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Practice meets perfect
May/June 2023 issue

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‘Ineffectively managed’ train driver disabled emergency brake system

Open-access content Wednesday 29th June 2016
From the archive:  Just so you know, this article is more than 3 years old.

'Ineffectively managed' train driver disabled emergency brake system

The incident happened at Wootton Bassett junction in Wiltshire on 7 March 2015. The train stopped almost 700 m after the signal, across the busy high speed junction on the Great Western mainline. An accident did not occur, however a collision between the steam locomotive and another train was narrowly avoided. Both trains were carrying about 750 people in total.

According to the case summary used by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) in the prosecution and which it later sent to IOSH Magazine, the incident was caused by the isolation of a crucial train protection system that, as a result, did not interfere and stop the train when it approached the signal at excessive speed.

The ORR investigated the incident and found significant failings in WCRC's managerial controls. The company had not implemented appropriate procedures, training or staff monitoring to stop intentional misuse of the Train Protection and Warning System equipment (TPWS). TPWSs are designed to automatically stop trains which approach or pass a signal at danger.

"Our evidence showed the train's driver, Melvyn Cox, directed a colleague to turn off his essential safety system, designed to automatically apply an emergency brake," ORR said in a statement.

At Swindon Crown Court, WCRC pleaded guilty to breaching Sections 2(1) and 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act. It must pay £64,000 in costs in addition to the fine.

Cox admitted failings under Sections 7(a) and 8 of the act, which require employees to take care of their own safety and that of others at work, and prohibit the reckless interference with equipment in the interests of health and safety. He received a four-month custodial sentence and was suspended for 18 months.

Ian Prosser, HM chief inspector of Railways, said: "WCRC's ineffective management led to their train driver deliberately misusing a key safety system on a train travelling between Bristol and Southall. This prosecution has led to WCRC taking significant steps to improve its management of safety, with support from the regulator."

In March, the ORR lifted a prohibition notice it served on WCRC on 17 February. Under the terms of the prohibition, the company was unable to operate trains on the mainline network until ORR was satisfied its governance and operations met industry practice and were fit for the scale of its operation.

In a statement, ORR said it "demanded, and has now received evidence of, assurances that steps have been taken to remedy the issues we identified".

The train operator introduced clearer governance structures with proper accountability for safety, more robust risk assessments and enhanced processes for managing staff, with a focus on safety culture.

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HSE

 Royal Mail installed warehouse barrier after foot crushing

Thursday 16th June 2016
As we reported last month, reach trucks operated in close proximity to workers who were on foot sorting commercial leaflets at the bundling tables. Here, leaflets were weighed, packed together and put into cages which had to be rolled into storage lanes ready for collection by delivery vehicles.
Open-access content

 Fine for haulage company after worker crushed on Christmas eve

Tuesday 7th June 2016
On 24 December 2014, J. & J Currie was delivering and offloading a vehicle from a trailer at Galloway Forest, when the hydraulic ramp developed a fault and failed to lower.Andrew Adams, who was accompanied by a delivery driver, attempted to carry out a repair by removing a valve. However, this caused hydraulic pressure to be released and the ramp collapsed on the 61 year old.A ratchet strap, used to secure the ramp, also failed due to its poor condition, Ayr Sheriff Court heard.
Open-access content

 Road sweeper was fatally crushed refuelling vehicle

Thursday 2nd June 2016
Derby Crown Court heard how on 26 November 2013 Matthew Lambert, 39, was standing at the back of the road sweeper to access the refuelling point when a tipper lorry reversed into him. He was crushed between the two vehicles and died from catastrophic head injuries.   The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found there were no marked or identified vehicle and pedestrian routes, there were no rules or control of reversing manoeuvres, and the lighting at the site was poor and below the required standard.
Open-access content

 Coach firm pays £90,000 for LOLER infringement

Wednesday 29th June 2016
Mold Crown Court heard that, between 4 April 2014 and 28 August 2015, GHA Coaches did not arrange for its lifting equipment to be thoroughly examined within the required timescales. Thorough examinations ensure equipment is safe to operate and allow deterioration to be detected and remedied in good time.
Open-access content

 *UPDATE* Three workers succumbed to toxic gas in waste trailer

Monday 27th June 2016
As previously reported, on 23 April 2014, William James was tipping carcasses from a compartment in an enclosed animal waste trailer, the end of which was covered with a tarpaulin. James climbed on to a gantry on the back of the trailer to roll back the tarpaulin with the intention of tipping out a second load, unaware that a pig carcass had become stuck between the compartments. He mounted the trailer and attempted to dislodge the carcass with a shovel.
Open-access content
©iStock/Sjoerd van der Wal

 First motorist killed in driverless car crash

Monday 4th July 2016
Former Navy SEAL Joshua Brown, 40, died on 7 May after his autonomous car crashed into another vehicle in Williston, Florida. Cameras on the Tesla Model S sedan are believed to have failed to make a distinction between the white side of an articulated lorry and the bright sky. It did not automatically apply the brakes and crashed into the lorry as it turned left at a divided highway intersection.
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