Metrolink peer review report - Ventura County Star

METROLINK COMMUTER RAIL SAFETY PEER REVIEW PANEL
Final Report – January 5, 2009
Issue Papers
• A railroad officer must be identified and conduct a review every 6 months. This process must include a
review of :
o Efficiency Test failures
o Accident/Incident data
o Testing officers’ compliance to the plan - Testing officers must test on operating rules that are likely to
cause the most accidents or incidents.
o Review of efficiency testing every six months and revisions to the Operational Testing Plan and
refocused testing.
Although not required by the regulations, the Panel recommends that Metrolink develop an Operational Testing
Plan to ensure that each contractor testing officer is compliant with their plan.
As defined within the Operational Testing Plan, Metrolink Testing Officers would observe and document that the
contractor’s Testing Officer has conducted proper efficiency tests on its employees. The Metrolink Officer would
record these observations to ensure the contractor officer is compliant with the relevant plan, SCRRA’s policies,
and the regulations, a failure is recorded as such; the Testing Officer reviews the results with the employee being
tested and appropriate actions are implemented. This Testing Officer provides a consistent means of reporting of
efficiency testing within the Metrolink staff. By utilizing this officer, Metrolink establishes a consistent oversight
of efficiency testing by the individual contractor. The consistent reporting arising from this process will enable
Metrolink to establish a clear trend analysis and take appropriate measures with the contractor should the need
arise.
Federal regulations require efficiency testing on mechanical department employees who perform tasks governed
by operating rules. This would include Blue Signal Protection as well as Radio Communication Rules.
There have been a number of analyses performed that have shown a direct relationship between the risks
associated with rules violations and the number of observations performed. New Jersey Transit recently
conducted an analysis that demonstrates that a low testing officer to employee ratio will increase the probability of
a violation. With an acceptable ratio, the testing officers must conduct a minimum number of tests with all
affected employees for that group in order to maximize efficiency. If an employee is not compliant, the testing
officer must re-train the employee in that particular aspect or take other measures to ensure compliance.
Long Island Railroad conducted a study that demonstrated that an employee’s failure to comply with any rule,
even if not safety critical, indicates that the same employee may fail to comply with a safety critical rule that may
lead to an event. Proper efficiency testing and analyses of the results allows a railroad to identify failures and
trends, and utilize that information to take a proactive approach to safety by re-focusing efficiency testing,
changing a rule, focusing safety briefings, increased testing on deficient employees, or making modifications of
training programs to address an issue before it leads to an event.
Each operating group within Metrolink conducts or oversees efficiency tests using a paper tabulation process that
is then entered into its database within that department. This paper tabulation process can lead to inconsistencies
in reporting.
The existing paper tabulation process used by Metrolink will make compliance with Federal requirements
difficult. Federal requirements mandate that the results of efficiency testing be reviewed for trends and overall
compliance every six months. In addition, the regulation requires this review to be completed, along with the
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