Part 1: Land Transport Safety

Chapter 2: Railway Traffic Safety

Section 1: Achieving a Society with No Railway Accidents

Railways are a mode of transport essential to the daily life of the people, as they can transport vast amounts of people and goods speedily and on time.

With the current highly-condensed operation of trains, a single accident can not only seriously interfere with the convenience of commuters but also cause immense damage. Therefore, the nation needs to promote various safety policies and establish an unshakable trust in railway transport among the people.

I. Current Status of Railway Accidents, etc.

1. Current status of railway accidents

Railway accidents are on a decline in the long term. There were 905 operations accidents and 1,358 deaths or injuries in 2005, which were a 3% reduction and an 81% increase compared with 936 accidents and 749 deaths or injuries in 2000. Meanwhile, there have been operations accidents that have had significant social impact, such as the derailment of East Japan Railway's (hereinafter called JR East) Joetsu Bullet Train caused by the Mid Niigata prefecture Earthquake in October 2004, the derailment on the Tosa Kuroshio Railway's Sukumo Line in March 2005, the derailment on the JR West Fukuchiyama Line in April 2005, and the derailment on the JR East Uetsu Line in December 2005.

Changes in Railway Operations Accidents, Casualties, and Fatalities

2. Characteristics of operations accidents in recent years

The noticeable feature of operations accidents of recent years is that those at level crossings and those resulting in injury or death have collectively accounted for 90% of the total accidents.

II. Objectives Set in the Fundamental Traffic Safety Program

[Numerical objective]

To reduce the number of passenger fatalities to zero

Although operations accidents on railways are on a decline in the long term, serious accidents such as the derailment of the train on the JR West Fukuchiyama Line had occurred and brought about significant impact on society. These accidents exemplified as a consequence that, with the high-density of train operation today, a single accident not only seriously interfere with the convenience of the commuters but also causes great damage. This has even led to the situation where the people’s trust in the railway system itself is on the verge of collapse.

On the other hand, demand for operation efficiency is growing in all companies due to the sluggish growth of traffic volume in recent years. Furthermore, many businesses of local railways are being forced to deal with unfavorable business conditions due to the declining and aging population along the railway lines.

With this reality in mind, the government will comprehensively and strongly promoting various measures set out in Section 2, with the understanding and cooperation of the people, and thereby aim to bring the number of passenger deaths to zero and reduce the number of operations accidents.

Section 2: Measures for Railway Traffic Safety

I. Viewpoints in Considering Future Railway Traffic Safety Measures

Operations accidents with railways are on a decline in the long term, and it is evident that measures based on the past fundamental traffic safety programs have been effective to a certain extent. However, in view of the present situation in which several hundreds of operations accidents occur annually, the problems underlying individual accidents have to be solved and the lessons learned from past accidents should be utilized to implement effective measures. Therefore, the government will promote various traffic safety policies from a comprehensive viewpoint, including the improvement of railway traffic environments, securing of safe operation of railways, and securing of railway vehicle safety.

II. Measures to Be Taken

[Priority measures and newly-introduced measures in the Eighth Program]

1. Improving the railway traffic environment

To secure the safety of railway traffic, the government needs to maintain a high level of reliability for railway facilities such as railway tracks and operational safety facilities, and build the foundation of safety for the whole of their systems. For achieving this, safety measures should be implemented by ensuring the maintenance management of railway facilities and promoting the improvement of operational safety facilities and the reinforcement of the earthquake resistance of railway structures.

(1) Checking and improving railway facilities

To ensure the safety of railway traffic, the maintenance and upgrade of facilities such as railway tracks and roadbeds will be carried out appropriately. At the same time, improvements in railway track protection equipment will be promoted to prevent tracks and facilities from damage due to landslides caused by heavy rain, falling rocks and avalanches.

In terms of regular inspection, maintenance and repair of railway structures, since it has turned out in the past that some railway operators had not conducted required regular inspections of railway structures, the government will ensure that stringent regular inspections and proper maintenance and management of facilities are implemented.

The government will also promote appropriate maintenance and repair of facilities and vehicles in small and medium-sized local railways based on the maintenance improvement program, which sets out particulars that the railway operators have to implement urgently or in the long and medium terms.

As for safety measures for underground railways, it has recently been made compulsory for railway operators to implement improvements on stations that do not conform to fire disaster standards for underground railways (established in 1975) by FY2008, in response to the subway fire that occurred in South Korea. These safety improvements on railway stations will be promoted.

