Annual Safety Performance Report 2002/03

"Headlines

On 10 May 2002, at Potters Bar, a fatal train derailment occurred. Six passengers and one member of the public tragically lost their lives, and some further 70 people were injured. The accident at Potters Bar illustrates how the rail industry is vulnerable to events that have the potential for catastrophic consequences.

The overall level of risk on the railway taking into account all categories of accidental injury, but excluding suicides and suspected suicides improved by 9% compared with 2001/02. The component of the overall risk that is under direct control of the railway remained level.

Catastrophic risk, such as arises in significant train accidents, comprises only a small proportion of the overall risk on the railway (6%). The number of significant train accidents reduced by 20% compared with 2001/02.

The total number of signals passed at danger (SPADs) on, or affecting, the running line reduced by 8% in 2002/03 to the lowest level ever and the number of severity 3 to 8 SPADs also reduced, by 18%. Analysis of SPADs using the SPAD risk ranking tool indicates that SPAD risk has decreased substantially, by 53% for the year ending September 2002, compared with the baseline year of 2000/01. Both the number of SPADs and risk per SPAD have reduced as a result of initiatives such as TPWS.

Based on data from the Safety Management Information System (SMIS), the number of line of route offences reduced by 32% in 2002/03, compared with 2001/02, and is now 29% better than target.

There were 15 passenger accidental fatalities in 2002/03, six of which were a result of the Potters Bar derailment and the other nine arising in individual non-train accidents. The passenger fatality rate during the past year stands at 1.87 fatalities per 133 million passenger journeys, which is a deterioration of 19% compared with 2001/02 but 26% better than the baseline year of 1998/99.

There were 193 passenger major injuries in 2002/03, compared with 209 in the previous year. The major injury rate during the past year stands at 1.46 major injuries per 7.5 million passenger journeys, which is an improvement of 9% compared with 2001/02 and 34% better than the baseline year of 1998/99."

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