The Queensland Government has toughened up rules for train drivers, setting new minimum standards to manage fatigue in a bid to further boost safety.
Transport Minister Annastacia Palaszczuk said in a statement that new regulations would set new minimum standards for fatigue management across the state's entire rail network, improving safety for both rail staff and their passengers.
Palaszczuk said the changes meant that for trains with two drivers the maximum shift length would be 12 hours and for single-driver locomotives, a nine hour maximum would be introduced.
She said the new standards also introduced a requirement that drivers take a minimum of 12 hours break between each shift where the driver ends a shift at a home depot and 8 hours break when away from the home depot.
"Rail in Queensland is booming," Palaszczuk said.
"We've made a major investment in passenger and freight rail in recent years and although Queensland has a strong rail safety record, we understand that with our massive expansion in the mining sector, we need to keep a close watch on fatigue issues," she said.
Rail Tram and Bus Union State Secretary Owen Doogan said, the union was “delighted” with the government's decision, which he said was an important advancement in safety within the industry.
"Driving trains requires constant deep concentration whether hauling coal wagons over a kilometre long or carrying hundreds of commuters and tourists and therefore fatigue management is a top of the tree safety issue in our industry," Doogan commented.
Palaszczuk said unions has raised significant concerns with the government about potential fatigue issues, especially given the increasing number of operators on the network.
"Our rail industry is undergoing significant change driven by a number of factors including an influx of new operators, an increasingly competitive commercial environment in the bulk haul market and additional rail operators and rail managers associated with new mining ventures.
"Ultimately it comes down to boosting driver safety - and if we boost driver safety, we boost safety for all Queenslanders," she stated.
Palaszczuk said while a rail transport operator could seek to operate outside the standard hours, they'd have to gain prior approval from the rail safety watchdog.
The regulation commenced this week and allows industry 12 months transition time to meet the new requirements.
Details of the new minimum standard provision:
In the case of a two driver operation (including where the second person is a qualified train driver who is learning the route or undergoing an assessment), the maximum shift length is 12 hours.
As far as driver operation is concerned, the maximum shift length is 9 hours.
For suburban passenger rail operations, the maximum time at the driving controls is 8 hours.
A break of at least 12 continuous hours is required between each shift where the driver ends a shift at the home depot (a 'home depot' is the work location to which an employee has been appointed).
A break of at least 8 continuous hours is needed between each shift where the driver ends a shift at an away depot.
A maximum number of 12 shifts and a maximum 132 hours can be worked in any 14 day period.
Image credit: Queensland Government