Modern technologies as a support for railway transport’s safety

The Office of Rail Transport has developed and implemented a new Engine Driver Examination and Monitoring System. Modern technologies have become a key element of comprehensive changes in the examination of this most numerous professional group on the railway. This is an important step towards improving the safety of rail transport.

One of the most important challenges that the Office of Railing Transport undertakes as a part of its main activities, is to raise the level of safety and competence among its employees. The role and preparation of train drivers is crucial in ensuring the safety of railway traffic. It has been defined that present examinations for work candidates, that took place in commercial training and examination centrers, do not provide sufficient assurance, that the competencies of candidates for driver positions are appropriate and the highest possible quality.

The basis for such point is the connection between the quality of train drivers’s training and the number of events, which is best seen with the example of SPAD (signal passed at danger). SPAD contains the accidents and incidents that involve either failure to stop a railway vehicle before signals and continuing further travel, or starting the vehicle without the permission, which is usually required. UTK’s analyzes show that as 40% of SPAD events are the responsibility of train drivers with less than a year or from 1 to 5 years of active work experience. Therefore, the Office of Rail Transport, with the support of European Funds from the Operational Infrastructure and Environment Program for 2014-2020, has developed and implemented a modern and comprehensive Syster of Examination and Monitoring of Railway Drivers. As part of the changes, from year 2023, a state exam for train drivers was introduced. The exam is conducted by the President of UTK in the new Center for Examination and Monitoring of Train Drivers in Warsaw. The state exam is being conducted in a universal standard with the use of innovative simulators and ICT systems, guarantees a high level of knowledge and skills of people entering the profesjonalnie of a train driver.

During the ‘Modern tools in the process of shaping the competence of transport personnel’ debate, UTK will present the role of modern technologies, which include the simulators and VR, as part of the examining and monitoring drivers process