Research & Innovation: it’s not all about safety

Issue 7 of Key Train Requirements is to be published in early 2023. It will reference more than 80 findings from our research programme. That’s double the number in Issue 6, and reflects the broad-based and innovative role that the Rail Safety and Standards Board plays to support the future railway.

This increase reflects the amount of research that has been done around rolling stock. New seat comfort standards are included for passenger trains. These are based on the journeys that different train types are most likely to be used for. So, trains designed for long-distance, high-speed intercity travel will have more comfortable seats that those to be used for short-hop commuter travel. And when it comes to train speeds, our research has made a difference there too. The September 2022 Guidance Note, RIS-7706-INS Issue 1, sets out clear processes for changes to Lettered Differential Permissible Speeds. Working alongside RIS-2711-RST, published in June, this will allow faster journeys for some train types, without the need for expensive upgrades.

And there’s no need to change anything on some freight wagons either. Our review of the way freight coupler limits are calculated affects more than half the wagons on the GB network. Some of the figures in the freight train load book haven’t been reviewed in decades. This was partly because the rules for assessing limits had been lost in the mists of time. Our research re-characterised the process, and the findings are being drawn into industry standard GMGN2688, Guidance on Designing Rail Freight Wagons for use on the GB Mainline Railway. Our research looked at specific wagon types and route topography to see what actual loads would be imposed on the couplers of fully laden freight wagons. In some cases the findings will allow up to four more wagons to be included in a train. That gives the potential for greater efficiency for freight customers and reduced carbon emissions. And, as coupler technology advances, it will now be easier to update the standard and make even greater improvements to rail’s environmental credentials.

But let’s not forget safety, because the number of SPADs increased this summer. The Red Aspect Approaches to Signals (RAATS) toolkit helps understand potential SPAD risk. Three new research projects are continuing to build on its capabilities. Work in partnership with the University of Huddersfield (UoH) has developed the Red Aspect Approaches by Train Service (RABYTS) tool. This combines RAATS data with Network Rail’s Train Running System (TRUST) to give insights into the causes of SPADs. Another UoH project is C-Class Machine Learning. This has developed new algorithms that will take RAATS coverage from its current one-third of the network to more than 80%. That has enormous potential to reduce SPAD risk. We’ve been working closely with colleagues in Network Rail on another research project. This has identified a process for keeping up to date a key piece of information used by RAATS algorithms.

Together these projects will make RAATS even more useful. The next step is to include the new functionality in RAATS v2.0. While that’s under way, if you are interested in finding out more about RABYTS and how it might help reduce your local SPAD risk, please contact Principal Risk Analyst Chris Harrison at RSSB.