Friday, August 5, 2022

ONRSR welcomes focus of Rail Safety Week '22

On Monday 8 August, ONRSR Chief Executive, Sue McCarrey will address TrackSAFE’s National Level Crossing Safety Forum, which kicks off Rail Safety Week, to provide a comprehensive statistical picture of safety performance at level crossings.

“In conjunction with the industry we have done a lot of work to improve the quality of the data we collect and analyse in relation to level crossings both in our cities but arguably more importantly in regional Australia,” Ms McCarrey said.

“This means we have a vastly improved resource with which to make safety decisions and to set priorities, not just for us as but for industry too in how they can ensure their operations are as safe as possible.”

“At ONRSR we have considered level crossing safety a national priority for some time now and through Rail Safety Week and an event like the national forum, we can continue to raise awareness around the dangers of distraction and save lives.”

While lending its support to the public message and focus of Rail Safety Week in 2022, ONRSR has also sought to focus on track worker safety and to highlight the work that has been done to protect those who keep our rail network running.

Having recently collaborated with a range of rail transport operators to document the advances made in protecting track workers across Australia, ONRSR will use Rail Safety Week to promote this important safety priority once again.

“It is a complex issue and while we are encouraged by the progress made in addressing it, we know there is so much more to do to keep workers safe,” Ms McCarrey said.

“We have recently renewed our efforts by further focussing regulatory efforts on safety critical communications, overall worker competency and altered working arrangements.”

“We think these are areas where we can make a real difference.”

ONRSR’s website feature: Track Worker Safety – The Story So Far is available HERE.