New policy to drive common rail safety standards

By Jennifer Perry

Developed jointly by the National Transport Commission (NTC), the Australasian Railway Association (ARA) and the Rail Safety Regulators Panel (RSRP), the National Policy Statement for the Recognition of Industry Developed Standards for Rail Safety is an agreed mechanism that will improve the take-up of national standards across the rail sector.
Currently rail organisations have to ‘prove’ that their standards are representative of good practice and ‘fit for purpose’ during their accreditation and reaccreditation processes.
Regulator recognition of industry-developed standards will reduce the industry’s burden in proving standards are fit for purpose.
“This is a major milestone and a significant outcome for the rail industry,” the Rail Industry’s Safety and Standards Board’s (RISSB) general manager Kevin Taylor told Rail Express.
“The policy was developed under a co-regulatory approach; industry worked with the regulators and the NTC to produce a policy statement of national significance.
“Regulator recognition of the RISSB’s product will save the industry a lot of time, energy and money.”
Regulator recognition of RISSB standards also extends to RISSB’s codes of practice and rules as these products are developed using the same process as that for standards.
Taylor said that he has written to the chair of the RSRP requesting that the regulators recognise the RISSB product and that he anticipates a positive response in the near future.
“I am confident that RISSB’s development process will be recognised by the regulators as RISSB and the RSRP have a close working relationship,” he said.
“In my view the RISSB’s standards development process clearly meets the requirements of the policy statement.”