Rail Regulator’s Report 2015-16 - tmr.qld.gov.au › ... ›...

Rail Regulator’s Report 2015-16

A report on safety performance on the rail network in Queensland

Rail Regulator’s Report 2015-16, The Department of Transport and Main Roads, September 20162

© State of Queensland (Department of Transport and Main Roads) 2016

http://creativecommons.org.licences/by/4.0/

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Licence. You are free to copy, communicate and adapt the work, as long as you attribute the authors.The Queensland Government supports and encourages the dissemination and exchange of information. However, copyright protects this publication. The State of Queensland has no objection to this material being reproduced, made available online or electronically but only if it’s recognised as the owner of the copyright and this material remains unaltered.

The Queensland Government is committed to providing accessible services to Queenslanders of all cultural and linguistic backgrounds. If you have difficulty understanding this publication and need a translator, please call the Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS National) on 13 14 50 and ask them to telephone the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads on 13 74 68.

Disclaimer: While every care has been taken in preparing this publication, the State of Queensland accepts no responsibility for decisions or actions taken as a result of any data, information, statement or advice, expressed or implied, contained within. To the best of our knowledge, the content was correct at the time of publishing.

Rail Regulator’s Report 2015-16, The Department of Transport and Main Roads, September 2016 3

Rail Regulator’s Report 2015-16

A report on safety performance on the rail network in Queensland


Table of contents

Message from the Director - General ............................................................................................................. 6

Executive summary ....................................................................................................................................... 7

Introduction .................................................................................................................................................... 7

Summary ........................................................................................................................................................ 7

Part 1: Overview ............................................................................................................................................ 8

Introduction .................................................................................................................................................... 8

Queensland’s rail system ................................................................................................................................ 9

Accredited Rail Transport Operators in Queensland ......................................................................................... 11

Rail kilometres travelled ................................................................................................................................. 11

The role of the Rail Regulator........................................................................................................................... 12

Passenger Journeys ......................................................................................................................................... 12

Road and Rail Safety Section ........................................................................................................................... 14

Part 2: Rail Regulator Activities ..................................................................................................................... 15

Resource allocation ........................................................................................................................................ 15

Rail Regulation Section ................................................................................................................................... 15

Work Program 2015-16 ..............................................................................................................................................................................15

Accreditation and Education Team .................................................................................................................. 15

New Applications for Rail Safety Accreditation ...........................................................................................................................................16

Variations to Rail Safety Accreditation .......................................................................................................................................................16

Notifications of Change .............................................................................................................................................................................16

Exemptions to Rail Safety Accreditation ....................................................................................................................................................17

Risk and Audit ................................................................................................................................................ 17

Operations and Investigations ........................................................................................................................ 18

Major Projects ................................................................................................................................................. 18


Part 3: Rail Safety Performance ..................................................................................................................... 21

Category A notifiable occurrences ................................................................................................................... 22

Fatalities (excluding suicides and assaults and natural causes) ................................................................................................................22

Serious Injuries (excluding attempted suicides, assaults and pre-existing medical conditions) .................................................................23

Derailments - running line .........................................................................................................................................................................24

Collisions ..................................................................................................................................................................................................25

Level Crossing Collisions ...........................................................................................................................................................................25

Signal Passed at Danger (SPAD) ................................................................................................................................................................26

Category B notifiable occurrences .................................................................................................................. 27

Derailments - Yard.....................................................................................................................................................................................27

Collisions ..................................................................................................................................................................................................27

Level Crossing Near Misses .......................................................................................................................................................................27

Boom Strikes ............................................................................................................................................................................................27

Signal Passed at Danger ...........................................................................................................................................................................27

Other Category B occurrences ...................................................................................................................................................................27

Part 4: Priorities for 2016-17 .......................................................................................................................... 28

Programmed activities .............................................................................................................................................................................28

Safety improvement projects ....................................................................................................................................................................28

Major Projects ..........................................................................................................................................................................................28

Appendix 1: Accredited Rail Transport Operators as at 30 June 2016 .............................................................. 29

Appendix 2: Private Siding Operators and Exempted Operators as at 30 June 2016 ........................................ 32

Appendix 3: Serious incidents, 2015-16 ......................................................................................................... 34

Appendix 4: Notifiable occurrences, 2011-12 to 2015-16 ................................................................................ 35


I am pleased to present the Queensland Rail Regulator’s Report 2015-2016. This report represents Rail Regulation’s achievements and activities for the period 1 July 2015 to 30 June 2016.

I recognise the hard work and dedication of our people and their ongoing commitment to regulating for:

• improvement in rail safety

• improvement in the management of rail safety risks

• increased public confidence with the safe transport of passengers and freight by rail.

The Rail Regulator is committed to maintaining and improving safety across Queensland’s extensive rail network through communication and collaboration with the rail industry.

I acknowledge the contribution of all rail transport operators and their commitment to safe rail operations throughout Queensland.

Neil Scales OBE

Director-General

The Department of Transport and Main Roads

ONC (Eng), HNC (EEng), BSc (Eng), C.Eng (UK), MSc (ContEng&CompSys), DMS, MBA, FIEAust CPEng, Hon FLJMU, FIMechE, FIET, FICE, FCIT, FRSA, FIRTE, FSOE, RPEQ, MAICD.

Message from the Director - General


IntroductionIn Queensland, the Rail Regulator works together with rail transport operators to achieve a safe and efficient rail network throughout Queensland. The Rail Regulator’s Report provides an overview of the Rail Regulator’s priorities during 2015-16. The report outlines the safety performance of railways administrated under the Act. The Rail Regulator monitors industry performance and trends and this report delivers analysis and interpretation of the safety occurrence data reported to the Rail Regulator during 2015-16.

The report highlights Rail Regulation’s 2015-16 work program which included accrediting one new rail operator, undertaking 26 audits and 60 compliance inspections and site visits.

SummaryThe report features a number of highlights in rail operational safety for the period of 2015-16:

• No rail safety related fatalities reported. This is the first reportable fatality free financial year since 1995-96.

• A reduction in the number of reportable rail safety occurrences, concurrently, with an increase in the number of rail kilometres travelled and rail passenger journeys.

• A 33 per cent reduction in Category A occurrences compared with the previous financial year.

• Lowest number of Category A occurrences reported (50) in the last four years.

• A total of 17 running line derailments reported which is the same as 2014-15 but 31 per cent lower than the preceding four years average.

• No fatalities and no serious injuries reported on the light rail network.

• There were 86 audits, compliance inspections and site visits undertaken by Rail Regulation.

Beyond the work summarised in this report, the Rail Regulator engages and collaborates with the rail industry throughout the year to ensure that Queensland’s rail industry remains safe.

Executive summary


IntroductionQueensland is Australia’s second largest state and its third most populous. The state is home to vast mineral resources, extensive agricultural holdings and many of the country’s most iconic tourism destinations. To meet the challenges, and capitalise on the opportunities, presented by its size, rapid population growth and diverse economic base, Queensland needs a safe, efficient and reliable transport network. Rail transport is a key element of the Department of Transport and Main Roads’ (TMR) long term strategic plan to provide an integrated and accessible transport system that will underpin regional development, facilitate employment growth and meet the complex travel needs of a diverse community.

Queensland’s rail network offers cost effective and reliable long distance transport for livestock, bulk commodities, coal, minerals and agricultural products between regions, air and sea ports and commercial centres, and safe and affordable transport for passengers. Queensland’s population is projected to increase by more than two million people by 2036, and the transport system will come under increasing pressure as freight and passenger movements continue to rise. Total rail kilometres travelled in Queensland have increased by 13.4 per cent since 2011-12 from 39.99 million kilometres to 45.32 million kilometres in 2015-16. Total passenger journeys also increased over that period by 8.5 per cent from 55.51 million to 60.22 million and will continue to rise with the addition of new passenger rail lines in South East Queensland over the next two years.

The state government has recognised the importance of rail as a low emission and sustainable alternative to road transport. Three major new rail infrastructure projects will significantly enhance the capacity and efficiency of the state’s rail transport system, boost productivity and enhance liveability in the south east corner. Major projects such as the Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 2, Moreton Bay Rail Link and the New Generation Rolling Stock reflect the State Government’s commitment to rail.

