Rail Safe Week

Rail Safe Week is an annual community awareness week held in Australia and NZ, designed to engage the community in safe rail practices. This year’s Rail Safety Week (RSW) will be held 8-14 August 2022, marking its 17th year!

We were lucky enough to attend this year's Rail Safe Conference, thanks to TrackSAFE. The focus was on safety at Level Crossings and how not only the rail industry but communities and individuals can create a safer environment for all users.

Working together on rail safety is very important. Over the last six years there has been on average 83 fatalities on the Australian rail network, with 71 of these people taking their own life. As well, annually there are almost as many attempted suicides as suicides, around 27 injuries at level crossings or because of trespass and around 1,880 level crossing and trespass near hits.

Fatalities, incidents and near hits on the network can cause severe and lasting trauma to the rail employees involved, and the majority of these incidents can be avoided.

This year’s RSW campaign, STAND BACK. LOOK UP. STAY RAIL SAFE features Paralympian and rail accident survivor Vanessa Low OAM. When Vanessa was 15, she fell from a crowded platform and into the path of an oncoming train. Vanessa lost both her legs in the accident.

Visit the Rail Safe website to learn more