Safety Issue

Sydney Trains drew our attention to page 23 of the draft report. At this point the draft report acknowledged that the Tran Planning Unit (responsible for the development and publication of STNs) had implemented a number of process changes based on their internal investigation of this incident; these changes were then listed and the report noted that the Train Planning Unit had ‘….implemented a number of changes to strengthen their production and validation processes.”

Since that initial information was supplied to the ATSB a number of other changes have been made to further strengthen the production and validation processes. These were:

• The revised validation process now requires the Specifications & Pre Production Officer (Proforma STN / Track Closure owner) and the Train Planner (Train Working Alteration STN owner) and their immediate team leaders to attend a designated validation room 2.5 weeks from the publishing deadline. The validation room has been fitted with the essential validation tools and associated systems to ensure planners collaboratively validate all documents and data intended for publishing to achieve absolute alignment.
• Track Possession maps now clearly outline the Track Possession boundaries to avoid any overlapping issues when cross checking track closure files. Each map includes the following;
• Track identification number
• All structures and identifiers
• A clear boundary marked on the map to identify any staging variances
• Further diagrams, e.g. Signal plans or Drivers Route Knowledge Diagrams if signals are used for boundaries
• Different colours utilised for separate Track Possessions clearly outlining the different boundaries
• Overlapping track possession maps are to include all dates and times.
• Track possession identification numbers to be provided on the Proforma STN next to each track possession heading where multiple track possession numbers occur. Clear separation of all related possession information will ensure greater validation integrity and an easier independent assessment of information.

Sydney Trains drew our attention to page 23 of the draft report. At this point the draft report acknowledged that the Tran Planning Unit (responsible for the development and publication of STNs) had implemented a number of process changes based on their internal investigation of this incident; these changes were then listed and the report noted that the Train Planning Unit had ‘….implemented a number of changes to strengthen their production and validation processes.”

Since that initial information was supplied to the ATSB a number of other changes have been made to further strengthen the production and validation processes. These were:

• The revised validation process now requires the Specifications & Pre Production Officer (Proforma STN / Track Closure owner) and the Train Planner (Train Working Alteration STN owner) and their immediate team leaders to attend a designated validation room 2.5 weeks from the publishing deadline. The validation room has been fitted with the essential validation tools and associated systems to ensure planners collaboratively validate all documents and data intended for publishing to achieve absolute alignment.
• Track Possession maps now clearly outline the Track Possession boundaries to avoid any overlapping issues when cross checking track closure files. Each map includes the following;
• Track identification number
• All structures and identifiers
• A clear boundary marked on the map to identify any staging variances
• Further diagrams, e.g. Signal plans or Drivers Route Knowledge Diagrams if signals are used for boundaries
• Different colours utilised for separate Track Possessions clearly outlining the different boundaries
• Overlapping track possession maps are to include all dates and times.
• Track possession identification numbers to be provided on the Proforma STN next to each track possession heading where multiple track possession numbers occur. Clear separation of all related possession information will ensure greater validation integrity and an easier independent assessment of information.