Trespass kills: the ORR perspective

In this third podcast about trespass, David Whitmarsh, acting Principal Inspector of Railways for Scotland, talks about the ORR's expectations of the industry when it comes to trespass prevention.

He talks about why the ORR might decide to prosecute a railway company rather than the trespasser, and how the level of fines is calculated by the courts. What the ORR would consider to be 'good and sufficient [fences] for today's railway'; and how the new guidance on trespass risk assessment will help railway companies know whether they might be meeting those expectations.

01:10 About David Whitmarsh.

01:55 Why the ORR might prosecute a railway undertaking, rather than the trespasser.

03:06 When BTP would prosecute the trespasser.

03:48 How fines are decided by the courts.

05:10 What constitutes 'good and sufficient fences', and the regulations that determine what good and sufficient looks like today.

07:20 David's view of the new good practice guide on trespass risk assessment and how companies may get it wrong.

09:13 The new guidance as a means to help improve efforts to assess, manage, and mitigate trespass risk.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

The Railway Safety (Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations 1997: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1997/553/contents/made 

Risk Management Maturity Model (RM3) [amended 2020] https://www.orr.gov.uk/guidance-compliance/rail/health-safety/strategy/rm3 

Other related resources:

Railway safety miscellaneous provisions [HSE guidance, PDF download] https://www.orr.gov.uk/sites/default/files/om/guidance-on-railway-safety-regulations-1997.pdf 

LHSBR Public Behaviour section: https://www.rssb.co.uk/safety-and-health/leading-health-and-safety-on-britains-railway/public-behaviour

The Trespass Improvement Programme: https://www.rssb.co.uk/safety-and-health/improving-safety-health-and-wellbeing/trespass/trespass-improvement-programme

RSSB research project T1168 Evaluating Effectiveness of Trespass Detection and Prevention Methods: https://www.rssb.co.uk/research-catalogue/CatalogueItem/T1168 

RSSB research project T1182 Industry Trespass Data Collection Requirements: https://www.rssb.co.uk/research-catalogue/CatalogueItem/T1182 

Delays explained, Vandalism and trespass—Network Rail website: https://www.networkrail.co.uk/running-the-railway/looking-after-the-railway/delays-explained/vandalism-and-trespass/ 

Railway safety campaigns, You Vs Train—Network Rail website: https://www.networkrail.co.uk/communities/safety-in-the-community/railway-safety-campaigns/trespass-campaigns/ 

You vs. Train website: http://www.youvstrain.co.uk/