The Rail Wagon Association (RWA) welcomes the publication of the long awaited RAIB report into the Llangennech derailment. Its members will be carefully noting the findings and recommendations, so as to determine the most appropriate actions and response.
The RWA takes the safety of the railway very seriously and regularly reviews reports of industry safety incidents at its quarterly Engineering Committee meeting. Indeed, the RWA has proactively developed several initiatives to enhance safety.
In 2020, the RWA formed a working group of technical and operational specialists to examine and define the minimum standards for facilities at freight maintenance locations, produced in response to concerns expressed to the sector by RAIB about ‘sub-optimal’ maintenance facilities. The resulting document provides guidance for ECMs when they or their contractors are preparing or reviewing documents concerning the safe systems of work for maintenance sites.
RWA is currently running a Training and Competency working group that is looking at the human factors surrounding freight maintenance activities, with the aim of better understanding where the risks lie and identifying how improvements can be made.
Most recently RWA has been asked to join the NFSG project which is examining the Condition of Freight Vehicles on the Network and we will be providing the knowledge and expertise of our members to support this very important project.