While the efficiency and reliability of Queensland’s rail transport system are key considerations, safety is TMR’s top priority. The role of Rail Regulator was established under the Act to work with rail operators to ensure that the railway operations are carried out in a safe manner. In a co-regulatory environment, continuous improvement is achieved through industry engagement and education rather than punitive enforcement. Our compliance strategy works toward achieving a ‘generative’ best practice safety culture across the industry, in which compliance is business as usual and operators are willing partners in the improvement process.

Since 2010, Queensland has recorded a progressive improvement in overall rail safety. Despite the substantial increase in total annual rail kilometres travelled over this period, the total number of serious rail safety occurrences as a direct result of rail operations has fallen. Non-conformances by rail transport operators have also declined and improved reporting of safety incidents has allowed the Rail Regulation Section to identify and actively address potential risks in collaboration with operators.

The safe, efficient and seamless operation of rail transport networks will be further reinforced by the Queensland Government’s decision to adopt the national regulations. It is proposed, from 1 July 2017, responsibility for rail regulation will move to the Office of the National Rail Safety Regulator (ONRSR). Under the proposed reforms, ONRSR will regulate rail safety in Queensland and the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) will operate as the rail safety investigator in Queensland. The move to a single set of national rail safety regulations, and one set of processes and procedures, will result in significant efficiency and productivity improvements for rail organisations operating in more than one state. It will build on the substantial progress in rail safety achieved in Queensland since 2010 and underpin a culture of continuous improvement in rail safety across Australia.

Part 1: Overview


Queensland’s rail systemQueensland retains one of the most extensive rail networks of any state in Australia, with more than 9000 kilometres of operational track and 67 accredited rail operators. The state boasts Australia’s largest export coal rail network, the 2,670 kilometre Central Queensland Coal Network, as well some of the country’s most remote and iconic passenger trains, including the Spirit of the Outback, Gulflander and Savannahlander services. Queensland is also home to 20 tourist and heritage railways, celebrating the vital role of rail transport in the development of the state’s regional and coastal centres, and an extensive urban passenger rail system in the south east corner.

Figure 1: Rail Network in Queensland, map courtesy of Queensland Rail Limited

CAIRNSMAREEBA

ALMA-DEN

FORSAYTH

CROYDON

NORMANTONINNISFAIL

INGHAM

TOWNSVILLE

STUART

CHARTERS TOWERS

HUGHENDENRICHMONDJULIA CREEK

MOUNT ISA

FLYNN

PHOSPHATE HILL

CLONCURRY

ABBOT POINT

KAILI

NEWLANDS MACKAYHAY POINT

HAIL CREEK

NORTH GOONYELLA

BLAIR ATHOL MINE

ROCKHAMPTON

GLADSTONEPARANA

CURRAGH

ROLLESTON

MINERVA

EMERALD

CLERMONT

ALPHABARCALDINELONGREACH

WINTON

MOURA MOURA MINE

CALLIDE COALFIELDS

BUNDABERG

MARYBOROUGHWEST

GYMPIE NORTH

NAMBOUR

ROSEWOODTOOWOOMBA

OAKEY

WYREEMAMILLMERRAN

WARWICK

DALBY

WANDOAN

MILES

CHINCHILLA

MEANDARRA

STANTHORPE

WALLANGARRA

INGLEWOODGOONDIWINDI

THALLON

ROMAMUNGALLALACHARLEVILLE

WESTGATE

WYANDRA

CUNNAMULLA

COOLADDIQUILPIE

ROCKLANDS

North Coast Line (Nambour to Cairns)

Mount Isa Line (Stuart to Mount Isa & Flynn to Phosphate Hill)

West Moreton (Rosewood to Miles)

Western System (Miles to Cunnamulla & Quilpie and branch lines)

South Western System (Toowoomba to Wallangarra &Thallon and Wyreema to Millmerran)

Central Western System (Emerald to Winton and branch lines)

South East Queensland networkMaryborough Area System and other

Tablelands System

AurizonAustralian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC)

Legend

Queensland Rail Systems

Other

Queensland Rail ABN 68 598 268 528

Rail networks of QueenslandSystems overview


Table 1: Core Rail Lines of the Queensland Network

Line/System Length Main activities

South East Queensland 689km Passenger trains

Gold Coast Light Rail 13km Passenger light rail

North Coast Line 1600km Containerised freight, general freight, agriculture, cattle, coal, passengers

Mt Isa 1000km Containerised freight, general freight, agriculture, cattle, minerals, passengers

Tablelands 460km Passenger trains

Central West 780km General freight, agriculture, cattle, coal, mineral trains, passenger trains

Western 1100km General freight, agriculture, cattle, coal and mineral trains, passenger trains

West Moreton 314km Grain, coal

South Western 610km Agriculture, passenger trains (Tourist and heritage).

Moura 228km Coal trains

Blackwater 985km Containerised freight, general freight, agriculture, cattle, minerals

Newlands 220km Coal trains

Goonyella 924km Coal trains

Interstate Line 100km Containerised freight and general freight trains, passenger trains

Figure 2: Aurizon coal train, photo courtesy of Aurizon


Accredited Rail Transport Operators in QueenslandQueensland’s rail transport industry is made up of a very diverse group of organisations. Rail transport operators range from major corporations operating thousands of kilometres of freight, coal or passenger services, to the enthusiastic volunteers who operate small historic and tourist railways. There are also 31 registered private sidings owned by organisations that are not rail transport operators, for example mining companies, but are used to load bulk commodities on to rail wagons. A list of registered private sidings is in Appendix 2.

Rail transport operators in Queensland must be accredited in accordance with the Act. The Act specifically requires operators to demonstrate that they have the competence and capacity to operate rail, that they have appropriate funding, effective management and control of their operations and a safety management system in place. Once accredited, rail transport operators are required to demonstrate ongoing compliance with the requirements of the Act through regular audits and compliance inspections. Rail transport operators may be either or both:

• a rail infrastructure manager with control of railway track over which rolling stock operates

• a rolling stock operator, with the right to operate or move rolling stock including locomotives, wagons, passenger carriages or other railway vehicles on railway tracks.

In 2015-16 there were 47 accredited operators of commercial passenger, freight and coal lines, including the new GoldLinQ light rail service on the Gold Coast. The other 20 are tourist and heritage railways, most of which are volunteer based organisations set up to preserve historic rolling stock or rail infrastructure. A further seven small, low risk and isolated railways are exempt from accreditation under the legislation.

Commercial Tourist and Heritage Total

Rolling Stock Operator only 26 5 31

Rail Infrastructure Manager only 3 0 3

Both 18 15 33

Total 47 20 67

Table 2: Accredited railways as at 30 June 2016. Full list is at Appendix 1.

Rail kilometres travelledTotal Rail transport continues to increase in Queensland. The total number of rail kilometres travelled in the state has grown steadily since 2011-12, up from 39.99 million to 45.32 million.

While freight has traditionally been the dominant area of rail transport, the train kilometres carrying freight has remained steady. While the number of freight train kilometres travelled has remained steady since 2011-12, the number of passenger train kilometres travelled on heavy rail network has increased by 25.4 per cent since 2011-12.

Rail type 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

Heavy RailPassenger 15.77 15.67 17.10 18.34 19.75

Freight 24.22 25.28 25.13 24.96 24.46

Light Rail - - - - 1.05 1.11

Total Rail kilometres (millions) 39.99 40.95 42.23 44.35 45.32

Table 3: Rail kilometres travelled


Passenger JourneysTotal passenger journeys have also continued to increase, up from 55.51 million 2011-12 to 60.26 million in 2015-16. The growth in passenger journeys is directly attributable to the introduction of the light rail network.

Table 4: Passenger journeys

Rail type Passenger journeys (millions)

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

Heavy Rail 55.45 52.78 50.39 51.42 51.78

Tourist and Heritage 0.06 0.04 0.04 0.05 0.04

Light Rail - - - 7.71 8.44

Total Rail kilometres (millions) 55.51 52.82 50.43 59.18 60.26

Figure 3: Queensland Rail passenger train, photo courtesy of Queensland Rail Limited

The role of the Rail RegulatorThe Director-General of the TMR is the Rail Regulator in Queensland. Rail regulatory functions are managed within TMR by the Rail Regulation Section, a business section of TMR’s Land Transport Safety Branch (LTS). The Rail Regulator is responsible for administering Queensland’s Transport (Rail Safety) Act 2010 (the Act) and Transport (Rail Safety) Regulation 2010, which align with the National Rail Safety Law and other legislation and policies relating to transport safety in Queensland.

