3.3 Procedures When a Train Approaches

3.3 Procedures When a Train Approaches

Modern passenger and freight trains operate under strict physics. A passenger train travelling at 100 mph (160 km/h) covers approximately 45 metres every second and can need well over a kilometre to stop, even under emergency braking. A heavy freight train needs even further.

Train drivers cannot steer around track workers, nor can they stop in time if an individual stumbles across the rails. Consequently, the safety of track workers depends entirely on strict adherence to train approach warnings, rapid evacuation disciplines, and the rigorous enforcement of the mandatory 10-second rule under RSSB Rule Book Handbook 1 (GERT8000-HB1).

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Sighting Distance and Warning Time Principles

When a safe system of work relies on lookouts or warning equipment, the Controller of Site Safety (COSS) must work out the warning time and sighting distance before anyone goes on the line. HB7 gives the COSS an aid for working out warning times.

+------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|                               TOTAL WARNING TIME FORMULA                                       |
|                                                                                                |
|           TOTAL WARNING TIME (Tw) = CLEARING TIME (Tc) + SAFETY MARGIN (10 sec)                |
|                                                                                                |
|   - CLEARING TIME (Tc): Time to stop work, set down tools, and walk to position of safety      |
|   - SAFETY MARGIN:      Mandatory buffer (never less than 10 seconds under Handbook 1)         |
|                                                                                                |
|           REQUIRED SIGHTING DISTANCE (m) = LINE SPEED (m/s) × TOTAL WARNING TIME (s)           |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

The Mathematical Calculation

1. Clearing Time ($T_c$): The time required for the work group to react, stop work, put down hand tools in a safe posture, and walk briskly along the agreed evacuation path into the position of safety. For a small inspection group, clearing time might be 5 seconds; for a heavy track maintenance gang using rail jacks, clearing time may be 15 to 20 seconds.
2. Safety Margin: A fixed allowance of at least 10 seconds, because you must be in the position of safety at least 10 seconds before the train arrives.
3. Total Warning Time ($T_w$): If clearing time is 15 seconds, the total required warning time is: $15\text{ seconds (clearing)} + 10\text{ seconds (margin)} = 25\text{ seconds total warning time}$
4. Required Sighting Distance: The distance along the line that a lookout must be able to see approaching trains to provide that warning time. On a line with a permissible speed of 90 mph (~40 metres per second): $40\text{ m/s} \times 25\text{ seconds} = 1,000\text{ metres of clear sighting distance}$

If curves, bridges, cuttings, fog, rain or vegetation reduce the sighting available below the distance needed, the COSS must use distant or intermediate lookouts, a warning system or a different safe system of work. Remember that lookout warning and lookout-operated warning systems now need company director approval (section 6.1), and distant and intermediate lookouts are not allowed in darkness, poor visibility or tunnels.

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The Mandatory 10-Second Rule

The fundamental operational rule governing train approaches under RSSB Handbook 1 is the 10-second rule:

This 10-second buffer is non-negotiable for four vital safety reasons:

• Human Error and Stumble Buffer: If a worker slips or stumbles on loose ballast while evacuating the track, the 10-second buffer provides time to recover and reach safety before impact.
• Driver Assurance: Train drivers approaching a worksite at speed experience intense stress. Seeing personnel standing stationary in a position of safety 10 seconds out reassures the driver that the line is clear and prevents unwarranted emergency brake applications.
• Turbulence Stabilization: It allows workers to plant their feet firmly and brace themselves before the train's bow-wave pressure and aerodynamic slipstream hit.
• Group Accounting: It gives the COSS and lookouts time to check that every member of the group is clear of the line.

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Step-by-Step Actions Upon Hearing the Warning

When a train approaches, a lookout gives the warning by whistle, horn or touch (shouting as well if necessary), or the sirens and lights of a warning system operate. The driver will also sound the train horn on seeing people on or near the line.

+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|                         TRAIN APPROACH EVACUATION SEQUENCE                             |
|                                                                                        |
|  [1. WARNING SOUNDED]  ───► Lookout horn, LOWS siren, or approaching train horn         |
|           │                                                                            |
|           ▼                                                                            |
|  [2. STOP WORK]        ───► Instantly cease all tasks; never finish the job            |
|           │                                                                            |
|           ▼                                                                            |
|  [3. PLACE TOOLS]      ───► Lay tools flat in cess or clear of rails; never throw      |
|           │                                                                            |
|           ▼                                                                            |
|  [4. MOVE TO SAFETY]   ───► Walk briskly to Position of Safety; reach it >= 10s before |
|           │                                                                            |
|           ▼                                                                            |
|  [5. STAND & FACE]     ───► Stand stationary, face approaching train, watch for hazards|
|           │                                                                            |
|           ▼                                                                            |
|  [6. ACKNOWLEDGE]      ───► If the driver sounds the horn, raise one arm above head   |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Step 1: Immediately Stop Work

The instant the warning sounds, stop work immediately:

• Never attempt to finish driving a screw, tightening a fishplate bolt, or taking one final measurement.
• Do not hesitate or look around to see where the train is before reacting.
• Immediate cessation of work is the difference between life and death.

