The “body cams” have been piloted in the North East of England and will now be rolled out across the East Midlands by the consortium of Halcrow, Colas and Costain.

Neil Davison, safety manager for A-one+ in the East Midlands, said: “Body-worn CCTV is the latest innovation to be adopted by A-one+ and has already been piloted in the north east of England.

“The aim is to reduce the likelihood of serious confrontations between road workers and some members of the public, who often feel aggrieved or frustrated by their journey being delayed by essential road maintenance.

“These cameras will enable the wearer to capture moments that could lead to serious incidents where the worker is subjected to totally unacceptable physical or verbal abuse.

“We hope the cameras will act as a deterrent and encourage people to modify their behaviour before it gets out of hand.

“They can also be used for the odd occasions when it is necessary for staff to attend incidents alone as an additional level of protection.”