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Friday 21 Sep 2012

SAFETY AWARD FOR EAST MIDLANDS RAIL ROUTE

Region & Route:

Train operators, East Midlands Trains and First Capital Connect along with Network Rail’s East Midlands team were last night awarded a safety award at the equivalent of the railway Oscars.

The National Rail Award for Safety 2012 was won for a joint safety plan which was drawn up and implemented by the three organisations in partnership. The aim was simple – to create a plan to address any risks on the route – and to deliver passengers and staff home safely, every day.

Martin Frobisher, East Midlands Route Managing Director said: “Safety is Network Rail’s top priority and better working with train operators on this plan has been a great success. I am delighted with the progress we’ve made; together we have made the route a better and safer place.”

David Horne, Managing Director for East Midlands Trains, said: "We're very proud to be recognised for our collaborative approach in developing a Joint Safety Improvement Plan. Safety forms a crucial part of our business and we are pleased to working with Network Rail and First Capital Connect to make improvements in this important area."

Neal Lawson, First Capital Connect’s Managing Director, said: “Following on from our national safety award for the best passenger safety figures in the country, this latest accolade shows our continued commitment to working with all our industry partners to improve safety still further.”

The plan takes the form of a document which gives employees a single point of reference for what is acceptable and unacceptable activity and safe behaviour. Available to everyone to refer to, from frontline staff to the managing directors, it is ‘active’ and open to revision.

To show their commitment to the plan, the managing directors of each company signed an agreement to implement the plan regardless of any contractual boundaries between them.

A joint exercise was set up to test the plan involving a fire on a train in a tunnel. The exercise allowed Network Rail and East Midlands to learn from joint working and develop safety plans further.