Contractor-specific safety management systems in trackwork

The Finnish Transport Agency did not require the contractors participating in the track project to have their own safety management systems; instead, it required the application of the Finnish Transport Agency's safety management system. The adoption of the system on a work site with several contractors and subcontractors was deficient, as was the monitoring of the adoption process.

Already at the competitive tendering phase for the project, the Finnish Transport Agency should require each main contractor participating in track projects to have its own safety management system that takes the special characteristics of the companies and work sites into consideration, and include monitoring of the realisation of these systems as part of its auditing process.

The main contractor’s safety management system must take the safety objectives set by the Finnish Transport Agency into consideration also with respect to subcontractors.

The Finnish Transport Agency did not require the contractors participating in the track project to have their own safety management systems; instead, it required the application of the Finnish Transport Agency's safety management system. The adoption of the system on a work site with several contractors and subcontractors was deficient, as was the monitoring of the adoption process.