10. PROGRESS REPORT: 2013 AUDIT RECOMMENDATIONS

7.26 Transport Canada should complete the implementation of the recommendations raised in the Railway Safety Act review and relevant recommendations of the rail safety review conducted by the House of Commons Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities. It should integrate the changes into the regulatory framework for federal railways to comply with and for the Department to oversee.

Complete

Regulatory Affairs created a strategic policy group consisting of four positions. This group supported the implementation of many of the recommendations specific to previous reviews including changes to multiple Regulations.

Not in current audit scope

7.32 Transport Canada should accelerate the resolution of important and long-standing safety issues. The Department should establish a formal process with clear timelines to monitor significant safety issues, from the time they are identified until they are mitigated to an acceptable level.

Complete

The follow regulations were developed and/or implemented based on long-standing safety issues:

1. The Prevention and Control of Fires on Line Works Regulations came into force on June 16, 2017.
2. The Administrative Monetary Penalty came into effect on April 1, 2015.
3. LVVR is complete and will come into effect in September 2022
4. The SMS Regulatory changes came into effect April 1, 2015.
5. Duty Rest Rule Pending will come into effect November 2020
6. Grade Crossing Regulations April 2014

Not in current audit scope

7.42 To oversee the safety management systems implemented by federal railways, including their compliance with the regulatory framework, Transport Canada should

• review its methodology to identify key safety risk and performance indicators, and the safety performance information it needs from railway companies, in order to make risk-based planning decisions;
• collect the relevant risk and safety performance information from federal railways and assess its completeness and reliability; and
• Develop an approach to make better use of the information on federal railways’ safety risks and performance when preparing annual oversight plans.

Complete

The Rail Safety Risk-Based Business Planning process was completely updated so that each functional group now has a documented procedure for reviewing risk. Risk is assigned a numeric factor so that it can be objectively ranked. Each numeric factor considers TSB occurrence data, Inspection data and TIRS data where appropriate. Rail Safety moved from an oversight activity of 70% random 30%risk to 30% random and 70% risk.

The Transportation Information Regulation was updated and came into effect on April 1, 2015. The TIRS Regulation resulted in the following:

1. A data portal was completed and is being used by Railway companies to submit information. .
2. RBBP Procedure was updated following the Internal Assessment in 2014.
3. Data analysis is cornerstone to RBBB including TIRS data, TSB data and inspection data.
4. Each function has a risk assessment tool that is made up of multiple factors in order to develop a nation picture of risk.

7.49 Transport Canada should reassess the number of its planned audits and inspections so that it takes into account the new safety management system environment. It should review how it allocates resources, with the aim of conducting the minimum level of oversight necessary to obtain assurance that federal railways have implemented adequate and effective safety management systems to comply with the regulatory framework. The Department should conduct this minimum level of oversight.

Complete

Rail Safety committed to auditing all processes in all railways by end of March 2021. With the exception of two delays due to COVID all were complete by March 31, 2020. RS will continue to audit all railways at least one in a 5 year cycle.

1. Five audit specialists were hired as planned. 
2. Railway risk profile were launched with a pilot phase on October 5, 2016, with HQ and regions populating and using the tool. Comments/concerns were incorporated into the next revision to the profile.

Discussions with SSO Managers occurred on January 18 and 19, 2017, to determine improvements to the profiles, which will occur in three phases.  The regions have the profiles A working group meeting was held in September 2017 to provide recommendations to the weighting of each question, which has since been implemented. The profiles generate a recommended schedule for audits.

In addition RS has been able to change the focus of audits from mostly random inspections to now mostly risk-based inspection activity.

7.58 Transport Canada should

• provide better documentation tools to inspectors to carry out their oversight activities, so that they can better document and communicate to federal railways what they assessed and what they found;
• improve its oversight of federal railways’ safety management systems by having inspectors assess their quality and effectiveness;
• require federal railways to make the necessary changes to correct deficiencies affecting the safety of their operations; and
• conduct timely follow-up on deficiencies affecting the safety of federal railways’ operations, to assess whether they have been corrected.

Complete

Rail Safety has taken many steps to improve documentation and tools to support both auditors and inspectors.

1. An audit course for SMS staff has been developed and has been offered to staff on an annual basis.
2. An audit manual has been developed and is used by staff. It is reviewed annually for changes
3. A regulatory course for SMS staff has been developed and offered two staff on an annual basis.
4. An oversight guide has been developed for SMS staff
5. An electronic software for managing audit papers has been implemented.
6. Follow-up procedures have been developed for inspectors and training has been provided.
7. Bootcamps have taken place where oversight staff are provided training on a wide variety of items.
8. Compliance manuals for each functional group are currently being completed.
9. Rail Safety updated the RSI course to align with changes to the RS Act.  This course is delivered to new inspectors.
10. In addition, a refresher course was developed which included a component of the RSA and its authorities.  Courses delivered in in all 5 regions. 

7.62 Transport Canada should set a clear expectation for management review and approval in the planning, conducting, and reporting of oversight activities, with the aim of ensuring that inspectors comply with the methodology and that their reports are accurate. Transport Canada should provide guidance to management on how to document the timing and extent of management involvement.

Complete

A Management Review procedure was established in June 2016 and training was provided. Management review results are reviewed quarterly at PBC.

Not in current audit scope

7.65 Transport Canada should improve its methodology to set clear expectations for planning and conducting audits and inspections, and for drafting and communicating findings to the federal railways.

Complete

Rail Safety has done much work in this area for both auditors and inspectors.

1. An audit manual has been developed and is used by staff. It is reviewed annually for changes. This manual includes template to be used for communication with industry.
2. Audit review Committees were established to ensure consistent in audit reporting.
3. Training for completing audits is provided to new staff and existing staff as requested.
4. An Internal Overight Guide was established to support consistent interpretation of the Regulation.
5. A regulatory course has been developed.
6. The inspector course has been updated.
7. The inspector toolbox was developed.
8. Boots camps were established to train both inspectors and auditors.

7.70 Transport Canada should identify and develop a strategy to ensure that it has the needed number of inspectors with the necessary skills and competencies required to plan and conduct the oversight of federal railways, including oversight of safety management systems.

Complete

Rail Safety has developed a HR Strategy as well as a learning Competency Framework. This work has been done in conjunction with MITT.

Not in current audit scope

7.74 Transport Canada should ensure that inspectors and managers receive in a timely manner training to carry out their responsibilities.

Complete

Transport Canada has put in place an annual schedule to ensure that all rail safety inspectors receive mandatory training on a timely basis to carry out their responsibilities. In addition bootcamps have taken place to provide training for inspectors from all Regions.

Not in current audit scope

7.76 The Department should put a process in place to monitor whether inspectors maintain their independence and objectivity when conducting audits and inspections of federal railways.

Complete

Transport Canada addressed this recommendation during summer 2013 by providing information and awareness sessions on the updated Treasury Board Values and Ethics Code as well as developing its own Transport Canada Code of Values and Ethics.

In addition, Transport Canada will require all inspectors to update their “Conflict of Interest” declarations when changes in circumstances would impact on an inspector’s independence or objectivity.

 Not in current audit scope

7.81 Transport Canada should develop a detailed quality assurance plan to assess its oversight methodology against best practices and to regularly evaluate audits and inspections against its methodology, with the goal of promoting continuous improvement.

Complete

Transport Canada has expanded its quality assurance program to include periodic testing of inspectors’ oversight activities, including testing practices related to systems-based audits.

Not in current audit scope