Collecting evidence from distributed sources to evaluate railway suicide and trespass prevention measures

A pilot study evaluating the effectiveness of preventing railway suicides by mid-track fencing, which restrict easy access to high-speed train tracks

BACKGROUND

Suicides in the railway system is a serious health, societal, and transportation concern. Restriction of the access to suicide methods in the form of different physical barriers is a promising approach for suicide prevention.

METHOD

Mid-track fencing, which is fencing placed in-between the high-speed and commuter train tracks, was installed at one out of seven stations along a train line outside of Stockholm in the years 2013/2014. The number of suicides at the intervention station was compared to six other stations used as controls, over a total period of 20 years (2002-2021).

RESULTS

Suicides at high-speed tracks occurring at stations was the major cause of death on the investigated railway line. Prior to the year 2014, the intervention and control stations displayed similar time trends in the number of suicides. After installation of the mid-track fencing in 2014, there was a 62.5% reduction in the rate of suicides occurring at the intervention station. Compared to the six other control stations, the intervention station displayed a significant reduction in the number of suicides during the years 2014-2021 (OR = 0.14, 95%CI 0.013-0.95). Suicides at the railway lines in-between stations were not increased post-intervention. However, nearby control stations showed a 162% increase in suicides after the intervention, suggesting the induction of transfer effects.

CONCLUSION

Mid-track fences restricting access to high-speed train tracks may have a large effect on reducing the number of railway suicides at intervention stations, but may also induce an increase in suicides at nearby stations without mid-track fences.

PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS

Partial physical barriers such as mid-track fencing is deemed to be relatively easy and cheap to install (as compared to full barriers; e.g., full height platform screen doors) and should be considered at all stations on railway lines that have high-speed trains passing by.

Identifying measures with the highest potential to reduce suicides on Finnish railways

The purpose of this study was to work systematically through all known measures for preventing railway suicides and to consider their suitability for the Finnish railway environment. The research method included a selection and grouping of measures, definition of assessment criteria, a literature review and compilation of assessment forms, and a workshop for experts in the field. We assessed 21 measures based on 12 specified criteria. Specifically, the aim of these criteria was to support the identification and structuring of the available information on each measure to be in easily exploitable format for railway stakeholders. The measures were listed in order of priority in three categories based on final assessments from the workshop. The measures categorised as top priority with the highest potential to reduce suicides on Finnish railways included training of railway personnel to identify suicidal people (also called Gatekeeper training), camera surveillance, detection systems (radar, movement sensors, etc.), collaboration between organisations, learning from international experience, cooperation between railway organisations, police and fire and rescue services, and training of mental health providers. This prioritisation, together with the information included in the assessment forms and expert's views related to each measure, support the Finnish railway stakeholders in selecting measures and defining implementation strategies to prevent railway suicides on Finnish railways. The insights of Finnish experts on the effectiveness and potential implementation of these different measures are valuable information also for railway stakeholders in other countries when selecting appropriate measures to prevent railway suicides. The results of this study support the safe and effective functioning of the railway system by adding knowledge that will help effectively prevent railway suicides and loss of life, delays to train traffic, and work-related stress and trauma to railway staff, rescue personnel and eyewitnesses.

Human, Organisational and Societal Factors in Robotic Rail Infrastructure Maintenance

Robotics are set to play a significant role in the maintenance of rail infrastructure. However, the introduction of robotics in this environment requires new ways of working for individuals, teams and organisations and needs to reflect societal attitudes if it is to achieve sustainable goals. The following paper presents a qualitative analysis of interviews with 25 experts from rail and robotics to outline the human and organisational issues of robotics in the rail infrastructure environment. Themes were structured around user, team, organisational and societal issues. While the results point to many of the expected issues of robotics (trust, acceptance, business change), a number of issues were identified that were specific to rail. Examples include the importance of considering the whole maintenance task lifecycle, conceptualizing robotic teamworking within the structures of rail maintenance worksites, the complex upstream (robotics suppliers) and downstream (third-party maintenance contractors) supply chain implications of robotic deployment and the public acceptance of robotics in an environment that often comes into direct contact with passenger and people around the railways. Recommendations are made in the paper for successful, human-centric rail robotics deployment.

Intervento. La prevenzione del suicidio e l'accesso a metodi letali

La ricerca mostra che i tassi di suicidio sono collegati alla disponibilità di mezzi letali. Ad esem-pio, è stato dimostrato che l'installazione di barriere di sicurezza sui ponti notoriamente usati dai suicidi ha un effetto preventivo senza che vi sia ricorso ad altre modalità suicidarie, e che la rimo-zione di queste barriere porta a un aumento di suicidi. Allo stesso modo, limitazioni della vendita di pesticidi e dell'accesso ai pesticidi utilizzando contenitori chiusi a chiave sono correlate con la diminuzione dei tassi di suicidio per ingestione di pesticidi. Inoltre, dato che è più facile ingerire una quantità significativa di pillole direttamente dal flacone che estraendole una per una dal blister, la diffusione di confezioni di pillole in blister ha ridotto i tentativi di suicidio con questo metodo. Questi sono solo alcuni esempi. Si ritiene che altri approcci simili contribuiscano in modo signifi-cativo alla prevenzione del suicidio.

Railway Suicide in The Netherlands Lower Than Expected

Abstract.Background: Increasing rail transportation requires appropriate railway suicide preventive measures. Aims: The investigation of trends in railway suicide during 2008–2018, a period in which preventive measures were taken by Dutch railway infrastructure manager ProRail. Methods: Generalized linear regression models for railway suicide were developed for the period 1970–2007 with general suicide rate, railway traffic intensity, and a combination of these variables as regressors. Subsequently, the best-fitting model was used to investigate trends in railway suicide after 2007 by comparing in retrospect observed values with the expected outcomes of the regression model. Results: An adequate regression model for railway suicide was obtained using both general suicide rate and railway traffic intensity as regressors. Based on this model, while national suicide mortality and railway traffic increased, a distinct relative decline in railway suicides was found from 2012 onward. Conclusions: This decline of railway suicides in the Netherlands may indicate that preventive measures taken by ProRail were effective and prevented around 85 railway suicides annually, a reduction of 30%.

How technology can impact customer-facing train crew experiences

Customer-facing train crew members have to follow strict procedures to guarantee that trains are safe and run on time. They are also responsible for revenue protection and customer care. Human factors and ergonomics research are instrumental to understand the safety-critical aspects and improve work. We bring user experience research and personas to describe how train crew perceive their routines and how new technology may impact them. We conducted 7 hours of interviews and 30 hours of shadowing observations with the train crew (N = 22) to provide an understanding of who are they and to define their experiences. We present the crew's current routines and created two personas to represent them. One is slightly reluctant to adopt the proposed technology, whereas the other is more accepting. Results indicate how such technology may affect crew work ergonomics and experiences, and suggest which valuable aspects should be maintained, for example the positive interactions with passengers. Practitioner summary: This study investigated the work routines of the customer-facing train crew. Interviews and shadowing were conducted with 22 crew from a large operator in the UK. Personas were created to represent them. Results show their preferred activities and how these would be affected by the introduction of new technology. Abbreviations: CH; customer host (onboard catering staff); DOO: driver-only operation; ETA: estimated time of arrival; PTI: platform-train interface; TM: train manager (onboard customer-facing authority); UCD: user-centred design; UX: user experience.