Supplementary written evidence submitted by the RSSB (RLS0022)

Further information following oral evidence session on rail safety

Thank you for the opportunity to provide evidence to your committee on the subject of rail safety. I hope that I was able to provide information that will be useful to your current inquiry. During the session, I volunteered to provide some further information to the committee on some specific issues raised by yourself and colleagues and my responses are laid out below.

I'd like to repeat once more that the British mainline railway is a safe mode of travel. Owing to the dedication of rail staff, our industry’s mature and open approach to incident reporting and sustained efforts by everyone to tackle safety issues in a coordinated way, we are proud to be able to say that we have the safest major railway in Europe. However, no one is complacent about safety and there is continuous effort to monitor arrangements and ensure safety, so far as is reasonably practicable.

When we released our annual safety performance report this past summer we were pleased to report that there had been no passenger or workforce fatalities in train accidents for a record ninth year in a row and that the number of people dying in level crossing accidents was at its lowest recorded level for nearly 20 years. In all, taking the train is 22 times safer than travelling by car and over 1,200 times safer than by motorcycle.

In addition to incident statistics, RSSB supports the industry by considering safety more broadly, looking at the learning that can be gleaned from lower level incidents, overseas rail accidents and non-rail events. This combined with our cross-industry frameworks, working groups, and research supports the industry's 'corporate memory' and safety management practice.

Detailed responses to specific questions are below.

How often do emergencies occur that require the second safety critical member of staff to intervene?

Information relating to how often emergencies occur that require a second safety critical member of staff to intervene is not currently collected.

How many accidents take place on trains not in the platform? How many accidents on the train in the platform?

The term ‘train accident’ covers a very wide range of event types, from potentially higher-risk train accident (PHRTA) categories such as passenger train derailments to those with typically less serious consequences, such as trains being struck by stones. Train accidents are reportable under RIDDOR if they affect or occur on the running line.

The tables in appendix A show the number of injuries recorded as occurring to passengers or members of the public in the following categories:

1)              Injuries in stations, excluding those occurring on-board trains, those occurring at the platform-train interface, and those categorised as trespass

2)              Injuries occurring at the platform-train interface, excluding those categorised as trespass

3)              Injuries in stations categorised as trespass

4)              Injuries occurring to passengers on-board trains, not due to train accidents

5)              Injuries occurring to passengers on trains, due to train accidents

How many accidents take place at the Platform Train Interface (PTI)?

An accident is considered to have occurred at the PTI if the incident resulted in the person wholly or partially crossing the boundary between the platform and the track, or the platform and the train (if present). Last year there were 1,514 incidents recorded as having taken place at the platform edge (see appendix A for more details). 

Are there any RAIB reports into incidents which took place under DOO which have led to recommendations to not have DOO and to reintroduce guards?

RSSB is not aware of any RAIB reports which have led to a recommendation to change the method of dispatch from DOO. We have contacted the Chief Inspector of Rail Accidents, Simon French to confirm our view, but have not yet received a response. We will be happy to forward this on when we have it. 

How frequently are risk assessments on DOO carried out to see if it is still appropriate?

This is currently covered in the Rail Industry Standard for Passenger Train Dispatch and Platform Safety Measures - Issue Two, March 2013, section 2.9 (RIS-3703-TOM), which states that;

"Infrastructure managers shall review the risk assessment and train dispatch arrangements periodically, when changes are proposed or following an accident or incident occurring during train dispatch".

Such changes could be (but are not limited to) the following:

a) Introduction of new trains or changes to existing trains.

b) Variations to train lengths.

c) Changes to staffing levels.

d) Introduction of new staff.

e) Increase to staff workloads.

f) Organisational changes.

g) Alterations to signalling equipment.

h) Alterations (temporary and permanent) to station infrastructure.

i) Alterations to CCTV equipment.

j) Timetable change.

How many SPADs are there?

RSSB tracks the risk from SPADs as well as the number of SPADs, and publishes this update monthly. There were 279 SPADs in 2015/16, compared with 302 during the previous year. The annual number of SPADs per year occurring since 2006/07 has been just under 300.

13 December 2016

Response to Transport Committee

Appendix A: Injuries recorded as occurring to passengers or members of the public

Author: Dr George Bearfield

• The following tables show the number of injuries recorded as occurring to passengers or members of the public in the following categories:
• Injuries in stations, excluding those occurring on-board trains, those occurring at the platform-train interface, and those categorised as trespass
• Injuries occurring at the platform-train interface, excluding those categorised as trespass
• Injuries in stations categorised as trespass
• Injuries occurring to passengers on-board trains, not due to train accidents
• Injuries occurring to passengers on trains, due to train accidents