- Short Title
- Scope
- Definitions
- Safety Inspections
- Pre-Departure Inspections
- Qualification of Car Inspectors
- Safety Inspection Locations
- Reporting Responsibility
1. Short Title
1.1 For ease of reference, these rules may be referred to as the "Passenger Car Safety Rules".
2. Scope
2.1 These rules prescribe the minimum safety standards for passenger cars operated by railway companies in trains at speeds not exceeding 125 mph (200 km/h) subject to the jurisdiction of the Railway Safety Act as administered by the Department of Transport.
3. Definitions
In these Rules:
3.1 "bad order information system" means any method, computerized or otherwise, by which a railway company can control and protect the movement of a car with defects;
3.2 "bent" means a component, item or part of a passenger car which is altered to the extent that it no longer performs its design function, and creates a hazard because of its condition;
3.3 "break" means a fracture resulting in complete separation into parts. The term "break" and "broken" are used interchangeably in these rules;
3.4 "certificate" means a wallet size card which identifies the employee and the task(s) for which such employee is qualified;
3.5 "certified car inspector" means a person who is trained and qualified to perform safety inspections of passenger cars pursuant to subsection 6.1;
3.6 "cracked" means fractured without complete separation into parts;
3.7 "Department" means the Department of Transport;
3.8 "g" means a unit of force equal to the force exerted by gravity on a body at rest and used to indicate the force to which a body is subjected when accelerated;
3.9 "in service" means all passenger cars except those which are:
- "bad order" or "home shop for repairs";
- in a repair shop or on a repair track; or
- on a storage track.
3.10 new equipment" means equipment ordered after April 1, 2001;
3.11 "layover" means a situation where a train is temporarily positioned for eight (8) hours or more;
3.12 "passenger car" means a railway vehicle intended to provide transportation of passengers and baggage in either commuter or intercity service, which includes cab cars and a DMU (Diesel Multiple Unit);
3.13 "person in charge" means a person certified in accordance with subsection 6.1, appointed by a railway company to ensure the safe conduct of an operation or of the work of employees;
3.14 "personal wheelchair" means a passenger-owned wheelchair that requires a minimum clear floor area of 29.5 inches (750 mm) by 47.2 inches (1200 mm) to accommodate the wheelchair and its occupant and a minimum clear turning space of 59 inches (1500 mm) in diameter;
3.15 "qualified person" means, in respect of a specified duty, a person who, because of his/her knowledge, training and experience is qualified to perform that duty safely and properly;
3.16 "railway company" means a railway company subject to these rules;
3.17 "railway safety inspector" means an inspector appointed by the Department pursuant to Section 27 of the Railway Safety Act;
3.18 "remanufactured" means a car or system that has undergone rebuilding or modification sufficient to enable the provision of an additional life cycle expected to be similar to that attainable by a new passenger car or system;
3.19 "safety defect" means any item or component that is defective on a passenger car, as prescribed by Part II of these Rules and General Order No. 0-10, "Regulations Respecting Railway Safety Appliance Standards";
3.20 "safety inspection" means an examination of a passenger car for safety defects while stationary by a certified car inspector or a person in charge as defined herein, to verify that it may be moved safely in a train, and to identify those defects listed in Part II of these Rules and that such passenger cars comply with General Order No. O-10, "Regulations Respecting Railway Safety Appliance Standards" which may inhibit such movement and require correction. Safety inspections are intended to be visual in nature;
3.21 "safety inspection location" means a location designated by a railway company where certified car inspectors perform safety inspections;
3.22 "safety inspection record" means a record in hard copy form or otherwise including a computer record which attests that a safety inspection as defined herein was performed;
3.23 "wheelchair tie-down" means a space with restraints to accommodate an occupied personal wheelchair.
4. Safety Inspections
4.1 A railway company shall ensure the passenger cars it places or continues in service are free from all safety defects described in Part II of these Rules and in General Order No.O-10 "Regulations Respecting Railway Safety Appliance Standards".
4.2 Safety inspections shall be performed on passenger cars where trains are made up, where trains lay-over, and on passenger cars before or after they are added to trains or interchanged, as per Section 7.
4.3 Where a safety inspection performed in accordance with subsection 4.2 reveals a safety defect on a car:
- the car may be moved to another location for repair provided:
- i. a person in charge determines that it is safe to move the car and identifies to employees involved the nature of the defects and the movement restrictions, if any; and
- ii. the movement is controlled by the use of a bad order information system; and
- the appropriate records shall be retained for 60 days.
4.4 A railway company shall maintain a safety inspection record for the passenger cars it places in service at each safety inspection location. This information shall be retained for 60 days and made available to the Department upon request.
5. Pre-Departure Inspections
5.1 As per subsection 7.2, where there are no certified car inspectors on duty to perform the inspection required by subsection 4.2, a pre-departure inspection of the train or the cars shall be performed by a qualified person to detect hazardous conditions indicated by the following:
- car body leaning or listing to the side;
- car body sagging downward;
- car body positioned improperly on the truck;
- object dragging below the car body;
- object extending from the side of the car body;
- side door does not open or close, a double door that does not have at least one section that opens and closes, and end door does not open;
- broken or missing safety appliance;
- insecure coupling;
- overheated wheel or journal;
- broken or cracked wheel;
- brake that fails to release; or
- any other apparent condition likely to cause accident or casualty before the train arrives at its destination.
5.2 When a pre-departure inspection reveals a hazardous condition that may affect safe operation, the qualified person in charge of the train shall take the appropriate action to eliminate potential danger by:
- correcting the condition;
- reducing the speed of the train;
- removing the defective car from the train; or
- taking such other action as is necessary to ensure the continued safe operation.
6. Qualification of Car Inspectors
6.1 A railway company shall ensure that car inspectors are trained and qualified to perform safety inspections of passenger cars in compliance with these Rules. Car inspectors must demonstrate to a railway company by means of oral or written examinations and on-the-job performance, a knowledge and ability concerning safety inspection of railway passenger cars. Car inspectors shall be issued a certificate attesting to the employee's qualifications.
6.2 A railway company shall file with the Department a full description of the training program and criteria used for:
- certifying car inspectors; and
- qualifying those employees performing inspections in accordance with subsection 7.2.
6.3 A railway company shall maintain a record of all employees who have qualified as certified car inspectors. This record shall be made available to a railway safety inspector upon request.
6.4 The certificate attesting to the employee's qualifications shall be made available to a railway safety inspector upon request.
7. Safety Inspection Locations
7.1 Safety inspections shall be performed at locations where trains are made up, where trains lay-over, or where cars are added to trains, or when interchanged. Such inspections may occur before or after a car is placed in a train at that location.
7.2 At locations where a certified car inspector is not on duty for purposes of inspecting passenger cars, a pre-departure inspection of the train or the cars added shall be performed by a qualified person, as a minimum, for those conditions listed in subsection 5.1. Thereafter, a safety inspection will be performed by a certified car inspector at the first safety inspection location designated for that train by the railway company in the direction of travel.
8. Railway Reporting Responsibility
8.1 Every railway company shall reply in writing or by acceptable electronic means, within fourteen days, to the Department's regional office concerned, on the corrective action taken to correct a violation/defect reported by a railway safety inspector. The reply, from an appropriate railway officer, shall also include the passenger car initials and number and the date and location of the corrective action taken.