A new report outlines the case for consistent national standards across Australia’s rail industry that could save billions of dollars by streamlining standards, technologies and processes for operating the rail network.
The Harmonisation of Rail Standards Research Report, jointly funded by The Rail Industry Safety and Standards Board (RISSB), Australasian Railway Association (ARA), National Transport Commission (NTC) and Office of National Rail Industry Coordination (ONRIC), states that without harmonised standards, the rail industry will continue to face inefficiencies, higher costs and missed opportunities.
It recommends the establishment of a National Rail Standards Harmonisation Strategy, overseen by a dedicated national body and developed in conjunction with industry stakeholders, as a crucial first step.
Damien White, Chief Executive Officer, RISSB said the report reaffirms the value of consistent standards where valuable to do so and suggests mechanisms to deliver the desired outcomes.
“Twenty years ago, industry established RISSB to support the harmonisation of standards, however, it clearly will take more than voluntary efforts to drive the required reform,” he said.
The report says adopting a national approach to procurement and harmonising standards, and improving interoperability, could mean a more competitive and innovative rail industry.
The report provides a body of evidence to support Australia’s harmonisation journey and examines current barriers in the way of achieving a more competitive and sustainable Australian rail industry.
It outlines the detrimental impact of differing standards across several critical areas including operational interoperability, economies of scale for suppliers, type approval processes, decarbonisation efforts, safety, technology adoption and labour mobility.
Prepared by GHD Advisory, the report provides several recommendations including:
- the resourcing and capability needed for a fit for purpose national standard setting organisation
- the role of Office of the National Rail Safety Regulator (ONRSR) to be modified
- the relevance of international standards to be evaluated before developing Australian standards
- co-regulation remains for any standard not considered ‘high-benefit’ enough to be mandated
- establishing a legal mechanism to allow rail infrastructure managers rolling stock operators to facilitate transition to a mandatory standards regime
- undertaking a cost-benefit analysis for specific standards to inform transition cost support
- conducting an internal audit of rail infrastructure managers rolling stock operators standards.
The report does not suggest that standards need to be harmonised across the board, but rather initiatives should only focus on high benefit areas of standards such as Train Control Command and Signalling, Rollingstock Components and Approvals, Type Approval (TA) and Telematics Applications for Freight Service.
RISSB, and partners are now considering the recommendations of the report to determine next steps.