"A COW WITH A PANTOGRAPH": A REVIEW OF DRIVER-SIGNALLER COMMUNICATION FOR EU INTEROPERABILITY

As the European Union (EU) moves towards an integrated, interoperable railway network, European Regulations are in place to govern and standardise the structure and terminology of driver-signaller communications. The Technical... [ view full abstract ]

As the European Union (EU) moves towards an integrated, interoperable railway network, European Regulations are in place to govern and standardise the structure and terminology of driver-signaller communications.
The Technical Specifications for Interoperability – Operation and traffic management (TSI OPE) 2012/757/EU includes an Appendix (C) that gives the core requirements for safety related driver-signaller communication. It contains a list of specific terms, structure and requirements such as the use of ‘read back’ and the phonetic alphabet that are mandatory across EU railway networks.
Further to discussions with stakeholders, the European Railway Agency (ERA) became aware of differences in interpretation and application of Appendix C and the subsequent potential need for its revision. The ERA commissioned Interfleet to carry out a review of the communications methodologies in place across the EU, with a focus on human factors.
Method
Interfleet reviewed the current signaller-driver communication methodologies in use across the EU rail network in light of principles and theories of safety critical communication. The study involved a literature review and face to face interviews with rail organisations across 9 EU countries and 3 cross border Infrastructure Managers selected in conjunction with the ERA.
The literature review was a meta-analysis of the existing research on railway communications and applied work to understand and mitigate what can go wrong. Large scale studies of driver-signaller conversations, incident reports and interventions were reviewed, together with theories on communication error categorisations and the impact of wider performance shaping factors. The review identified that some level of formality and structure is needed within safety critical rail communication, but that improving the overall safety of communication is dependent on wider performance shaping factors such as safety culture and training.
Using the findings of the literature review, structured face-to-face interviews were conducted with Railway Undertakings (RUs) and Infrastructure Managers (IMs) across the EU. Twenty-four respondents from the UK, France, Belgium, The Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria, Sweden and the Czech Republic were interviewed.
The interviews gathered information on selection, training, safety culture, communications technology and support, incidents, language and management. They also looked specifically at how each organisation interprets and applies the requirements of the TSI OPE Appendix C within their organisation and country.
Findings
The interviews identified that generally compliance with Appendix C is quite high. However, certain key elements such as correcting errors, repeating messages and even the use of the phonetic alphabet and standard date/time formats were not as high as expected. Many
countries identified that the presence of multiple languages, dialects and terminology at borders, and even within countries, caused communication issues. This is a particular challenge for driver recruitment and training. Some favoured a common European language for use at borders, and nearly all found the format of Appendix C complex and in need of simplification. Future improvements in training, including joint driver-signaller training, were identified as important complementary tools for safety related communication.
The study findings will be used by the ERA to develop recommendations for the future revision of TSI OPE Appendix C