Specifically the role of the Rail Regulator is to enhance rail safety by:

• assessing the competency and capacity of persons when they apply for accreditation as a rail transport operator

• accrediting persons as rail transport operators

• conducting an assessment of the competency and capacity of rail transport operators

• assessing and reviewing documentation from rail transport operators when applying for variations to accreditation and reporting of changes to their operations

• providing education and guidance to rail transport operators

• conducting safety investigations and reviewing rail transport operators’ investigation reports

• conducting risk based compliance activities including:

– audits of rail transport operators’ safety management systems

– inspections of rail transport operators’ procedures and practices

– implementing agreed national rail safety legislation reforms

– collecting and analysing rail safety notifiable occurrence statistics.


Figure 4: Rail Regulation staff, photo courtesy of TMR

In Queensland, rail regulation is conducted in a co-regulatory environment. This means that rail operators are responsible for determining and maintaining safety standards in their own operations, while the Rail Regulator is responsible for reviewing and checking that safety standards are met. Co-regulation is intended to boost productivity and facilitate economic growth by empowering rail transport operators to innovate and take active responsibility for setting and meeting appropriate safety standards. The Rail Regulation Section’s staff are appointed as Rail Safety Officers under the Act. The Rail Regulation Section also acts as the competent authority for the regulation of transport of dangerous goods by rail.

The Rail Regulator has the power to prosecute rail transport operators that fail to comply with safety standards, however, has not been compelled to exercise this power since the Act came into effect in 2010. Rather than take a punitive approach, the Rail Regulation Section seeks to engage with and educate rail transport operators, to build positive and constructive relationships with industry. Co-regulation promotes a culture of transparency and cooperation, in which operators are confident to report rail safety incidents, and to work with the Rail Regulation Section to learn from safety incidents and set up procedures to prevent future occurrences.


Road and Rail Safety SectionA separate business unit within TMR, Land Transport Safety, Road and Rail Safety (Safer Rail), leads rail safety legislation and policy development to support effective rail regulation in Queensland. Safer Rail is responsible for:

• administering rail safety legislation

• facilitating Queensland’s participation in the national rail safety reform process

• implementing TMR’s level crossing safety initiatives under the Queensland Level Crossing Safety Strategy 2012-21

• driving TMR’s rail safety research agenda, including membership in the Australasian Centre for Rail Innovation (ACRI) and managing a TMR Standing Offer Arrangement for rail safety related research

• providing legislation and policy advice to the Minister for Transport and Commonwealth Games, Director-General, and other internal and external stakeholders regarding rail safety matters

• managing national partnership relationships.

During the year, Safer Rail:

• introduced improved fatigue management provisions in the Transport (Rail Safety) Regulation 2010, establishing minimum standard work hours and rest periods for train drivers in Queensland

• progressed the development of the Rail Safety National Law (Queensland) Bill which will transfer rail safety regulation in Queensland to ONRSR

• drafted various policy option papers and held negotiations with ONRSR and the ATSB to ensure Queensland Government interests are reflected in the transition to the national regulator

• led the quarterly meetings of the Queensland Level Crossing Safety Committee to discuss specific actions that aligned with the Queensland Level Crossing Safety Strategy

• hosted and co-sponsored the TrackSAFE Foundation’s second Australasia-wide Level Crossing Safety Forum in Brisbane in June 2016

• provided briefing and logistical support to the Director-General as Chair of the National Level Crossing Safety Committee

• contributed to ACRI research projects.

Level crossing congestion project During the year Safer Rail continued to work with Queensland Rail to address increasing congestion at level crossings, caused by increased traffic and train frequency. Modelling of seven priority level crossings undertaken by the Smart Transport Research Centre as part of the project, demonstrated that significant reductions in congestion could be achieved by:

• better integration of road and rail signalling

• upgrading signalling technology

• reducing the variability in warning times at crossings

• changing road geometry and/or signage.

Following a detailed technical analysis of how to best implement these treatments at priority level crossings, work has started on the implementation of express stopping selection at the Coopers Plains level crossing. Detailed design is now underway and the crossing upgrade is expected to be completed in the first half of 2017.


Part 2: Rail Regulator ActivitiesResource allocationIn 2015-16, the Rail Regulation Section maintained an average of 20 staff in teams consisting of Accreditation and Education, Risk and Audit, Operations and Investigations, and the Directorate. The Safer Rail team within the Roads and Rail Safety Section consisted of five staff members.

TMR aims to provide a stimulating work environment that recognises and values the knowledge and expertise of our people. The Rail Regulation Section brings together a highly experienced team with expertise in auditing, risk management, accreditation and rail investigation, as well as extensive rail industry experience. This combination of professional expertise and hands on industry experience has underpinned the positive and collaborative relationship the Rail Regulation team has established with rail transport operators, and contributed to continued improvement in rail safety in Queensland since 2010.

The section is made up of four teams.

• Directorate is responsible for managing the work program for the section and all corporate actions and communications.

• Accreditation and Education ensure that rail operators have the competency and capacity to conduct rail operations.

• Risk and Audit conduct audits and compliance inspections of rail transport operators.

• Operations and Investigations collect and analyse rail safety notifiable occurrence data and undertake rail safety investigations.

Rail Regulation Section

Work Program 2015-16Key priorities for the period were:

• continued delivery of compliance activities, including compliance inspections and audits

• accreditation and compliance activities to support key state government rail infrastructure projects

• ongoing engagement and collaboration with small rail transport operators through the delivery of a highly effective Education and Awareness program

• collection and analysis of rail safety data and investigation of safety incidents where required

• completion of outstanding interface agreements between road and rail managers

• review of risk management practices for the transportation of dangerous goods by rail

• review of safety standards and practices for the operation of tourist and heritage steam locomotive boiler management systems

• review of factors contributing to a high number of derailments on the Mount Isa Line.

Accreditation and Education TeamThe Rail Regulation Section completed 98 assessments or reviews of accreditation activities in 2015-16, which included one application for new accreditation, 10 variations to existing accreditation and and 87 notifications of change to railway operations. The Accreditation and Education Team extended its Education and Awareness program for smaller rail transport operators and continued to support the delivery of three major new passenger rail projects which will significantly boost South East Queensland’s passenger rail network as they come on line in the next two years.

The Accreditation and Education team work closely with rail transport operators to apply the regulations in a manner that is appropriate to each operators’ size, distances travelled and perceived risk. Large commercial rail transport operators carry people, livestock, bulk commodities and freight many millions of kilometres per year and are subject to a rigorous accreditation process to ensure the safety of employees, passengers, road users and the broader community.


By contrast, many small tourist or heritage railways exist primarily to preserve historic infrastructure and/or rolling stock. These railways generally travel short distances and carry very few passengers and are, therefore, considered low risk. While safety is paramount, volunteer organisations and small tourism operators are crucial to the preservation of Queensland’s rail heritage and it is important that accreditation is achievable and manageable for them. To this end, the team has developed an effective Education and Awareness program with input from across the Rail Regulation Section to help tourist and heritage railways and smaller commercial operators through the accreditation process and with ongoing risk management and compliance.

New Applications for Rail Safety AccreditationIn December 2015, QUBE Logistics (Rail) Pty Ltd was granted accreditation as a rolling stock operator for the operation of freight services from the New South Wales/Queensland border to within the Brisbane Multi User Terminal at Acacia Ridge.

QUBE Logistics (Rail) Pty Ltd has a number of conditions that have to be satisfied prior to undertaking railway operations.

Variations to Rail Safety AccreditationVariations to accreditation are required to be submitted by a rail transport operator when it intends to undertake railway operations that are outside the scope and nature of its current accreditation.

