Recommendation: 2022003-10

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Ref # 2022003-10
Status Open / In progress
Occurrence Trend investigation into Signals Passed At Stop on the Luas network
Occurrence Date 03 January 2020

Basis for Recommendation

One of the causations of Signal Passed at Stop (SPAS) incidents is drivers not applying the emergency brake and making a normal braking application, resulting the tram passing the signal; this is mainly as a result of drivers being concerned about possible injury to passengers as a result of emergency brake applications. The RAIU consider that drivers are over-reliant on the line-of-sight principles rather than obeying the controlling signals. As a result the RAIU make the following safety recommendation:

Recommendation

Transdev Dublin Light Rail (TDLR) should update the Tramway Safety Instruction (TSI) Manual and training and competency management suite of documents to include clear instructions on when emergency brake applications should be made in relation to the prevention of Signal Passed at Stop (SPAS) incidents; these instructions should be properly communicated to the drivers.