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UK and US establish partnership for rail research

The Federal Railroad Administration of the United States Department of Transportation and the Strategic Rail Authority have signed a memorandum of understanding to develop co-operation between the two countries in the field of research.

Rail Safety and Standards Board's (RSSB) Research Programme is responsible for the development and delivery of the UK rail industry’s safety-related research and development. This agreement will provide for the sharing of knowledge and information between the safety research programmes of the USA and the UK to solve issues common to railways on both sides of the Atlantic.

Aidan Nelson, Director, Policy and Strategic Initiatives said: ‘The commitment between the UK and US rail industries to co-operate in the field of research will greatly benefit the individual programmes to maximise their value and I am very pleased that we have secured this arrangement.’

The agreement covers all areas of safety research including engineering, human factors, operations and management. It also shares the aims of RSSB’s research and development programme, namely the reduction of safety risk and improving the quality and cost-effectiveness of safety management.

Participants in both countries will collaborate by:

• Providing technical assistance for, and participating in, various research tasks
• Participating on-site in those tasks involving laboratory and field trials
• Taking a leadership role in specifically identified tasks
• Reviewing and commenting on project documentation and reports
• Participating on management and technical committees that may be constituted to assist in expediting the work and ensuring its quality

The memorandum of understanding will be used as the basis for seeking further co-operative agreements with other countries safety-related rail research programmes to establish a global network all working to the common goal of providing safe, cost-effective and well performing railways.

Notes to editors:

About Rail Safety and Standards Board
Rail Safety and Standards Board (RSSB) was established on 1 April 2003. RSSB is an independent not-for-profit company owned by major stakeholders in the railway industry. The company is limited by guarantee and has a Board and an advisory committee. It is independent of any single railway company and of their commercial interests.

RSSB is responsible for the development and delivery of a research and development programme on behalf of the railway industry.

SRA media contacts:
Paul McKie
Strategic Rail Authority
Tel: 020 7654 6294