Variation Number

Change of company name 3

Inclusion, removal, or change to specific condition 4

Introduction of new rolling stock 1

Add rail infrastructure manager status 1

Commence passenger operations 1

Table 5: Variation to accreditation 2014-15

Table 6: Notification of Change 2015-16

Notifications of ChangeAn accredited railway is required to notify the Rail Regulator if it proposes to make a change to its rail operations. The notification must be provided at least 28 days prior to the proposed change and allow Rail Regulation to review the change and assess any rail safety risks.

During this period, 86 notifications of change were received.

Decision, event or change Number

Decision to design or construct, or to commission the design or construction of, rolling stock or new railway tracks for the railway operations

12

Introduction into service of rolling stock of a type not previously operated, or re-introduction into service of rolling stock not currently operated, for the railway operations

9

Change to a safety critical element of existing rolling stock used in the railway operations 7

Change to one or more classes of rail infrastructure used in the railway operations 5

Change to a safety standard for the design of rail infrastructure or rolling stock used in the railway operations 6

Decision to adopt a new safety standard for the design of rail infrastructure or rolling stock used in the railway operations 2

Change to the frequency of, or procedures for, inspections or routine maintenance of rail infrastructure or rolling stock used in the railway operations

14

Change to a rule or procedure, of a safe working system, relating to the carrying out of the railway operations 8

Decision to introduce a new rule or procedure, for a safe working system, relating to the carrying out of the railway operations 2

Replacement of the person identified in the safety management system for the railway operations as the contact person for dealing with queries about the system with another person

21


Figure 5: Pacific National freight train, photo courtesy of TMR

Exemptions to Rail Safety AccreditationThe Rail Regulator may exempt a person from requiring rail safety accreditation for the railway operations when it has been assessed as a ‘low risk’ railway. Currently, there are seven small, low risk and isolated railways exempt from accreditation under the legislation. These railways have been assessed as being exempt since the introduction of the Act. Each financial year, Rail Regulation re-examines the scope and nature of these railways to assess they still fulfil the exemption criteria. These exempt railways are assessed as being a low risk to both passengers and the people who operate them. Most of these railways operate at very low speeds over short distances and carry small numbers of people at any one time.

A list of exempted railways is in Appendix 2.

Risk and AuditThe Risk and Audit team are responsible for ensuring that rail transport operators comply with the requirements of the Act. The team delivers a scheduled annual program of audits, compliance inspections and site visits, and responds to emerging safety issues identified through data analysis, confidential reporting and reported safety incidents. The frequency of planned contacts with each rail transport operator is determined by the operator’s inherent risk, based on the size of the network and total kilometres travelled per year, the age and condition of assets and past safety performance. While higher risk operators are scheduled for multiple compliance activities each year, every operational rail transport operator receives at least one programmed contact with the Risk and Audit team.

The Risk and Audit team exceeded its target of 80 compliance activities during the year, compared to a target of 100 activities in 2014-15. The lower target for 2015-16 reflects the shift in focus, since 2010, from policing rail transport operators to education and engagement in a co-regulatory environment and the consequent improvement in safety performance. The team contributed to the Education and Awareness program, providing input on risk identification and management, as part of a move to encourage small commercial and tourist and heritage rail transport operators to effectively manage and improve its own rail safety risks.


AuditsThe Risk and Audit team carried out 26 audits in 2015-16, and identified 21 non-conformances. The non-conformances related to emergency management, rolling stock inspections and corrective actions by tourist and heritage and main line rail transport operators.

Compliance inspections The Risk and Audit team completed 60 compliance inspections and site visits that targeted key aspects of safety management including shunting operations, the safety competency of rail workers and the follow up of corrective actions. There were six issues requiring longer term resolution and all have now been closed. There were no improvement or prohibition notices issued during 2015-16, and one prohibition notice from the previous financial year remains in force. The Rail Regulation Section will continue to work with this operator toward clearance of this prohibition notice, provided serious safety concerns are addressed.

Operations and InvestigationsThe Operations and Investigations team is responsible for investigating serious rail safety incidents, and collecting and analysing data on safety incidents to identify and address potential issues and monitor safety performance in the industry over time. The Act requires rail transport operators to report all notifiable rail safety incidents to the Rail Regulator. Notifiable incidents are those that cause, or could have caused significant property damage, serious injury or death. Incidents with the most serious actual or potential consequences are classified Category A, and less serious notifiable incidents are deemed Category B. Depending on the severity of the incident, the Rail Regulation Section may conduct a compliance investigation to determine whether there has been a breach of the legislation, or a ‘no blame’ investigation to identity and address systemic safety issues.

The most common critical safety incidents investigated by the Operations and Investigations team are level crossing incidents, signals passed at danger, collisions or derailments. The Rail Regulator is also notified of rail safety incidents involving the public, such as slips, trips and falls at railway stations and pedestrian safety incidents at levels crossings. In 2010, the Rail Regulation Section set up a confidential hotline to encourage employees and community members to report safety concerns. While many of the calls received are not directly related to the functions of the Rail Regulator, callers provide important information about a range of potential issues which may be referred to other sections of TMR.

In keeping with the Rail Regulator’s policy of engagement and education, the Operations and Investigations team work closely with rail transport operators to ensure that the requirements of the Act are clearly understood and consistently applied across the industry. This is particularly important in order to avoid the inadvertent under-reporting of safety incidents due to differing interpretations of the Act by operators.

During the year the team was involved in two major rail safety investigations. The first incident involved a collision between an empty Kuranda Scenic Railway train and a bus carrying 17 passengers in Draper Street, Cairns in June 2015 in which a number of people were injured. A ‘no blame’ investigation into the accident was completed in 2015-16 and recommendations from the report have been implemented. In December 2015, an Aurizon locomotive and 26 wagons carrying 820,000 litres of sulfuric acid derailed along the Mount Isa line near Julia Creek, causing significant environmental damage. ATSB is conducting a ‘no blame’ investigation of the incident on behalf of TMR.

Major ProjectsIn addition to its day to day regulatory operations, the Rail Regulation Section also undertook a range of major projects intended to improve rail safety in 2015-16.

Education and Awareness programThe Rail Regulation Section has developed and delivered a comprehensive Education and Awareness Program designed to help tourist and heritage and small commercial operators in particular meet the requirements for accreditation and ongoing compliance. In 2015-16, the Rail Regulation Section conducted six education and information sessions in Brisbane, Ipswich, the Sunshine Coast, Rockhampton, Townsville and Cairns. The sessions were attended by representatives of 22 tourist and heritage and small commercial rail transport operators. The sessions addressed key issues identified by the Rail Regulation Section from compliance activities and safety performance reporting. These included risk management, and how to develop an appropriate risk matrix, continuity of safety during periods of change and asset management and maintenance. The sessions also outlined the requirements around notification of safety incidents, and the use of the innovative new automated accreditation smart forms developed and introduced by the Rail Regulation Section in 2014-15.


Review of tourist and heritage steam locomotive boiler management systems In 2014-15 the Rail Regulation Section undertook a major review of the current regulations, safety standards and practices in relation to steam locomotive boiler systems. The review was prompted by the recognition that Work Health and Safety legislation may not cover the steam locomotives operated by many of Queensland’s 20 tourist and heritage railway operators. During the year, a specialist project team reviewed and documented the legal requirements for inspecting, maintaining, repairing, modifying and operating a steam locomotive boiler in Queensland to establish ‘best practice.’ This process enabled the team to develop an assessment tool to rate all tourist and heritage operators against best practice, and identify areas for improvement.

Review of transportation of dangerous goods by rail The Rail Regulation Section launched a review of the risk management practices of rail transport operators involved in carrying dangerous goods, following serious rail accidents involving hazardous goods in Australia and Canada. The audit is expected to identify the type and quantity of dangerous goods being transported on the rail network in Queensland.

Level crossing occurrences analysisDuring the year the Rail Regulation Section completed a detailed analysis of data on collisions at level crossings across Queensland between 2009 and 2015. Accidents at level crossings are a major risk for the rail network, with nine collisions between trains and road vehicles, and one death, on average each year. The review identified high risk level crossings, at which multiple accidents had occurred. Significantly, it also found that many accidents at level crossings over the period were caused by high risk behaviours by members of the public. More than half of all collisions between road vehicles and trains occurred at intersections with the highest level of protection – boom gates and/or flashing lights, and 79 per cent occurred because drivers ignored warning signs and failed to stop. Further, 85 per cent of near miss incidents involving pedestrians took place at level crossings with fully operational boom gates and/or flashing lights.

