IRSE Technical Meeting - Adelaide 22 July 2011

Rail regeneration - what are the risks?

Alan Ross

A&K Ross Associates Pty Ltd

Rail regeneration in Australia is gaining some momentum, at long last.  There are improvement schemes and upgrades all over the country, from the mining railways of WA to Regional Rail Link in Victoria, not forgetting the Adelaide electrification project!

Many of these projects have in common that they are undertaken in a ‘live’ rail environment alongside an operating railway.  It is not possible to shut down operating railways for extended (or even short) periods.  It is also not uncommon for there to be a requirement for signalling systems to be shut down at certain times in the life of these projects to facilitate installation of new equipment and to commission that equipment.  During such times the railway runs with a degraded mode of safe working, whilst trains continue to operate ‘normally’.

The risks associated with this scenario are obvious and have resulted in a number of serious incidents.  This paper will describe some of the incidents, highlight some of the lessons learned and consider ways in which the introduced risks can be eliminated or significantly mitigated.  With the statutory obligation on rail operators to eliminate risks or, where that is not reasonably practicable, to reduce risk so far as is reasonably practicable, what is the role of the Regulator and are they up to the task?