RAIB report laments fatal safety lapses
THE Chief Inspector of the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) has called for renewed vigilance in his annual review for 2019 after a bad year for fatal accidents involving railway workers.
The RAIB published four reports relating to fatal accidents (three members of the public and one member of staff) in 2019, and it is currently investigating three further staff fatalities.
Chief inspector Simon French highlighted the tragic deaths of two track workers on the South Wales Main Line at Margam last July, the death of a train driver caught between two trains at Tyseley in December 2019, and the more recent fatal accident involving a track worker at Roade, on the West Coast Main Line, on April 8, and has called for a number of improvements to the way on-track maintenance is managed and carried out.
'White hours'
These include better, more accurate planning to reduce the need for staff to work on live railways and stricter separation between track workers and trains, either by introducing 'white hours'without scheduled trains during off-peak hours, or by diverting trains to other tracks using bi-directional signalling or alternative routes.
Other recommendations include improving the quality of on-site leadership to better identify hazards and manage risks, the provision of concise, accurate information at work sites, improving the clarity of voice communications, reducing reliance on traditional lookouts and greater use oftechnologyto control access to infrastructure, provide warnings of approaching trains, and protect possession limits.
Other areas where the RAIB recommends greater vigilance include the management of stranded trains and self-detrainment of passengers a result of the Lewisham incident of March 2018- safety at the interfaces between platforms and trains/trams, and the safe design and operation of on-track plant.