Figure 6: Warwick steam locomotive and carriages, photo courtesy of Sothern Downs Steam Railway


Interface agreements The interface between road and rail infrastructure is a key safety issue. The Rail Regulation Section continues to work with local councils and rail transport operators during 2015-16 to facilitate the completion of interface agreements. At 30 June 2016, the majority of agreements are in place, with approximately seven remaining in consultation for completion.

Mount Isa Line derailment reportThe 1000 kilometre Mount Isa Line provides a critical transport link between some of Australia’s largest mineral deposits and the coast. Between 2008 and 2013 there were 151 derailments on the Mount Isa Line. This abnormally high number of derailments prompted a detailed investigation by the Rail Regulation Section, and its report, the Mount Isa Line Derailment Analysis 2008 – 2013 was made public in October 2015. The report made a number of recommendations to be pursued by the Rail Regulation Section. In response to a key recommendation of the report, the Minister for Transport and the Commonwealth Games announced the establishment of the Mount Isa Line Safety Working Group in early 2016.

New rail infrastructure The Rail Regulation Section continued to monitor safety and performance over rail transport infrastructure projects during the year.

Moreton Bay Rail Link The Moreton Bay Rail Link from Petrie to Kippa-Ring moved into the testing and commissioning phase during the year. The Rail Regulation Section has worked closely with the project team throughout the project’s inception and development. During the year the Risk and Audit team conducted seven compliance inspections and audits to ensure this significant investment in new rail infrastructure is fully compliant with Queensland’s exacting rail safety regulations.

Gold Coast Light Rail (Stage 2)In April 2016 GoldLinQ Pty Ltd was granted a variation to accreditation to construct Stage 2 of the Gold Coast Light Rail system (GCLR). The construction will include 7.3 kilometres of dual gauge track from Southport (Gold Coast University Hospital station) to Helensvale (new station) and associated infrastructure including two rail bridges. The project includes construction of three new Light Rail Vehicle (LRV) stations at Parkwood East, Parkwood and Helensvale and two new roads at the LRV depot to accommodate four new LRVs.

Stage 2 of the GCLR will include the construction of the Queensland Rail Limited, Helensvale station expansion at the end of the light rail platform and a new pedestrian overpass to join the new station canopy with the existing Queensland Rail Helensvale station.

Stage 2 construction will continue throughout 2016-17 followed by testing and commissioning activities toward the latter part of 2017.

New Generation Rolling StockQueensland Rail will roll out the first of its 75 new six car trains in the second half of 2016, as part of a $4.4 billion project to upgrade its passenger services and expand capacity by 30 per cent. The new trains are being delivered through a partnership between the State Government and Qtectic, a consortium, including Bombardier Transportation Australia Pty Ltd (BTA). Testing and commissioning of the first train began in mid-2016. Over the coming months the new trains will be subjected to rigorous testing to ensure that Queensland Rail’s operational and safety standards for passenger service are met. During this phase, the Rail Regulation Section will review the processes and outcomes of the testing and commissioning program and, if satisfied, permit mainline passenger operations. The project also includes construction of a purpose-built maintenance centre at Wulkuraka, west of Ipswich to service and repair the new trains for the next 30 years. The Rail Regulation section accredited BTA for the construction and operation of the depot in 2014-15, and continues to review its operations in the lead up to final acceptance of the Wulkuraka Maintenance Facility by the State Government in mid-2016.


In Queensland, rail transport operators are required to report notifiable occurrences to the Rail Regulator. The collection and analysis of this rail safety data is a key function of the Rail Regulator in Queensland. This data is used to monitor rail safety performance and identify emerging risks.

For the purposes of analysis and reporting, each notifiable occurrence report received is classified according to the national Occurrence Classification – Guideline One (OC-G1). The unit of classification is the top event of an occurrence, which is defined as the event with the greatest adverse outcome, expressed in terms of injury, property damage or accident. A list of incident types is included in Appendix 4.

An occurrence is also classified by seriousness into either a Category A or Category B occurrence. Sections 31 and 32 of the Transport (Rail Safety) Regulation 2010 provide guidance on whether a notifiable occurrence is classified as Category A or Category B.

Category A notifiable occurrences are an event which is one or more of the following:

• an accident or incident that has caused significant property damage, serious injury or death

• a running line derailment

• a running line collision between rolling stock

• a collision at a railway crossing between rolling stock and either a road vehicle or a person

• a fire or explosion on or in rail infrastructure or rolling stock that affects the safe carrying out of the railway operations or has endangered one or more persons

• a terrorist attack or an act or event suspected to be a terrorist attack

• an accident or incident involving an inadequacy in the safety management system for the railway operations that could have caused significant property damage, serious injury or death.

There were 50 Category A safety incidents in 2015-16, a decrease of 33.3 per cent compared to 2014-15 and a decrease of 50.5 per cent on Category A average of 101 over the preceding four years.

There were 11,933 Category B occurrences reported in 2015-16.

Part 3: Rail Safety Performance

Figure 7: New Generation Rolling Stock at Wulkuraka Maintenance Facility, photo courtesy of TMR


Figure 8: Notifiable occurrences by category level

Category type 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

Category A 133 94 102 75 50

Category B 10,720 12,469 13,903 11,977 11,933

Total notifiable occurrences 10,853 12,563 14,005 12,052 11,983

There were no fatalities reported in 2015-16, compared to five in 2014-15 and an annual average of 4.3 fatalities between 2011-12 and 2014-15.

There have been 17 rail safety fatalities in Queensland since 2011-12. This excludes suspected suicides, fatalities as a result of an assault and fatalities due to natural causes.

Of the 17 fatalities over the past five years, 59 per cent can be considered a direct result of railway operations. These are collisions between road vehicles or persons at level crossings or on the running line and fatalities as a result of any safeworking breach. The balance, considered incidental to railway operations, were caused by slips, trips or falls and railway trespass incidents.

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

3,500

4,000

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

Cat

B o

ccur

renc

es

Cat

A o

ccur

renc

es

Cat B occurrences Cat A occurrences Cat A Trendline

Table 7: Notifiable occurrences (excluding suicides, assaults and natural causes) by category type

Category A notifiable occurrences

Fatalities (excluding suicides and assaults and natural causes)


Type 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 Total Fatalities %

Direct result of railway operations

Running line collisions 1 1 1 2 0 5 29%

Level crossing collisions 3 0 1 0 0 4 24%

Safeworking breach 0 0 0 1 0 1 6%

Fatalities as a direct result of railway operations 4 1 2 3 0 10 59%

Incidental to railway operations

Slips, trips or falls 2 0 0 1 0 3 18%

Railway trespass 2 0 0 1 0 2 12%

Other 1 0 0 0 0 2 12%

Fatalities incidental to railway operations 5 0 0 2 0 7 41%

Total Fatalities (excl. suicides and assaults) 9 1 2 5 0 17 100%

Of the 17 fatalities reported since 2011-12, the total included nine people trespassing within the rail corridor, five members of the general public, two passengers and one employee.

Serious Injuries (excluding attempted suicides, assaults and pre-existing medical conditions)During the year, nine persons were admitted to hospital as the result of a serious injury incurred on railway property, compared to 20 in 2014-15. This is below the average of 21 serious injuries reported each year over the preceding four years.

Slips, trips and falls continue to be a major cause of hospitalisations and resulted in seven serious injuries in 2015-16, compared to 14 in 2014-15. The majority of slips, trips and falls occur on stairs, ramps or escalators in railway stations, rather than on trains, or while entering or leaving trains.

In contrast to fatalities, a greater proportion of serious injuries are considered incidental to railway operations (79 per cent of serious injuries since 2011-12. These are primarily the slip, trip or fall occurrences (89 per cent of hospitalisations incidental to railway operations). Of the slips, trips or falls, the majority (68 per cent since 2011-12) occur on stairs, ramps and escalators at stations or on station concourses rather than occur while on a train or while entering or leaving trains.

