and across Greater London. We survey the site, provide a fixed written quote and manage the installation, with specialist installation engineers working under our management. Visits are arranged in advance at a time that suits your operation, and the same single contact stays with the job through to handover.

Which building and safety rules apply to a site in Greater London?

It depends on which UK nation the site is in. England and Wales use Building Regulations approval, Scotland uses building warrants and Northern Ireland uses building control approval from the council. Workplace safety is regulated by HSE in Great Britain and HSENI in Northern Ireland, and energy rules differ between nations. For your site in Greater London, we check what applies at survey and design to it.

Will interlocks slow down my loading operation?

Interlocks add a fixed sequence, but each step takes only moments and staff soon get used to it. In practice many sites find the sequence saves time overall, because there are fewer arguments about when to open the door and less damage from levellers being raised into part-open doors.

Can interlocks be fitted to a manual loading bay door?

Yes. A door position switch fitted to a manual door can confirm when it is fully open or fully closed. That signal lets the traffic lights change automatically and stops the leveller being raised until the door is out of the way.

Other services in Greater London

Full guide to dock traffic lights and interlocks · All loading bay services in Greater London