M-08

FLAGGING A LANE

NOVA SKILL MODULE M-08
Read: 5 min
Full rules: NU-SAF-105 §4.3

A flagger is the only thing standing between a distracted driver and your crew, and he is the only man on site whose whole job is to be looked at. Nova's own standard: no certified flagger, no lane.

Do it in this order — every time

Certified flaggers BOTH directions. One end only is not flagging — it is a head-on waiting to happen.
Radios, and they stay in contact. Radio contact, not line of sight. Line of sight fails on a curve.
Class 3 apparel. Every flagger, every time, day or night.
Paddle, not a flag. STOP/SLOW paddle on a staff, held high, face toward the driver.
Stand on the shoulder, never in the lane you're holding. Visible to traffic, out of the path of it.
Know your escape route before you take the post. Pick it, look at it, be able to take it without thinking.
Only one direction moves at a time. Both flaggers never release at once — confirm on the radio, every cycle.
Face the traffic you are controlling. Never turn your back on your own lane.
Never leave the post until you are relieved or the zone is down. Not for water, not for a phone call.
Advance signs stay up the entire time flaggers are in the road, and come down last.

THE FLAGGER OUTRANKS EVERYBODY ON THE ROAD SIDE. A driver arguing, a client in a hurry, a crew lead behind schedule — none of them get to move the flagger or shorten the zone. If pressure comes, it goes to the Field Supervisor, and the lane stays as set.

NEVER — THESE FOUR END IT

Never take a lane without certified flaggers. Not a judgment call, not the crew lead's to override.
Never flag with a phone in your hand or earbuds in.
Never stand in the open lane, behind a parked vehicle, or over a hill crest where drivers see you late.
Never let both directions go at the same time — confirm on the radio before you turn the paddle.

Signed off when he can do all three — watched, not talked about

Holds a full cycle with a second flagger, on radio, with no gap and no overlap.
Points at his escape route and says why he picked it.
Says what he does when a driver gets out of the car angry. (Nothing. Radio the Supervisor.)

Trainee name / date

FIELD SUPERVISOR initials / date — only he signs

Nova Underground · Skill Module M-08 · condensed from NU-SAF-105 §4.3 · v1 July 2026 · If this card and the job disagree, stop and call the Supervisor.