In our latest industry interview, we caught up with Jaime Pena Monteiro, winner of this year’s Future of Local Roads: Apprentice Innovation Competition, sponsored by map16, to hear about his journey from a 20 year career in marketing into highways, the inspiration behind his award winning idea, and why he believes apprentices should never be afraid to think big.
A Career Change with Purpose
After more than two decades working in marketing, Jaime made the decision to pursue an entirely new career in highways through an apprenticeship with Leicestershire County Council.
For Jaime, the move was driven by a desire to make a meaningful contribution while achieving a better work life balance for his family.
“I wanted to try something different,” he explains. “I’ve always wanted to contribute towards making the world a better place, and travelling on our roads every day really opened my eyes to how I could help improve transport and highways for everyone.”
The apprenticeship has also given him the flexibility to spend more time with his family while developing new technical skills.
“My children are at a really important stage of their lives, with GCSEs and university ahead of them. Being there for them was a huge part of why I made the change.”
Learning While You Work
Although Jaime brought a wealth of transferable skills from marketing, he admits the move into highways presented a steep learning curve.
“There are so many policies, procedures and technical aspects to understand,” he says. “That’s one of the reasons I chose the apprenticeship route.”
Studying through Leeds College of Building alongside his role as Apprentice – Transport Planning at Leicestershire County Council has allowed him to build his engineering knowledge while gaining valuable practical experience.
“It’s a fantastic opportunity to learn while you work and earn at the same time.”
One highlight still to come is an international study visit to the Netherlands and Germany, where apprentices will explore how different countries manage their transport networks.
“We’ll be looking at how they approach transport and highways and bringing those ideas back to the UK. It’s a fantastic opportunity to learn from others.”
The Idea That Won the Competition
Jaime’s winning entry focused on improving road safety through a community led Near Miss Mapping System.
The concept encourages residents to report near misses and everyday road safety concerns that may not otherwise appear in official collision statistics.
“People experience potential hazards every single day that don’t get recorded,” Jaime explains. “Whether it’s unsafe overtaking, speeding, poor visibility or vehicles mounting pavements, those are all warning signs.”
Rather than waiting until serious collisions occur, Jaime believes local authorities could use community reports alongside existing highway and collision data to identify risks much earlier.
“The idea is to shift from reacting to incidents after they’ve happened to spotting risks earlier and taking action before they escalate.”
Over time, the reports could build into a live heat map, helping engineers identify trends and prioritise improvements such as new crossings, traffic calming measures, improved signage or junction redesigns.
“It’s about giving communities a voice and using that insight to make roads safer for everyone.”
A Memorable Win
Winning the Future of Local Roads: Apprentice Innovation Competition at the DfT Special Recognition Apprentice Awards came as a complete surprise.
“I honestly couldn’t believe it,” Jaime says. “When my name came up on the screen I was completely overwhelmed.”
Having only recently entered the highways sector, receiving recognition for an idea so early in his career made the achievement even more meaningful.
“It was a really nice feeling to know that I’d been recognised for an idea after being in the industry for such a short time.”
The support from family, colleagues and the wider industry has continued long after the event.
“My wife and children were incredibly proud, and the response from colleagues across Leicestershire County Council has been amazing. I’ve also had lots of conversations with people across the sector about how the idea could develop.”
The award has also helped Jaime expand his professional network.
“It’s been really good in terms of building that network. My LinkedIn profile has been pretty busy over the last few weeks.”
The Value of Apprenticeships
Jaime credits his apprenticeship and the support of colleagues with giving him the confidence to develop innovative ideas.
“The team have been phenomenal,” he says. “They’re always willing to answer questions and help me understand the different systems and data we work with.”
He believes apprenticeships provide an ideal route for people looking to change careers, regardless of age or previous experience.
“There will be moments when it’s challenging, but it’s such a rewarding opportunity. You’re constantly learning new things while gaining practical experience.”
Giving Apprentices a Voice
For Jaime, competitions like the Apprentice Innovation Competition play an important role in encouraging fresh thinking across the sector.
“They give apprentices a voice,” he says. “When you’re new to an organisation, it can sometimes feel like your ideas aren’t heard in the same way. This gives people the confidence to put ideas forward and be recognised.”
His advice to anyone considering entering next year’s competition is simple:
“Think big. No idea is a silly idea. I nearly talked myself out of entering because I thought someone else must have already thought of it. But just go for it.”
More Than Just an Event
Alongside winning the competition, which was announced during the DfT Special Recognition Apprentice Awards at the LCRIG Innovation & Learning Festival, Jaime says attending the festival itself was one of the highlights of his year.
“The networking opportunities were fantastic,” he says. “There were presentations, live demonstrations and exhibitors from across the sector, and I came away having learned something from every conversation.”
One of the biggest benefits, he says, was meeting people from organisations he may never otherwise have had the chance to speak to.
“You start talking to exhibitors and quickly realise there’s a connection between what they’re doing and your own work. It really opens your eyes to new ideas and different ways of thinking.”
Jaime was particularly impressed by the festival’s live demonstrations and Start Up Zone, where emerging companies showcased innovative solutions for the highways sector.
“It was inspiring to see people bringing fresh ideas into the industry.”
He also enjoyed the apprentice activities, which encouraged teamwork and problem solving, as well as the opportunity to hear from organisations such as the emergency services about the wider impact of road safety.
For Jaime, one of the festival’s greatest strengths is that it is fully funded for local authority attendees.
“Without that support, I probably wouldn’t have had the opportunity to attend, and neither would many of my colleagues. Making it accessible means more people can learn, network and bring those ideas back into their organisations.”
Looking Ahead
Although still in the early stages of his apprenticeship, Jaime already has ambitious plans for the future.
“I’d love to progress through the profession and eventually reach senior level. But I’m taking things one step at a time and making sure I keep learning.”
Alongside progressing his own career, he’s also keen to continue developing his award winning idea and explore how it could benefit highways authorities across the country.
“I don’t see any reason why the concept couldn’t be rolled out more widely. If we can bring together community insight with existing data, we can make better decisions and ultimately create safer roads.”
A huge congratulations to Jaime on winning this year’s Future of Local Roads: Apprentice Innovation Competition. His enthusiasm, fresh perspective and passion for improving road safety highlight the valuable contribution that apprentices and career changers can make to the highways sector. We look forward to following Jaime’s journey and seeing how his innovative idea develops in the years ahead.