With regard to station facilities, the government will give due consideration to the safe use of railway stations by elderly and disabled people, and promote the elimination of level differences and the installation of fall prevention equipment in order to create a "barrier-free" environment. They will also encourage railway operators to take safety measures to prevent falls from platforms where trains run at high speed or in rapid succession. Examples of such measures include installation of emergency stop buttons or fall detection mats and the provision of an evacuation space below platforms.

(2) Improving operational safety systems

In light of the derailment accident of the train on the JR West Fukuchiyama Line, the government will work to improve operational safety systems by completing the installment of ATS for preventing over-speeding on sharp curves by FY2009, based on the urgent improvement program.

In addition, the government will promote the improvement and upgrade of communication devices, train radio systems, for example, so that necessary information can be conveyed quickly in emergency situations such as accidents and earthquakes.

[Numerical objective]

To install ATS to prevent over-speeding on 2,865 sharp curves

(3) Strengthening anti-earthquake measures of railways

In view of the conditions of damage in the Mid Niigata prefecture Earthquake in October 2004, the government will promote earthquake resistance measures based on the evaluation by the Conference on Shinkansen Derailment Countermeasures consisting of JR companies, the bullet train operators, and others. Measures for tunnels that have been confirmed to cross with active faults and require anti-seismic reinforcement will be taken by FY2007, and elevated bridge pillars confined around their middle sections will be thoroughly investigated and strengthened against earthquakes by FY2006. In addition, the government will also deliberate on derailment prevention measures. As for seismic strengthening of elevated bridge pillars for other bullet trains, the schedule will be pushed forward from its original due date of FY2008, and the overall strengthening will be completed by FY2007. Seismic strengthening of elevated bridge pillars for conventional railway lines will also continue to be promoted.

Furthermore, the government will promote improvements of seismic strengthening in major railway stations, and provision of equipment which retransmits disaster information in underground railway facilities where radio waves are shielded, to prepare for large-scale earthquakes that are predicted to occur in the future.

[Numerical objective]

To implement all measures for bullet train tunnels that require earthquake resistance measures and seismic strengthening of elevated bridge pillars

2. Securing safe railway operation

In view of the derailment accident on the JR West Fukuchiyama Line, the government will review how their instructions and supervision should be given to operators and promptly implement measures for which they finish the review. Specifically, the government will promote the building of safety management systems that involve all levels of the workforce from top management to on-site workers, and introduce a mechanism of “safety management assessment,” wherein the government checks these systems.

Furthermore, in light of the derailment accident on the JR East Uetsu Line, the government will deliberate measures against the gale force wind from both tangible and intangible aspects, and promptly implement measures on which they reach a decision.

In addition to this, the government will direct the operators to maintain and improve the quality of their crews and maintenance personnel, and strengthen and improve safety audits. They will also promote greater public awareness about safety through a range of publicity and educational activities.

(1) Improving education for railway crews and safety personnel

The government will instruct railway operators to improve the performance of their education and training programs for railway crews and safety personnel. The operators will be encouraged to carry out regular scientific aptitude tests in order to secure the competencies of railway crews and safety personnel. The government will also carry out driving license tests for train operators appropriately in order to secure their quality.

In addition, to improve the quality of train operators, the government will study the ideal education for train operators and the way to improve their working environment, and promptly implement measures on which they reach a decision.

(2) Improving management of train operation and railway crews

The government will work with railway operators to improve their after-hours contact procedures and expand communication systems, so that they can collect and communicate information more quickly and accurately in the event of a major accident or disaster.

In addition, the government will instruct railway operators to improve their operations management system to enable them to quickly take appropriate measures in the event of a schedule disruption or accident. This can be done, for example, by accurately assaying train operation conditions, making emergency contacts, providing appropriate information to passengers, taking prompt emergency measures to restore services, and improving emergency transportation systems. Such measures will reduce the damage and social effects caused by transport disorder in arterial railways and in large cities.

The government will also lead railway operators to strictly implement work place safety management procedures such as checking the physical and psychological conditions of railway crews and so forth, in order to confirm that they are fit to perform their duties fully and ensure safe operations.

Furthermore, the government will examine the possibility to systemize quality management of train operators and implement measures on which they reach a decision.

(3) Promoting diffusion of knowledge about railway traffic safety

It is necessary to widely disseminate knowledge about safe passage on roads at railway crossings and avoidance of railway accidents, in order to prevent the occurrence of operations accidents such as accidents at level crossings and accidents due to external factors such as railway obstructions caused by rocks placed or thrown onto tracks and entering onto tracks. For this reason, the government will instruct railway operators to actively carry out publicity and educational activities in schools, among people living along railway lines and among road transport companies, through events such as the National Traffic Safety Campaign, by putting up posters and distributing flyers.

The government will instruct railway operators to take thorough safety measures to protect workers engaged in construction and maintenance of railway facilities.