Table 9 shows the number of serious injuries reported by financial year and by type of occurrence.

Type 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 Total %

Direct result of railway operations

Running line collisions 1 5 0 1 1 8 %

Level crossing collisions 3 1 3 2 1 10 %

Yard collisions 1 0 0 0 0 1 %

Serious injuries as a direct result of railway operations 5 6 3 3 2 19 %

Incidental to railway operations Slips, trips or falls 16 15 13 14 7 65 %

Railway trespass 0 1 1 2 0 4 %

Other 1 0 2 1 0 4 %

Serious injuries incidental to railway operations 17 16 16 17 7 73 %

Total Serious injuries 22 22 19 20 9 92 100%

Of the 92 serious injuries reported since 2011-12, the total included 47 passengers, 30 members of the public, 11 trespassers and four employees.

Details of serious incidents reported in 2015-16 are in Appendix 3.

Table 9: Serious injuries (excluding attempted suicides, assaults and pre-existing medical conditions)

Table 8: Fatalities (excluding suicides and assaults and natural causes)


Derailments - running lineRunning line derailments are of primary concern because of the potentially severe consequences associated with higher track speeds and multi-fatality potential in regards to passenger trains.

There were 17 running line derailments reported in 2015-16. This is the same number of running line derailments that were reported in 2014-15, however, a 31.3 per cent decrease on the annual average of 24.8 derailments a year between 2011-12 and 2014-15. Of the 17 running line derailments, thirteen (76.5 per cent) were freight trains while the other four were track maintenance vehicles. There were no passenger train derailments reported in 2015-16.

Seven (41.2 per cent) running line derailments occurred on the Mount Isa line, three were along the central coal network, three along the south-western line west of Toowoomba, two within the Brisbane metropolitan region and two north of Innisfail.

While the trendline shows a steady decline in running line derailments reported over the past five years, the fact there were eight running line derailments in the second quarter of 2015-16 show that there is still a need for both operators and the Rail Regulator to remain vigilant.

Figure 9: Category A running line derailments, Queensland, 2011-12 to 2015-16 by quarter

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16


CollisionsThe number of Category A running line collisions has remained relatively constant over the past five years ranging from five to seven collisions. In 2015-16 there were seven Category A running line collisions which is an increase on 2014-15 and on the previous four year average.

Of the seven running line collisions, the total included three between rolling stock, one between trains, one with a person, one with a road vehicle not at a level crossing and one with a piece of rail infrastructure.

Figure 10: Category A running line collisions, Queensland, 2011-12 to 2015-16 by quarter

Level Crossing CollisionsThere were four Category A level crossing collisions in 2015-16. This is slightly lower on the five reported the previous year, however, significantly lower at 61.9 per cent than the average of the previous four years of 10.5 collisions.

There were no fatalities as a result of collisions at level crossings in 2015-16. Three level crossing collisions were with road vehicles and the other was with a person.

Of the 46 collisions at level crossings since 2011-12, 40 involved road vehicles and the other six involved pedestrians. There have been four fatalities as a result of level crossing collisions since 2011-12.

Figure 11: Level crossing collisions with persons and road vehicles, Queensland, 2011-12 to 2015-16 by quarter

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16


Figure 12: Category A SPADs, Queensland, 2011-12 to 2015-16 by quarter

Signal Passed at Danger (SPAD)A SPAD is an occurrence where a train passes a signal without authority. A SPAD is a precursor safety occurrence, in that it could result in a serious rail safety incident should other safety mechanisms fail.

There are five subcategories of SPAD. Of these five, three are caused by train crew error: ‘driver misjudged’, ‘completely missed while running’ and ‘starting against signal.’

A train crew error SPAD is deemed Category A when a train passes a stop signal while another train is occupying the same section of track. There were five Category A train crew error SPADs reported in 2015-16 out of a total of 77 SPADs. This compares to 15 Category A SPADs in 2014-15 out of 84 SPADs.

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16


Category B notifiable occurrences

Derailments - YardThere were 79 yard derailments in 2015-16, which was a decrease of 7.1 per cent compared to the 85 yard derailments in 2014-15 and a decrease of 39.3 per cent on the annual average of 130.3 over the preceding four years.

Despite the comparatively high frequency of yard derailments, they are generally low risk incidents involving low-speed movements of freight rolling stock and empty passenger sets.

CollisionsDuring the year there were 473 Category B running line collisions, compared to 428 in 2014-15. Of these, 234 involved collisions with animals, 212 involved obstructions such as tree branches, landslip or objects intentionally left on track, 20 collisions with infrastructure such as station platforms and seven minor collisions with persons, vehicles or rolling stock.

There were 37 yard collisions reported in 2015-16, which is well below the 53 reported in 2014-15, and the average annual of 47.4 over the previous four years. Of these, 22 were collisions with infrastructure, seven with obstructions, four with rolling stock and four with an animal, person or road vehicle

Level Crossing Near MissesA near miss is any occurrence where the driver of a moving train takes emergency action or has insufficient time to take emergency action to avoid a collision at a level crossing, however, no collision occurs. Incidents where the driver did not take emergency action and vehicles or people crossed when lights were flashing or gates were closed are not reported as near misses.

While the number of near misses with road vehicles has decreased every year since 2011-12, there was an increase in the number of near misses with persons reported in 2015-16 from 2014-15. There were 210 near misses with road vehicles and 122 near misses with persons reported in 2015-16, compared to 218 and 110 respectively in 2014-15, which was a decrease of 3.7 per cent and an increase of 10.9 per cent respectively.

Boom StrikesA boom strike occurs when a road vehicle collides with the boom gates at a level crossing. There were 100 reported boom strikes in 2015-16, an increase of 4.2 per cent on the 96 reported boom strikes the previous year, however, a decrease of 31.2 per cent on the annual average of 145.3 reported over the preceding four years.

Signal Passed at DangerThere were 77 train crew error SPADs reported in the 2015-16 financial year. This is 11.5 per cent below the annual average of 87 SPADs over the preceding four years. Of the 77 SPADs, 5 (6.5 per cent) were classified as Category A occurrences.

Other Category B occurrencesDetails on other Category B occurrences can be found in Appendix 4.


Programmed activities • Deliver 80 based compliance activities and verify outstanding non-compliances from 2015-16. Focus areas for

compliance activities will include assurance activities of the major projects.

• Build on the successful program of education and awareness sessions for tourist and heritage and small commercial operators, with a strong focus on the transition to national regulations.

• Manage, analyse and distribute rail safety data.

• Achieve a successful transition of rail regulatory functions to the Office of the National Rail Safety Regulator.

Safety improvement projects • Review the safety and accreditation requirements for wagon positioning systems associated with rail transport

operations, following a serious safety incident involving an indexer.

• Review of registration requirements relating to private sidings.

• Develop and implement safety guidelines for steam boiler operation and management.

• Progress Mount Isa Line Safety Working Group recommendations to improve safety on the Mount Isa Line.

• Safer rail will continue to work on the implementation of improved safety mechanisms at priority level crossings.

Major Projects • Accredit new generation rolling stock for delivery in 2016-17.

• Conduct compliance inspections and audits of the Moreton Bay Rail Link prior to its commissioning in 2016.

• Conduct compliance inspections and audits during the construction of Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 2.

Part 4: Priorities for 2016-17

Figure 13: GoldLinQ Light Rail Gold Coast crossing the Nerang River, photo courtesy of GoldLinQ Pty Ltd.


