Re: Head on in the Western district

[mauried@commslab.gov.au (Maurie Daly)]

In article <81v9b8$2s5p$1@otis.netspace.net.au> "Exnarc" <gwrly@netspace.net.au> writes:
>From: "Exnarc" <gwrly@netspace.net.au>
>Subject: Re: Head on in the Western district
>Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 12:33:02 +1100


>Maurie Daly <mauried@commslab.gov.au> wrote in message
>mauried.484.3843176C@commslab.gov.au">news:mauried.484.3843176C@commslab.gov.au...
>> In article <81uuud$2q81$1@otis.netspace.net.au> "Exnarc"
>> <gwrly@netspace.net.au> writes:
>>

><snip.>

>>One really now wonders whether the pass the auto rule at stop after some
>> arbitrary waiting time needs to be scrapped, indeed whether it was ever
>good
>> practice.
>> If it is known why an auto is at stop when it should more likely be
>displaying
>> a proceed aspect,then there may be a case for passing it at stop, but to
>make  it a general rule is really asking for trouble.

>Rule 1 Section 3, complied with properly, is as safe as houses, it gets back
>to the human element.

But all railway rules, when complied with properly are as safe as houses.
The reason accidents occur is because of the human element,not in spite of it.
Im sure the Ararat accident would not have happened at all if all rules had 
been complied with.
There is also a quite differant situation in the suburban network in relation 
to autos than there is in the country.
Signals are physically located quite close together,so that its practical to
allow the scenerio of a train proceeding past a red auto , until the next 
signal is reached.
In addition , we also have in the suburban network a very 
crude but effective form of ATP in the form of train stops, which mitigate 
even further the consequences of human error.
In the country , we have long distances between autos,which make the concept 
of preceeding at extreme caution past autos quite impractical,with the 
consequence that what usually happens is that a train stops at the auto,waits 
the prescribed time period, then crawls past the auto then speeds up until we 
get to the next one,which could easily be 20 kms away.
At least this is what I have observed on the NE sg when travelling on trains 
that stop at autos.
As you pointed out in a previous post, the Barnawatha prang occurred precisly 
because of this rule being violated.

Radio coverage in the country, at least on the main SG main lines is good,(in 
Victora at least, its crummy in NSW.) which means that its practical in most 
cases to able to contact control before passing autos at red.
The whole thing is a question of trading safety for expediancy, ie if we dont 
have the money to implement a safe system, lets implement an unsafe one and 
just change the rules to make it appear safe.
The introduction of TO and ASW into Victoria is a good example of this.
At some point you have to stop and simply say this is the minimum acceptable
level of safety that we will tolerate, and if no money is available then a 
line is simply not opened.
Im sure that if Victrak had simply refused to open the SG from Newport to 
Ararat when it was built unless funding for CTC was made available , then it 
would have been quickly forthcoming.
Horizontal integration , ie where one mob own the track and another mob run 
the trains doesnt help either, as the track owner , who is ultimately 
responsible for safeworking will try to save money as much as possible by 
whittling down safety standards , knowing full well that it is the Rail 
operators who have to wear the consequences of any accidents.

Its pretty certain that we will never have any sort of consistant safeworking 
or signalling on the National Network, too many vested interests in keeping 
the status quo, but at least its time to stop introducing even more State 
specific rules which rely on drivers having more and more specific knowledge
of specific bits of the National Network.
Training drivers and complying with all the existing specific State based 
rules is currently one of the more costly and time consuming aspects for any 
operator who wishes to traverse State boundaries, being far worse for smaller 
operators.
We have to get out of the "This is the way things are done in (put your state 
here) mentality."

MD