Health and safety

Severn Valley Railway has been fined £40,000 after pleading guilty to offences under the Work at Height Regulations 2005, which followed an investigation and prosecution by industry regulator, Office of Rail and Road (ORR).

The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) has authorised a significant expansion of Aberdare Station in South Wales as part of work to upgrade the Core Valley Lines.

Fatigue at work is a pervasive issue responsible for rail accidents, including the tragedy at Clapham Junction in 1988.

In ORR's latest Annual Rail Health and Safety report, Richard Hines, the new HM Chief Inspector of Railways, says the industry cannot afford to be complacent when faced with the effects of climate change, an increased reliance on maintaining existing infrastructure rather than replacement, and a period of significant change through reform.