Updating of the guidelines for reversing and the associated checklist

According to the current guidelines for reversing, movement authority is given up to a limit that the carriages must not pass. It is impossible for the driver of the reversing train to comply with this rule in practice if they cannot see the carriages at the rear of the train that can be hundreds of metres away. Train drivers and traffic controllers are aware of the weaknesses in the guidelines, but no steps have been taken to change the rules and make the procedure safer.
Fintraffic Railway Ltd’s reversing checklist says nothing about checking whether the reversing train will fit onto the section of track that has been assigned for it.

The Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency update the sections of the Rail Transport and Shunting Safety Guidelines that deal with reversing and standardised communications so that trains can only be reversed into locations that the train driver is able to see from the cab. The existing checklist for the safe coordination and execution of reversing manoeuvres should also be updated and incorporated into the Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency’s rail transport operation guidelines.

The reversing guidelines and checklist should be updated taking into account the earlier, more comprehensive versions of the guidelines. Operator training should also be provided to ensure that the users of the guidelines understand the procedures and their significance from the perspective of the railway system as a whole.