A review of compliance with permanent, temporary and emergency speed restrictions

A review of compliance with speed restrictions was conducted because evidence suggested that some trains were exceeding permanent, temporary and emergency speed restrictions. The scale of the problem was unknown but checks in... [ view full abstract ]

A review of compliance with speed restrictions was conducted because evidence suggested that some trains were exceeding permanent, temporary and emergency speed restrictions. The scale of the problem was unknown but checks in association with Adjacent Line Open (ALO) working had identified that the occurrences might have been higher than previously thought. The reasons why some drivers were exceeding the required speed limits was unclear and without a clearer understanding of the problem it was not possible to develop and implement effective mitigations to prevent occurrences of over speeding. The main objectives of the project were to a) identify (as far as possible) the scale of the problem, b) consider the whole process (which included the behaviour and setting up of a speed restriction) and understand how all roles and activities influence driver behaviour in response to speed restrictions, c) gain an understanding of the reasons why drivers exceed the speed limits and d) identify potential controls to prevent or recover from the underlying causes of over speeding. A literature review, frontline staff interviews, train driver surveys and workshops with frontline staff and senior managers were conducted to answer these research questions. It was not possible to accurately determine the number of incidences of over speeding per year because of the limited data available. However, the data did suggest that there are a relatively small number of incidents of over speeding and it was more than thirty years since the last fatal accident due to speeding in Great Britain. There were a number of reasons why a driver may exceed the designated speed and these were not exclusive to drivers. Issues were identified at all stages of the process for introducing a speed restriction including the way in which speed restrictions are designed, laid out track side, communicated to drivers, driven through and how incidences of speeding are monitored. A number of potential mitigations were suggested and evaluated. There was not one single solution to address the issues identified but a number of possible workstreams to be considered.