Step 2: Put Down Tools Safely

Tools and equipment must be managed swiftly and deliberately:

• Lay heavy power tools, impact wrenches, rail tongs, and ballast forks flat on the ground.
• Ensure tools are placed completely clear of the running rails and outside the vehicle clearance envelope.
• In third-rail electrified territory, never place metallic tools near conductor rails.
• Never drop or throw tools, which can cause them to bounce onto the rail head or strike colleagues.
• Secure loose lightweight items (such as surveying tape, plans, or bags) that could be sucked up by aerodynamic air currents.
• HB1 says tools and equipment must not be placed closer than 2 metres (6 feet 6 inches) to a line on which a train could pass, unless you are absolutely sure they will not be hit by a passing train or moved by its slipstream.

Step 3: Move Directly to the Position of Safety

Move promptly along the pre-briefed evacuation path:

• Walk briskly, deliberately, and carefully across the ballast shoulder.
• Never run: Running on loose, uneven track ballast leads to twisted ankles, slips, and dangerous falls across the running rails.
• Do not step on the rails or sleepers; walk ballast to ballast. On DC lines never step on a conductor rail or between a conductor rail and the adjacent running rail.

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Conduct and Vigilance in the Position of Safety

Reaching the Position of Safety is not the end of the safety procedure. While the train is passing, workers must maintain active situational awareness.

Stand Still and Face the Approaching Train

Once inside the Position of Safety:

• Stand stationary: Do not pace around, bend over, adjust boots, or rummage through toolbags.
• Watch the train: Keep watching the train until it has passed you or you are certain it is not a danger to you. Never assume you know which line it is on, particularly if there are points nearby.

+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|                    HAZARDS TO MONITOR WHILE FACING PASSING TRAINS                       |
|                                                                                         |
|  [PROJECTING LOADS]     Flatbed wagons with shifted steel, timber, or unseated containers|
|  [HANGING STRAPS]       Loose curtain-side lorry straps, dangling lashing chains         |
|  [FLAPPING TARPAULINS]  Heavy industrial tarpaulins unhooked from freight wagons         |
|  [FLYING BALLAST]       Stones sucked from the track bed by aerodynamic bogie turbulence|
|  [OPEN DOORS]           Unlatched equipment hatches or malfunctioning exterior doors     |
|  [SUCTION FORCES]       Low-pressure aerodynamic draw pulling you inward toward wheels   |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Hazards to Watch For During Train Passage

Facing the train allows you to spot dynamic mechanical hazards and react before they reach you:

1. Projecting and Shifted Freight: Freight wagons can suffer load shifts, causing structural steel, timber, or container boxes to protrude outward beyond the standard vehicle gauge.
2. Loose Rigging and Hanging Chains: Flapping tarpaulin sheets, dragging ropes, unhooked securing chains, or loose curtain-sided trailer straps can whip outward at 75 to 100 mph, acting like lethal scythes along the cess.
3. Flying Ballast and Debris: High-speed trains create powerful ground-level turbulence that can lift loose ballast stones, ice chunks in winter, or brake pad fragments, projecting them outward at extreme velocity.
4. Aerodynamic Slipstream Forces: The passage of train carriages creates a high-pressure bow wave at the front, followed immediately by severe low-pressure suction along the body panels and a violent trailing vortex at the rear. Standing firmly with feet braced prevents you from being pulled off balance toward the train bogies.

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Acknowledging the Train Driver

When a train approaches a work group standing in a Position of Safety, effective safety-critical communication takes place between the track workers and the train driver.

          DRIVER SOUNDS THE WARNING HORN  ───►  WORKER IN POSITION OF SAFETY

                                                          O
                                                         /|\   <── raise ONE arm above
                                                         / \       your head: "I have
                                                                    heard the warning"

The Acknowledgment Hand Signal

• The Signal: When the driver sounds the warning horn, raise one arm above your head to show you have heard the warning (HB1 sections 3.1 and 4.4).
• Meaning: The raised arm tells the driver that you have heard the warning. It is not a "clear" signal and it does not mean the driver will stop.
• Do not confuse it with a danger signal: raising both arms above your head is the daylight hand danger signal used to stop a train in an emergency (section 8.2).

The Urgent / Continuous Horn Warning

If a train sounds a series of short blasts on the horn:

Lookout Warnings, Leaving the Position of Safety and Last Resorts

• Lookout warnings: stop work, acknowledge the warning and move to the position of safety immediately. If someone does not acknowledge or move, the lookout gives an urgent warning: a series of short sharp blasts on the whistle or horn. Never distract a lookout.
• Leaving the position of safety: when working under lookouts or a warning system, do not leave the position of safety until the COSS gives you permission. When alone, stay there until the train has passed clear or you are certain you will not be put in danger by that train or any other train.
• Other trains: before leaving the position of safety, make sure no other trains have approached without you noticing.
• Train in distress: a continuous series of long blasts on the high or loud tone means the driver has a problem; report it (HB1 section 7.6).
• If you cannot reach a position of safety: the PTS handbook says lie down, but not in the four-foot, and gather loose clothing under you.