Letter published in The |
Tony Allwright, Killiney, Dublin You can write to to the author by clicking here
Copyright : The EconomistThis letter** was published in response to a leader ("The price of safety**") and lengthy follow-up article on rail safety in the UK ("How not to run a railway**") that appeared in The Economist on November 25th 2000
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Copyright : The Economist SIRThe whole concept of ATPS [Advanced Train Protection System] needs to be questioned, since it excludes from the safety loop the most important playersemployees. For example, with the driver freed of the necessity to react to red lights since the ATPS will do it for him, it is inevitable that his overall awareness will flag and pave the way for other hazards to emerge.Nothing is easier, flashier and more satisfying than writing a big cheque (using someone elses money) for a fancy new piece of hardware such as ATPS and declaring the problem solved. However, as you work down the list of other safety features, though things cost less money and are increasingly effective, they require more and continuous management effort and are less glamorous for the bosses. But if you are genuinely passionate about avoiding blood loss, there is no other route to continuous safety improvement.
TONY ALLWRIGHT
Killiney, Ireland
This letter was, in fact, an abridged version of what was submitted to the Editor of The Economist, and has unfortunately lost something in the abridging process. The original version was the following, in which the deleted portions are highlighted in red italics and an added phrase is in blue italics. It is based on the arguments set out in a speech (Reference 1 below) presented at a conference in Oman in October 2000 SIR -
However, company managements, and it would seem politicians, are often utterly seduced by only the first of these five, and for a very simple reason. Nothing is easier, flashier and more satisfying than writing a big cheque (using someone else's money) for a fancy new piece of hardware such as ATPS and declaring the problem solved. For as you work down the list of other safety features, though things cost less money and are increasingly effective, they require more and continuous management effort and are less glamorous for the bosses. But if you are genuinely passionate about avoiding blood loss, there is no other route to continuous safety improvement. To behave otherwise is both to not care and to be lazy.
TONY ALLWRIGHT
Killiney, Ireland
References