OrganisationRail

Infrastructure Manager

Rolling Stock Operator

CommercialTourist and

HeritageDate Accredited

3801 Limited ✓ ✓ 29.09.2005

Adani Mining Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 31.07.2012

Airtrain Citylink Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 14.10.1998

ATEC Freight Terminals Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 18.04.2013

Atherton–Herberton Historic Railway Inc ✓ ✓ ✓ 01.11.2010

Aurizon Network Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 01.07.2010

Aurizon Operations Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 01.07.2010

Australia Eastern Railroad Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 01.09.2008

Australian Narrow Gauge Railway Museum Society ✓ ✓ ✓ 19.06.1997

Australian Rail Track Corporation Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 15.01.2010

Australian Railway Historical Society ✓ ✓ ✓ 19.06.1997

Australian Society of Section Car Operators Inc ✓ ✓ 05.03.2002

Australian Terminal Operations Management Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 21.12.2015

Australian Tube Mills Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 30.03.2004

BM Alliance Coal Operations Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 01.06.2012

Bombardier Transportation Australia Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 05.02.2008

Brand Productions Corporate ✓ ✓ 10.12.2010

Broadspectrum (Australia) Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 21.01.2016

Bundaberg Steam Tramway Preservation Society Inc ✓ ✓ ✓ 17.11.2011

Cairns Kuranda Steam ✓ ✓ ✓ 14.05.2001

Cement Australia Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 09.12.2013

Coleman Rail Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 01.05.2013

Copper Refineries Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 15.06.2010

CPB Contractors Pty Limited ✓ ✓ 01.09.2015

Darling Downs Historical Rail Society Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 21.10.2008

Downer EDI Rail Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 15.10.2009

Downer EDI Works Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 01.04.2010

Freightliner Australia Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 14.05.2007

Friends of Archer Park Station and Steam Tram Museum ✓ ✓ ✓ 21.7.2014

Genesee and Wyoming Australia Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 25.11.2002

Ginger Headquarters Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 04.11.2013

GoldLinQ Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 03.05.2011

GrainCorp Operations Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 19.04.2000

Appendix 1: Accredited Rail Transport Operators as at 30 June 2016


OrganisationRail

Infrastructure Manager

Rolling Stock Operator

CommercialTourist and

HeritageDate Accredited

Great Southern Rail Limited ✓ ✓ 20.05.2003

Incitec Pivot Limited ✓ ✓ 15.03.2013

Interail Australia Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 26.03.2002

John Holland Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 10.08.2009

Kuranda Scenic Travel ✓ ✓ 01.8.2014

Laing O'Rourke Australia Construction Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 05.12.2011

Lend Lease Engineering Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 10.8.2012

Mary Valley Heritage Rail Museum ✓ ✓ ✓ 23.04.1998

Maryborough City Whistle Stop Committee ✓ ✓ 04.11.1999

McConnell Dowell Constructions Australia Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 08.11.2010

Northern Longhaul Railroad Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 01.3.2014

NSW Trains ✓ ✓ 01.07.2013

Pacific National Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 28.06.2002

Port Douglas Steam Train Company Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 15.04.2003

Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 11.11.1999

QUBE Logistics (Rail) Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 09.12.2015

Queensland Nickel Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 18.04.2013

Queensland Pioneer Steam Railway Co-Operative Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 01.07.1997

Queensland Rail Limited ✓ ✓ ✓ 01.07.2000

Rattler Railway Company Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 01.05.2015

Ravenshoe Railway Co Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 03.10.2006

Rhomberg Rail Australia Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 01.06.2012

Rockhampton Regional Council ✓ ✓ ✓ 13.06.2008

SCT Logistics ✓ ✓ 01.05.2007

Southern Downs Steam Railway Association ✓ ✓ ✓ 29.05.2002

Taylor Rail Australia Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 30.10.2014

Texas & Inglewood Heritage Railway Society Inc. ✓ ✓ ✓ 27.08.2015

The Big Pineapple Corporation Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ ✓ 02.04.2013

The Brisbane Tramway Museum Society ✓ ✓ ✓ 21.11.2013

The Rail Motor Society Incorporated ✓ ✓ 14.11.2008

Transport Heritage NSW Ltd ✓ ✓ 03.04.1998

UGL Rail Service Pty Ltd ✓ ✓ 24.9.2013

Viva Energy Australia Ltd ✓ ✓ 22.10.2014

Wilmar Sugar Australia Limited ✓ ✓ ✓ 22.12.2000


Figure 14: Spirit of the Outback crossing new rail infrastructure on the Central West Line, photo courtesy of Queensland Rail Limited


Appendix 2: Private Siding Operators and Exempted Operators as at 30 June 2016

Organisation Siding Date Registered

AWB Grainflow Pty Ltd Jondaryan AWB Siding 07.11.2013

AWB Grainflow Pty Ltd Talwood AWB Siding 07.11.2013

AWB Grainflow Pty Ltd The Gums AWB Siding 07.11.2013

BHP Billiton Minerals Pty Ltd BHP Billiton Cannington Tippler 11.12.2013

BlueScope Steel (AIS) Pty Ltd BlueScope Steel 25.11.2013

Board of the Queensland Museum The Workshops Rail Museum 07.11.2013

Bowen Coke Pty Ltd Bowen Coke 24.10.2014

Australian Terminal Operations Management Pty Ltd BP Cloncurry 07.11.2013

Australian Terminal Operations Management Pty Ltd BP Port of Townsville 07.11.2013

Carrington Ginning Pty Ltd Carrington 07.11.2013

Cement Australia Pty Ltd NACL Cairns 07.11.2013

Cement Australia Pty Ltd QCL Sidings 07.11.2013

Gladstone Ports Corporation Limited K&S 07.11.2013

Glencore Port Operations Glencore Port Operations 09.12.2013

Incitec Pivot Limited Mount Isa Acid Sidings 25.11.2013

Incitec Pivot Limited Phosphate Hill 11.12.2013

Incitec Pivot Tippler Incitec Pivot Tippler 07.11.2013

Jaid Pty Ltd & Tremos Pty Ltd Owanyilla Balloon Loop 07.11.2013

Louis Dreyfus Warehousing Cotton (Dunavants) 07.11.2013

Mount Isa Mines MIM Siding 07.11.2013

Namoi Cotton Alliance Namoi Cotton Alliance 26.06.2014

New Acland Coal Pty Ltd (NAC) Jondaryan Coal Siding 07.11.2013

Orrcon Manufacturing Pradella (Orrcon) Siding 23.11.2014

QGC Pty Ltd QGC Siding Rainby 18.07.2014

Queensland Sugar Limited Sugar Roads 25.02.2014

Queensland Sugar Limited Bulk Sugar Terminal Mackay 25.02.2014

Teys Australia Pty Ltd Siding (cattle siding owned by Teys) 07.11.2013

The Shell Company of Australia Limited Shell Cloncurry 07.11.2013

The Shell Company of Australia Limited Shell Mt Isa 07.11.2013

The Shell Company of Australia Limited Shell Townsville 07.11.2013

UGL Rail (North Queensland) Pty Ltd Goninans 07.11.2013


Exempted Organisation Date Exempted

Bell Progress & Heritage Association Inc 02.06.2014

Bundaberg Railway Historical Society Inc 20.01.2014

Hervey Bay Historical Village and Museum 20.12.2013

Nambour and District Historical Museum Association Inc. 19.08.2013

Ram DTC as trustee for R.A. McCosker Family Trust (Quoin Island Retreat Railway) 22.07.2013

Rotary Club of Emerald Inc 16.09.2013

Tinbeerwah Mountain Railway 01.10.2011


Appendix 3: Serious incidents, 2015-16In the 2015-16 financial year there were nine serious rail safety incidents. Each of the listed incidents resulted in a serious injury to a person.

Date QT Reference Number

Description Description

28 July 2015 5146 Slip, Trip or Fall An elderly female passenger detraining at Cooparoo station misjudged the step falling on to the platform and cracking her shoulder. QAS have attended and conveyed her to hospital where she was admitted..

31 August 2015 5155 Slip, Trip or Fall An elderly lady fell down the stairs at Sherwood station and was transported by QAS to hospital.

27 September 2015 5161 Collision At 9.49pm a female was struck by a train within the corridor just north of Trinder Park station. The female was transported to the hospital by QAS

19 October 2015 5170 Slip, Trip or Fall An elderly female passenger has fallen on platform 4/5 at Roma Street station. The passenger had her hand on the hand rail maintaining 3 points of contact when the handrail has allegedly stopped. QAS have attended and transported customer to hospital for treatment.

24 November 2015 5186 Slip, Trip or Fall A male person tripped from stairs or platform at Southbank station. The male was taken to hospital with lacerations on arms and legs and 2 dislocated wrists. The male was a special needs person with literacy issues and unable to identify himself to the hospital.

21 January 2016 5209 Slip, Trip or Fall A female passenger in a wheel chair was left onboard a service by her ‘carer’ who has departed on a different service. The brakes on her wheel chair were not applied and this caused the passenger to roll out of the train and strike the platform with her face.

