Presentation - International Rail Safety Conference

East Japan Railway Workers’ Union
(JREU)
International
Railway Safety
Conference 200
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In order to forge “safety” from the workplace as a lesson from the Uetsu Line Accident
Toshio Murata
Director of Negotiation

East Japan Railway Workers‘ Union
The Train Derailment Accident on JR West’s Fukuchiyama Line
The train derailment accident on Uetsu Line
Date and Time:December 25,2005 19:14
Location:Uetsu Line
(Between Sagoshi and Kitaamarume)
Overview of the Accident:
All six cars were derailed of “Inaho No.14”
express
Number of Casualties:The death 5, The injured 32
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The train derailment accident on Uetsu Line
East Japan Railway Workers‘ Union
Strong winds
The weather on the day:
A gale A snowstorm and snow/snowslide/lightening/highwaves-advisory
/ high waves warning
The driver of the train stated
“The instant I thought that what seemed like
white smoke was being blown along the right
side of the train in the direction it was running, I
felt the train suddenly rise and we ended up
derailing”
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Circumstances of the accident
East Japan Railway Workers‘ Union
Wind gauges
The numerical wind restriction of the East Japan Railway Company
General restriction
Speed limit
The suspension of
operations
Earlier restriction
Speed limit
The suspension of
operations
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East Japan Railway Workers‘ Union
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s
Aircraft and Railway Accident Investigation
Committee is currently working to unravel the cause
of the accident
Truly these employees can be said to have desperately, yet at the same time
unerringly, undertaken safety measures and rescue activities.
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East Japan Railway Workers‘ Union
JREU’s
activities
We want to bring to light the true cause, put
into effective measures to deal with this
cause, create a “railroad strong against
nature” and ensure it is not repeated.
There are different perceptions of natural
conditions among veteran drivers and young
drivers must be clarified.
I felt unease.
I felt the wind was storong
and drove at a reduced
speed
Veteran
drivers
I thought that it was safe if
there were no speed
restrictions put in place by
command personnel.
Young
drives
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East Japan Railway Workers‘ Union
What’s on the background of the
accident
How does this difference in perceptions
between veteran and young drivers arise?
The current training of train crew instructs drivers to confirm completely
instructions when a driver feels unease over something he does not understand.
・Judgments by the driver himself are eliminated to the utmost
・Drivers were created who operated trains according to the orders
and the instructions of those in charge, i.e. according to the book.
in the workplace, the climate where one can discuss those things which one has
felt about safety is weakening.
・It has become impossible to share a common perception.
・The present state of affairs is that there is no system for the driver of
the preceding train to relay concerns about wind to other drivers.
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East Japan Railway Workers‘ Union
Implement action of countermeasures
A stopgap measure
the company
Windbreak
fences
Set up windbreak fences.
Increased the number of wind
gauges.
Implemented early restrictions
on the whole restricted area.
Wind gauges
It is essential
to・・・
Develop human resources who are able to sharpen their sense of the job site,
Create a climate where safety discussions can take place at the workplace,
Build a system that widely utilizes information from the job site and not just the
information of command instructions.
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East Japan Railway Workers‘ Union
JREU’s proposal
we believe that we should aim at an educational structure that modifies
this life cycle to one geared towards the creation of drivers strong at
times of abnormalities
Start Two Years
Ticket examiner
in station
Two Years
Conductor
Driver
Ticket examiner
in station
Conductor
Station transport
staff
Mechanic
Driver
Examine a program to train East Japan Railway own “weather forecasters”.
Plant and raise trees as a windbreak along train lines including the location of
the accident in question.
Create a structure where information sensed by train crew can be shared.
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“Cause investigative committees”
East Japan Railway Workers‘ Union
we are inaugurating a project in all work locations called “cause investigative
committees” which is directed at establishing a climate of safety.
These committees will discuss accidents and impediments that are
close at hand and, in the midst of investigating their true causes, will
proactively undertake committee activities so as to formulate
fundamental measures to address these issues along with the
company.
We will create “a strong railroad even
against the wonder of nature”
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East Japan Railway Workers‘ Union
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