ATR Seminar 2006

Accident / Incident Notifications & Investigations

    ARO Reporting Obligations

•          Rail Safety Regulations

–         Part 6

•          Definitions –  “railway accident or incident”:

•        an accident or incident on railway premises that results in:

•   The death of a person;

•   Serious injury to a person resulting in that person requiring immediate medical treatment by a registered medical practitioner with in in the meaning of the Medical Practice Act 1994;

•        A running line derailment of any unit of rolling stock;

•        A collision between any rolling stock and any person;

•        A collision between any rolling stock and any other vehicle, infrastructure, obstruction or object     which resulted in significant property damage;

•        An implosion, explosion, fire or other occurrence which resulted in significant property damage;

•        A notifiable accident or incident.

•          Notifiable accident or incident

–         A railway accident or incident which the Safety Director has specified under regulation 42(1)

•          Notifiable circumstances

–         A circumstance, act or omission that resulted in, or had the potential to result in, the death or serious injury to any person, or significant damage to property and includes:

•       Any defect in, or failure of, any part of the rail infrastructure;

•       Any defect in, or failure of, any rolling stock or part of any rolling stock;

•       Any failure or breach of any rail operations practice, procedure or rule;

•       Any other circumstance, act or omission that the Safety Director has specified under regulation 42(2) to be a notifiable circumstances.

 

Note: The Safety Director may specify an “accident or incident” notifiable circumstances to be notifiable.

     Duty to Notify

     Railway accidents or incidents

•       Any ARO must notify the Safety Director immediately after becoming aware that a railway accident or incident has occurred.

•       Within 72 hours – give the Safety Director a record of the railway accident or incident – in an approved form.

 

   Note – Safety Director may extend this time in writing.

   Notifiable circumstances

•       An ARO must notify the Safety Director in writing of a notifiable circumstance that has occurred in relation to the rail operations for which the operator is accredited.

   Reports

•           Investigations

–   Section 67 of Rail Safety Act 2006

–   Regulation 45 of Rail Safety Regulations 2006

–   Report to be prepared containing the information under sub-regulation (3)

–    Copy of reports must be provided to Safety Director as soon as practicable after completion.

–    ARO may be required to:

•    Conduct a more detailed investigation

•    Provide further information

•    Clarify certain matters contained in the report

–    ARO have 7 days to comply with the above

Monthly Reports (Regulation 46)

•       A rail operator must for each calendar month give the Safety Director a report, in an approved manner detailing:

–     Total number of rail workers in the month

–     Total number of pax journeys in the month

–     Total number of track kilometres

–     Total number of pax train kilometres

–     Total number of freight train kilometres

•       Report required within 10 days of end of the previous month

–     The Safety Director may allow (b) above to be provide every 3 months

Note: Compliance with this Regulation is a condition of accreditation

Exemptions (from Regulation 46)

•      Tourist & Heritage railways operators may apply to the Safety Director for an exemption from the requirement to submit a monthly report.

•       The Core Principles:

–     Systems approach

–     “Just Culture” philosophy

–     Commitment to “learning from failure”

–     A structured systemic and iterative process for gathering and analysing data

–     Development of non-prescriptive recommendations