Yukon Traffic Control (Flagger) Course: Lessons 2026

Lesson 1: Who may control traffic in Yukon

This course explains Yukon's own rules for people who control traffic near work on or beside a road. It is background knowledge only. It is not traffic control person (flagger) training, and it does not qualify you to direct traffic.

In Yukon there are three main groups of people who direct vehicles:

• Police. Under Yukon's Motor Vehicles Act, a "peace officer" means a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). The Act has its own rules about obeying a peace officer who directs traffic.
• Workers at a work project on a public way. Yukon's occupational health and safety (OHS) regulations, published by the Workers' Safety and Compensation Board (WSCB), allow workers to direct traffic to protect a work zone.
• Guards on private property. Guards often guide cars in parking lots and at site gates. That is site work, not control of a public road.

A security guard is not a peace officer. You may not stop or direct traffic on a public road just because you wear a uniform. Do it only when you are assigned to a work zone, given the instructions the law requires, and wearing the right gear, or when police ask for your help.

What training does Yukon require?

Section 1.47(2) of the regulations says workers who must direct traffic shall be given written and verbal instructions. The instructions cover the signals the worker uses and the instructions given to motorists. The OHS regulations we reviewed do not name a flagger certificate or a set course provider. Your employer or the project owner may still ask you to take a recognized flagger course. Ask before your first shift, and keep your written instructions with you.

Drivers must cooperate with you. The Yukon Driver's Basic Handbook says that if a traffic control person is directing traffic, drivers must follow that person's directions. It also tells drivers to obey traffic control persons, keep to the posted speed and stay well back from equipment.

Lesson 2: Protecting workers on a public way

Section 1.47(1) applies where a worker may be endangered by vehicle traffic on a project on a public way, such as a road or street. The employer must use whichever of these measures are needed:

• Workers who direct traffic
• 警告标志
• Solid barriers
• Lane control devices or traffic lights
• Flashing lights or flares
• A pilot car
• A combination of these

Section 1.46 adds public way rules. For short-duration work on a public way, public access must be restricted or controlled by barriers or by workers who direct traffic. Machinery and materials that could endanger traffic must be marked with flashing devices. Warning lights must be installed on or next to barriers during darkness or poor visibility.

Plan before you start

Yukon employers must do a hazard assessment for each workplace and repeat it when the work location or layout changes a lot. Signs, spacing between signs and the length of tapers come from the traffic control plan for that job. Ask your supervisor to show you the plan, the speed limit and where every sign and device goes before you take your post.

• Know the plan and the speed of traffic.
• Know where the other traffic control worker is and how you will talk (radio or clear hand signals).
• Pick a spot where drivers see you early and where you are out of the travel lane when you can be.
• Plan an escape route in case a driver does not stop.
• Never stand where a vehicle could pin you against equipment or a barrier.

Lesson 3: High-visibility apparel and headwear

Section 1.48 sets three levels of high-visibility apparel. The level depends on the hazard.

For all levels, the background material must be bright or fluorescent yellow, lime green, red or orange. Level 1 trim must be fluorescent and retro-reflective. Instead of the usual layout, the trim may be two vertical stripes on the front and an X on the back.

Safety headwear

Section 1.18 says safety headwear must be provided and worn. When controlling traffic, it must be blaze orange, red or another high-visibility colour, or carry retro-reflective decals. It must meet CSA Z94.1-05, ANSI Z89.1-2003 or another standard the board accepts. In cold weather, winter liners are needed.

Lesson 4: Night work and mobile equipment

Yukon has long, dark winters, so a lot of traffic control happens in low light. Section 1.47(3) says workers who direct traffic during hours of darkness must be given:

• A lighting system for the traffic control workstation, so drivers can see the worker, and
• Retro-reflective devices such as wristbands and leg bands, so the worker's movements show up in headlights.

Remember that barriers also need warning lights in darkness or poor visibility under section 1.46. Snow, ice fog and blowing dust can all make visibility poor.

Working near equipment

Work zones often have loaders, graders and trucks backing up. Section 6.38 says that if an operator's view of the path is blocked, the machine must not move until precautions are taken. One option is a signaller who directs the move from a safe position in continuous view of the operator, with a clear view of the path.

Section 6.39 says designated walkways should separate people on foot from equipment. Where that is not practical, the person on foot and the operator must acknowledge each other before the person enters the area. A wave or eye contact tells you the operator has seen you.

Lesson 5: Your rights and reporting

Yukon's Workers' Safety and Compensation Act gives every worker three rights: the right to know about hazards, the right to participate in health and safety, and the right to refuse unsafe work.

If you are told to direct traffic without instructions, without hi-vis, or in a set-up that you reasonably believe is unsafe, you may refuse. Tell your supervisor or employer right away. They must investigate. If the problem is still not fixed, the employer must report it to the WSCB, and a safety officer will look into it.

If someone is hurt

1. Make the scene safe if you can do so without danger, and call 911.
2. Give first aid if you are trained.
3. Tell your supervisor as soon as you can.
4. Write down what happened, the time, the place and any vehicle details.

Serious incidents must be reported to the WSCB immediately or as soon as reasonably practicable by the employer or the person responsible for the workplace. This includes an incident that puts a worker in hospital as an inpatient. The WSCB has a 24-hour reporting line: 867-667-5450.