Wheelchair Safety at Rail Level Crossings Taskforce
This page covers provides information about the establishment, actions and report of the Wheelchair Safety at Rail Level Crossings Taskforce.
Information on this page
About the Taskforce
The Minister for Transport established the Wheelchair Safety at Rail Level Crossings Taskforce in December 2001. It was set up following two fatal accidents at level crossings involving wheelchair users in Melbourne in late 2001.
The Taskforce included people with disabilities and representatives from:
Scope and methodology
Scope
The scope of the Taskforce was to provide recommendations on:
- the adequacy of Australian Standards for level crossing design, and the development of engineering and design standards for surfaces at crossings.
- the level of protection and design of level crossings for people in wheelchairs.
- the adequacy of wheelchair design standards.
- the responsibility of manufacturers and distributors of wheelchairs to inform purchasers about the suitability of wheelchairs over various terrains, particularly for rail level crossings and pedestrian crossings.
- the interface between people with a disability, train operators and infrastructure managers.
Methodology
The Taskforce's report was informed by:
- an international literature search
- a presentation about the risks of wheelchairs crossing flangeway gaps at railroad crossings at the Seventh International Symposium on Railroad Highway Grade Crossing Research and Safety, Melbourne
- current standards of engineering and design of railway crossings, and access and mobility standards for people with a disability
- an audit of a representative sample of railway pedestrian crossings in metropolitan Melbourne
- a series of wheelchair trials at railway pedestrian crossings
- a survey of the problems faced by wheelchair users on railway pedestrian crossings
- the current standards for wheelchair design and manufacture
- a public forum for people with a disability, community organisations, disability service providers and peak industry representatives
- face-to-face consultation with concerned individuals, allied health professionals, transport operators, and wheelchair manufacturers and suppliers
- submissions from various individuals, peak bodies, manufacturers and suppliers.
Overview of findings
The Taskforce found that, while considerable improvements have been carried out to make public transport more accessible for people with a disability, there remained a number of important issues that must be addressed in relation to safety and accessibility at pedestrian rail level crossings. The initial findings showed that there is a significant risk of further injuries, or even deaths, at pedestrian rail level crossings if the levels of safety and accessibility for people with a disability are not improved.
The Taskforce found that:
- The gap between the path surface and the edge of the rail tracks (flange gap) is needed to let the wheels of the train pass, but is a built-in hazard to wheelchairs and other mobility aids. A smooth riding surface is also important. The obvious solution is to replace all the surfaces of pedestrian rail level crossings with overpasses or underpasses ('grade separation'), however this can only be achieved in the long term. In the meantime, maintenance, upgrading, engineering and design of rail level crossings needs to be improved as a matter of urgency to raise the level of safety for wheelchair users.
- To date, pedestrian rail level crossing engineering and design has not specifically focussed on the needs of people with a disability, including people who use mobility aids. Standards for the surfaces at pedestrian and crib crossings, in particular the smoothness of surface, width of crossing, barrier gates and gaps between the pavement surface need to be developed. Responsibility for the development for disability standards for pedestrian rail level crossings needs to be clarified.
- The level of protection and design of rail level crossings for persons in wheelchairs, including minimum warning times for activating crossing protection equipment and refuges for persons inadvertently caught on the wrong side, and other emergency processes, require further investigation and clarification.
- The number of people in Victoria who use a wheelchair and are likely to travel over railway pedestrian crossings is difficult to count. However, since the overall Australian population is living longer, it is likely there will be an increase in people using wheelchairs in the future. Safety issues need to be addressed as soon as possible to ensure the safety of people now, and into the future.
- Train franchise arrangements need to be reviewed and clarified and an action plan for the maintenance and upgrade of pedestrian rail level crossings in metropolitan Melbourne from a disability access perspective needs to be developed.
- In the long term the safety for people using bicycles, prams, scooters and other vehicles with wheels will also need to be considered.
- While wheelchair design, standards and supply as well as customer information are important, they are less significant and not an equivalent issue to the protection, design and engineering at pedestrian rail level crossings.
- The introduction of wider wheels on wheelchairs, to prevent the risk of wheels becoming entrapped in flangeway gaps, would not be feasible due to the diversity of people’s requirements and the potential restrictions on mobility. Research and evaluation is required to rigorously test a range of other possibilities.
- There is currently no Australian Standard for wheel dimensions and, while there is an International Standard, compliance with this Standard is not mandatory. If mandatory wheelchair wheel standards were introduced, the result would limit the current flexibility to build wheelchairs to suit users need. If mandatory standards were to be introduced for wheelchairs, a regulation impact statement would need to address the potential costs as a result of any requirement for wheelchairs to comply with relevant Australian standards.
- The responsibility of manufacturers and distributors of wheelchairs to inform purchasers of suitable consumer information about the suitability of wheelchairs over various terrains, particularly for rail level crossings and at stand-alone rail pedestrian crossings does not have any specific structure to ensure quality assurance.
- Further work needs to take place with the wheelchair industry, suppliers, professionals and people with a disability to examine the adequacy of supply, information provision, regulation and licensing issues with the sale of wheelchairs and scooters.
- The urgency to reduce the risk of further train occurrences requires a multi faceted approach that involves whole of government, industry and community to address:
- engineering, design and infrastructure of rail level crossings and surrounds
- maintenance and safety of rail level crossings
- wheelchair design and standards
- wheelchair distribution and supply and customer information.
Recommendations
The Taskforce presented 25 recommendations for action by various State and Federal Government organisations and transport operators.
Implementation of recommendations
Implementation of the 25 recommendations is the responsibility of the
Railway Pedestrian Crossing Protection Upgrade Program.
Taskforce report
If you are unable to access this document,
contact Public Transport Division.