4 May 2016 5239 Slip, Trip or Fall A male person was located in car park of Robina station sitting near a large pool of blood. The male has allegedly fallen off their bicycle but due to memory loss could not supply any information as to how this has occurred. QAS have attended and transported male to hospital where he was admitted for treatment.

10 May 2016 5241 Level Crossing Occurrence

A train approaching Holmview struck a person on the northern side of the Spanns Road level crossing. Rail operations response unit advised the person had been clipped by train, has cuts and bruising. The male person struck by train was taken to hospital by QAS and admitted with non-life threatening injuries.

10 June 2016 5249 Slip, Trip or Fall Male passenger detraining via ramp to platform has fallen due to ramp collapsing. Male has been transported to hospital for treatment for injuries. Male has stated the ramp has collapsed due to not being steadied as he has rolled onto it resulting in it collapsing.


Appendix 4: Notifiable occurrences, 2011-12 to 2015-16Queensland’s rail transport operators are required under the Act to report on rail safety occurrences.

Number of selected notifiable occurrences, Queensland, 2011-12 to 2015-16

Occurrence Type* / Financial Year 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 Ave 2011-12 to 2014-15

Running line derailments 36 26 20 17 17 24.8

Yard line derailments 149 187 100 85 79 130.3

Running line collisions – category A 6 7 5 5 7 5.8

Running line collisions - all 385 438 516 433 480 443.0

Yard collisions 45 52 50 53 37 47.4

Level crossing collisions - persons 2 1 2 0 1 1.2

Level crossing collisions - road vehicle 10 13 9 5 3 8.0

Level crossing near misses - persons 203 126 113 110 122 134.8

Level crossing near misses - road vehicle 372 352 227 218 210 275.8

Level crossing boom strikes 164 175 146 96 100 145.3

SPAD - train crew error 76 98 90 84 77 85.0

SPAD - Technical 291 279 293 266 234 272.6

Proceed Authority Exceeded - train crew error 7 6 8 5 4 6.0

Slip, trip or fall 561 572 667 559 516 575.0

Track and civil infrastructure irregularities 811 1089 822 723 568 802.6

Safeworking rule or procedure breach 167 122 107 136 195 145.4

Load irregularities 407 442 317 144 113 284.6

Electrical infrastructure irregularities 161 108 88 114 133 120.8

Rolling Stock irregularities 610 449 639 284 231 442.6

* Not all OC-G1 occurrence types are included in table

The following figures show rail safety occurrences by occurrence type for the five years from 2011-12 to 2015-16 on a quarterly basis.


Derailments

Figure 15: Running Line Derailments

A running line derailment is any derailment that affects the safe operation of a running line. There were 17 running line derailments reported in 2015-16. This is the same as reported in 2014-15 but a decrease of 31.3 per cent on the yearly average reported between 2011-12 and 2014-15 (average 24.8 derailments per year).

Figure 16: Yard Derailments

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

A yard derailment is any derailment other than a running line derailment. There were 79 yard derailments in 2015-16, six less than the 85 reported in 2014-15 and 39.3 per cent below the annual average of 130.3 over the preceding four years.


Figure 17: Running Line Collisions

Collisions

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180Q

tr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

There were 480 running line collisions reported in 2015-16. This was a 10.9 per cent increase on 2014-15 and an 8.4 per cent increase on the yearly average reported between 2011-12 and 2014-15. Seven of these collisions were Category A occurrences.

Apart from the Category A collisions the remainder included 234 running line collisions with an animal, 212 with an obstruction on the track, 20 with infrastructure and seven other running line collisions.

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

Figure 18: Yard Collisions

There were 37 yard collisions reported in 2015-16. This was a 30.2 per cent decrease on 2014-15 and a 26.0 per cent decrease on the yearly average reported between 2012-13 and 2014-15.


Level Crossing Occurrences

Figure 19: Level Crossing Collisions with vehicles or persons

Figure 20: Level crossing reported near misses with vehicles and persons

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

In 2015-16 there were four level crossing collisions in Queensland, of which three were with road vehicles and one with persons. This is 61.9 per cent below the annual average of 10.5 collisions over the preceding four years.

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

Vehicles Persons

In 2015-16, there were 332 near misses at levels crossing in Queensland, an increase of 1.2 per cent on 2014-15. Of these 210 were with road vehicles and 122 with pedestrians. While the number of near misses with motor vehicles decreased by 3.7 per cent from 2014-15, the number of near misses with persons increased by 10.9, although both reported figures below the previous four year average (28.1 per cent and 11.6 per cent respectively).


Figure 21: Boom strikes

Figure 22: Train crew error SPADs

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

There were 100 boom strikes in 2015-16, compared to 95 in 2014-15. The number of boom strikes reported in 2015-16 is 31.2 per cent below the annual average of 145.3 boom strikes over the preceding four years.

Signals passed at danger (SPAD)

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

There were 77 train crew error SPADs in Queensland in 2015-16, of these five were Category A. This compares to 84 reported in 2014-15, and is 11.5 per cent below the annual average of 87 over the preceding four years.


Figure 23: Technical Error SPADS

Figure 24: Exceed limit of authority occurrences

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

There were 234 technical error SPADs in 2015-16, compared to 266 in 2014-15 and 17.1 per cent below the annual average of 282.3 over the four years prior.

Other notifiable occurrences

Any incident in which a train exceeds the limits of authorised movements is reported. During the year there were four exceed limit of authority incidents in Queensland compared to five in 2014-15.The 2015-16 figure is 38.5 per cent below the annual average of 6.5 between 2011-12 and 2014-15.

0

1

2

3

4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16


Figure 25: Track and civil infrastructure irregularities

Figure 26: Safeworking rule or procedure breach

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

Track and civil irregularities are any irregularity in the track or civil infrastructure that does or could endanger the safety of railway operations, property or persons. It includes broken rail, misalignment of track and spread track, but excludes irregularities detected in normal maintenance.

In 2015-16 there were 568 track and civil irregularities reported in Queensland, compared to 723 in 2014-15. This is 34.0 per cent below the annual average of 861.3 over the preceding four years.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

A safeworking or procedure breach is any breach of an operational safeworking system or procedure that does or could endanger the safety of railway operations or persons. It includes breaches such as intentional or unintentional human failures, and failure to act on information or comply with directions. It excludes system failures identified as part of standard inspection and maintenance programs.

In 2015-16 there were 195 safeworking rule or procedure breaches reported in Queensland. This 43.4 per cent above the 139 reported in 2014-15 and 46.6 per cent above the annual average of 133.0 over the four years prior.


Figure 28: Electrical infrastructure irregularities

Figure 27: Load Irregularities

0

40

80

120

160

200

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

Load irregularities include situations where the load endangers, or has the potential to endanger the safety of railway operations, persons or premises and/or causes damage. It includes open or incorrectly secured doors, loads that are placed or shifted out of gauge, load spills, uneven distribution of loads, loose load fastenings and overloading.

In 2015-16 there were 113 load irregularities reported in Queensland, compared to 144 reported the previous financial year and 65.5 per cent below the annual average of 327.5 over the preceding four years.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

Electrical infrastructure irregularities are any irregularity in an electrical component that results in an electrical accident or has the potential to endanger the safety of railway operations, persons or premises. It includes fixed electrical equipment, defects in supply, derwirement or entanglements, failure of overhead line equipment and wiring.

In 2015-16 there were 133 electrical infrastructure irregularities reported in Queensland. This compares to 114 in 2014-15 and is 13.0 per cent above the annual average of 117.8 over the four years prior.


Figure 29: Rolling stock irregularities

0

40

80

120

160

200

240

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

Qtr1

Qtr2

Qtr3

Qtr4

2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16

These include irregularities to rolling stock such as wheel, axle or bearing failures, train parting, braking system failures and faulty passenger doors.

In 2015-16 there were 231 rolling stock irregularities reported in Queensland, compared to 284 in 2014-15, and the annual average of 495.5 over the preceding four years.


Notes:

Rail Regulator’s Report 2015-16 - tmr.qld.gov.au › ... ›...

Documents

Transcript of Rail Regulator’s Report 2015-16 - tmr.qld.gov.au › ... ›...