This information has been prepared to inform Sydney Trains’ employees, contractors and TfNSW on the requirement for Safety Critical Communications where unplanned plant or equipment has been approved to be left unattended on track during LPA’s.
Background
On Sunday, 30 June 2019 during a recent Configuration 1 Track Possession, track machines were forced to make an emergency brake application while travelling in the down running direction on the Up Illawarra Line at Erskineville. The track machines came to a stop at 0110 hours, after observing that the outriggers on a Cherry Picker stabled and unattended on the Down Illawarra line, had fouled the Up Illawarra Line.
Due to an unplanned late finish the previous evening, the workgroup working on the Down Illawarra Line asked for permission to leave their plant on the Down Illawarra Line overnight. Whilst it had not been pre-planned, authority was granted by the Possession Management Centre, Sydenham to permit the plant to remain overnight on track unattended.
Requirement
All Asset Scheduling & Delivery Coordination (AS&DC) staff, other Sydney Trains employees and external contractors rostered to work in any Possession Management Centre or an ASDC office managing possessions who receive a request relation to “stabling” plant or equipment (unplanned) on track, during a possession must carry out the following:
• Upon receiving any such request, consultation must take place with the rostered Possession Protection Officer (PPO) and determination made on the criticality and compelling reasons as to why any unplanned plant or equipment should be permitted to “stable” on track.
• Where a decision has been made to permit plant or equipment to remain on track, the PPO or delegate must record all relevant information provided by the requesting officer and the reason for the decision recorded in PACT within both the PPO diary and the notes section contained in the actual work scope.
All Safety Critical Communications (SCC) in relation to the request must be conducted on a recorded telephone line where such recorded line is available. The SCC must:
• Be clear, concise, unambiguous and relevant to the task at hand.
• In instances where any request is approved, a clear understanding is acknowledged by both sender and receiver that any plant or equipment is not to be left foul of any adjacent track.
• A repeat back and confirmation of the SCC message from the workgroup requesting officer to the PMC or ASDC office is also required.
The Final Word
Each and every person, whether they are AS&DC staff, other Sydney Trains staff or contractors who work on track during a possession has a responsibility to work in a safe manner and to be aware of and comply with all applicable rules, procedures and instructions.
AS&DC team are to ensure that this Notice is highlighted and discussed with all work group representatives at pre-possession meetings and included in pre-possession notes.
Peter Beardsley
Associate Director, Asset Scheduling and Delivery Coordination
Date: 06/08/2019