On 3 July the UIC Safety Platform Steering Group meeting took place in Vienna under the leadership of Peter Kleinschuster (ÖBB Infrastructure).
On the afternoon of the previous day, ÖBB organised two very interesting technical excursions:
- A special trip in the cabin of the ÖBB “Railjet” train set on the new Vienna
St. Pölten high speed line equipped with ETCS Level 2; - A visit to Vienna’s new main railway station, including information about the changes of rail traffic operation through Vienna and the planned construction of the area around the station.
During the “informal session” (first part of the meeting) the participants were informed about significant developments in the field of railway safety, accidents and incidents.
The Chairmen of the Safety Platform Working Groups presented the results and next steps of their work:
System Safety Management Group” (SSMG)/CER Safety Support Group:
- Risk acceptance criteria for technical systems (RAC TS)
- Rules and activities of actors in the railway production chain
- The ERA proposal to create a “Single Safety Certificate”
- The ERA “Quick response” procedure
- Meeting with ILGGRI (International Liaison Group of Governmental Railway Inspectorates) on 23 April
- Meeting with EIM (European Rail Infrastructure Managers) on 22 May
Occupational Health and Safety Group (OHSG):
- Management of noise risk in the work place
- Contractor Safety
- Dust and fumes
- Statistics on safety at work
Human Factors WG:
- Information about the ERA Human Factors Network
- Safety Management and Safety Culture
- Integrating Human Factors into businesses
Safety Performance Group (SPG)/Safety Database (SDB):
- SDB Activity Report
- Benchmarking of selected events
International Railway Safety Network (IRSN):
- Results of questionnaires on safety-related issues
- Information exchange about accidents and incidents
Isabelle Fonverne informed participants about activities on Level Crossing Safety:
- International Level Crossing Awareness Day (ILCAD) on 7 May 2013, during the “2nd UN Global Road Safety Week”; www.ilcad.org hosted by UN ECE in Geneva with an international press conference, a round table and a dedicated ILCAD exhibition.
- Multidisciplinary group on level crossing safety to be hosted at UN ECE in Geneva with a kick-off meeting on 20 January 2014.
Peter Gerhardt informed participants about Global activities of the UIC Safety Unit:
- Setting up of a Regional Safety Database
- Workshops on Human Factors issues
- Participation in international and regional seminars and conferences
He announced the 23rd International Railway Safety Conference (IRSC) taking place from 6 – 11 October 2013 in Vancouver/Canada – www.irsc2013
The main conference theme this year: “Enhancing Railway Safety through Innovation, Community Partnership and effective Safety Management”.
Save the date:
The UIC Safety Platform Plenary meeting is to be held on 22 October 2013 at UIC HQ in Paris.
A joint seminar of the Safety Platform and the Rail System Forum on railway safety issues will follow on 23 October.