(4) Implementing safety audits of railway operators

The government will carry out safety audits of railway operators, either on a regular basis or in consideration of the occurrence of an accident. Based on the results of the audit, they will provide appropriate instructions to the operators regarding the maintenance and management of facilities and trains, railway operation procedures, education and training of railway crews and safety management systems.

In addition, in view of the derailment accident on the JR West Fukuchiyama Line, the government will deliberate on the strengthening and improvement of safety audits such as strengthening follow-up of guidance given in the past, and promptly implement measures on which they reach a decision.

The government will also hold the railway safety liaison conference regularly and exchange information on accidents and accident prevention measures.

In addition, the government will provide guidance through various opportunities, in belief that it is fundamental for securing transport safety for operators themselves to grasp the safety-related conditions of the field, and improve an in-house reporting system.

(5) Improving weather information

The government will accurately understand any weather conditions or natural phenomena which could affect railway transport, and make efforts to improve qualities of meteorological information including warnings, advisories and forecasts of severe weather, tsunami, tropical cyclone, heavy rain, earthquake, volcanic eruption, etc., and to ensure appropriate timely announcements and swift provision of such information. Railway companies will work to quickly collect and interpret this meteorological information and reflect it in their operations management, and thereby reduce the damage on railway facilities and maintain safe train operation.

Furthermore, facilities for observing weather conditions, earthquake, tsunami and volcanic activities will be constructed as necessary, and maintenance and improvement of those facilities will be promoted. At the same time, the government will promote information sharing with disaster prevention organizations, and strengthen IT-utilized observation or monitoring systems. Improvement of people’s knowledge about meteorological phenomena will also be promoted by way of publicity activities, seminars, etc.

(6) Strengthening cause investigation systems of railway accidents

To investigate the cause of railway accidents and serious incidents in a prompt and proper fashion, and to contribute to preventing railway accidents, the government will improve specialized investigative techniques of accident investigation officials and work to improve analysis ability by utilizing various equipments for investigation. They will also work to improve the investigation system by reinforcing staff and such.

3. Ensuring railway vehicle safety

Making use of the latest scientific and technological advancements, the government will review technical safety standards relating to the structure and equipment of railway vehicles in appropriate ways and at appropriate times. At the same time, they will work to enhance the method and substance of inspections to maintain and improve railway vehicle safety.

(1) Improving technical safety standards for construction and equipment of railway vehicles

The government will promptly reflect newly-introduced railway vehicle technology and the results of causal analysis of vehicle malfunction and vehicle safety research in technical standards.

(2) Improving railway vehicle inspections

The government will improve the accuracy of railway vehicle inspections by promoting the introduction of new inspection instruments incorporating IT and other new technologies. Along with the introduction of new technology, they will upgrade education and training programs for inspectors.

In addition, the government will scientifically analyze malfunction data and inspection data of vehicles to prevent vehicle malfunction by reflecting the results in maintenance and management.

4. Enhancing rescue and emergency services systems

In order to promote prompt and effective evacuation, rescue and emergency services in the event of a serious railway accident, the government will work to improve disaster drills at major stations, and strengthen systems of closer liaison and cooperation between railway operators and fire services, medical institutions and other relevant bodies.

5. Promoting victims support

The government will improve assistance activities for compensation claims and implement measures sensitive to the feelings of the victims. In particular, in case of large-scale accidents, the police, medical institutions, local authorities and private victims support organizations will cooperate together to support the victims.

6. Improving R&D and study activities

The government will implement R&D for preventing railway accidents, and promote comprehensive research studies for investigating the cause of accidents.

(1) Promoting R&D on railway transport safety

The government will try to improve the safety of railway transport by promoting R&D directed at preventing accidents.

The National Traffic Safety and Environment Laboratory will carry out research on evaluation and effect prediction of new technologies for facilities, vehicles and operation, and on prevention technologies for accidents caused by human-error in order to realize safer railway systems. In addition, to promote the practical application of safer new traffic systems, they will implement research on evaluation of their safety and reliability.

In view of serious railway accidents that have occurred in recent years, the government will promote technological development that contributes to improving safety further, including testing and technological development by the Railway Technical Research Institute for reducing damage during earthquake disasters and accidents.

(2) Implementing comprehensive research studies for investigating causes of railway accidents

To implement studies on investigating the causes of railway accidents and serious incidents promptly and accurately, the government will implement comprehensive research studies. To do so, they will improve the knowledge obtained from investigations of past accidents such as the analysis of various recording devices, improve various analysis techniques, and utilize stocks of accident analysis results, and reflect these results in investigations of the causes.