Brisbane traffic controller fighting for life after being hit by a car

A traffic controller is fighting for his life after being hit by a car while at work.

Michael De Voss, a 69-year-old traffic controller with AVADA Group, was working a night shift on Friday when he was tasked with constructing a closed lane for a Brisbane City Council work site.

While placing traffic cones on the busy Kelvin Grove Road at around 1.40am, Mr Voss was hit by a driver.

Emergency services, including paramedics, attended the crash site where they found Mr Voss in a serious condition.

He was rushed to the Royal Brisbane Hospital with life-threatening injuries including serious head injuries, a broken hip, broken ribs, a broken collarbone and a broken leg.

Doctors placed him in a medically induced coma to stabilize him before spending hours in an operating room working on his multiple injuries.

A friend of Mr Voss told Daily Mail Australia he has since regained consciousness but is not talking and is on a ventilator to help his breathing.

A GoFundMe A campaign was launched to help Mr Voss, known as ‘Vossey’ by his colleagues and friends, with medical costs and his long road to recovery.

“Vossey is not only a colleague at work, he has become like family to many traffic controllers,” the fund said.

‘His love for the profession and his friendly, quirky and positive attitude is something you immediately notice when you meet Vossey.

‘There will be a long road to recovery following this accident and he will need support along the way.

‘As many air traffic controllers can tell you, if you don’t work you don’t get paid, that will be the case with Vossey.’

At the time of writing, the fund had received 21 donations totaling $1,890, with a goal of raising $50,000.

CFMEU Queensland and Northern Territory Offsite Coordinator Blake Hynes said the crash was the second safety incident involving a Queensland municipal inspector in the past month.

‘The traffic controller was single-handedly constructing a busy multi-lane road. “Under regulations, he should have had the support of at least one other employee and the ability to provide an additional layer of protection,” he wrote.

‘This incident illustrates why traffic control is one of the most dangerous jobs.

“What may seem like a minor mistake by management can lead to serious injury to the employee – or even death.”

Mr Hynes added that the incident was “preventable” and was the result of safety oversight by Brisbane City Council asphalt services management.

“The CFMEU calls for all municipal workers across Queensland to be treated with the same dignity and respect as domestic workers,” Mr Hynes wrote.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Brisbane City Council for comment.

Queensland Police told Daily Mail Australia an investigation was underway into the exact circumstances of the crash.

“The driver of the vehicle, a 70-year-old man, was taken to the Royal Brisbane Hospital as a precaution. The vehicle has been towed,” a Queensland Police spokesperson said.

A colleague of Mr Voss, who requested anonymity, told Daily Mail Australia that safety standards for air traffic controllers were being compromised.

“Mr. Voss]is a good friend of ours and it is terrible to see his situation because we are all traffic controllers and it could have been any of us at any time,” they said.

It comes after Minister for Regional Transport and Roads Jenny Aitchison published a report on October 1 on the significant safety risks facing road traffic controllers in Australia.

The report, prepared on behalf of the Traffic Management Association of Australia, highlighted data from the 2024 National Traffic Controller Safety Survey, which surveyed more than 1,500 traffic controllers from across the country.

The investigation found that workers faced verbal abuse, failure to comply with basic instructions from traffic controllers and near misses while at work.

More than half of respondents, or 53 percent, reported that vehicles failed to stop at traffic checkpoints at least once a week.

In the past twelve months that was 49 percent of respondents reported almost being hit by a vehicle driven by a distracted driver.

Meanwhile, 44 percent of traffic controllers reported having near misses with fast-moving cars.

John Cassel, president of the Traffic Management Association of Australia, said the report was a “stark reminder” of the dangers traffic controllers face every day in their work.

“Their commitment to keeping our roads safe is unwavering and they deserve our respect, support and the safest working conditions possible,” Cassel said.

“We need a collective effort to address the issues highlighted in this report and ensure that controllers can do their jobs without fear for their safety.”

“We all have the right to return home safely every day.”