Rail safety research

After a major incident, a range of information and research is produced.

Here you will find details of that research, including information published prior to 1 April 2006 when we assumed responsibility for rail health and safety from the Health and Safety Executive.

Last updated: 25 February 2008

Rail safety research

15 Aug 2008
Review of Network Rail's All Level Crossing Risk Model (ALCRM)
( PDF 327 Kb)

Produced by Health & Safety Laboratory
16 Jun 2008
Evaluation of the UK Rail Sector Initial Fatigue & Risk Index Thresholds: Identifying Good Practice
( PDF 220 Kb)

Produced by Health & Safety Laboratory
26 Feb 2008
Determination of Tramway Wheel and Rail Profiles to Minimise Derailment
( PDF 2004 Kb)

Produced by Rail Technology Unit at Manchester Metropolitan University
26 Feb 2008
A Good Practice Guide for Managing the Wheel-Rail Interface of Light Rail and Tramway Systems
( PDF 151 Kb)

Produced by Rail Technology Unit at Manchester Metropolitan University
30 Nov 2006
Post Hatfield rolling contact fatigue - The effect of residual stress on contact stress driven crack growth in rail: Literature review
( PDF 4188 Kb)

Produced by Newcastle University
30 Nov 2006
Post Hatfield rolling contact fatigue - The effect of residual stress on contact stress driven crack growth in rail Part 1: The model
( PDF 1588 Kb)

Produced by Newcastle University
30 Nov 2006
Post Hatfield rolling contact fatigue - The effect of residual stress on contact stress driven crack growth in rail Part 2: Data
( PDF 444 Kb)

Produced by Newcastle University
30 Nov 2006
Post Hatfield rolling contact fatigue - The effect of residual stress on contact stress driven crack growth in rail Part 3: Further data
( PDF 930 Kb)

Produced by Newcastle University
30 Nov 2006
Post Hatfield rolling contact fatigue - The effect of residual stress on contact stress driven crack growth in rail: Combination of bending and contact stresses
( PDF 638 Kb)

Produced by Newcastle University
30 Nov 2006
Post Hatfield rolling contact fatigue - The effect of residual stress on contact stress driven crack growth in rail: Comparison of the Hatfield and alternative UK rails using models
( PDF 2327 Kb)

Produced by Newcastle University
29 Nov 2006
Post Hatfield rolling contact fatigue - Modelling of Bending Stresses in Rails - November 2004
( PDF 277 Kb)

Produced by Health & Safety Laboratory
29 Nov 2006
Post Hatfield rolling contact fatigue - The influence of pro-eutectoid ferrite and decarburisation on crack growth - 17 August 2005
( PDF 2409 Kb)

Produced by University of Sheffield
29 Nov 2006
Post Hatfield rolling contact fatigue - Measurement of Crack Depths in a Section of Head Hardened Rail - March 2005
( PDF 1698 Kb)

Produced by Health & Safety Laboratory
27 Nov 2006
A survey of UK tram and light railway systems relating to the wheel/rail interface - 14 March 2006 (whole document)
( PDF 8240 Kb)

Produced by the Health & Safety Laboratory
27 Nov 2006
A survey of UK tram and light railway systems relating to the wheel/rail interface - 14 March 2006 (split 1)
( PDF 2731 Kb)

Produced by the Health & Safety Laboratory (split 1)
27 Nov 2006
A survey of UK tram and light railway systems relating to the wheel/rail interface - 14 March 2006 (split 2)
( PDF 3362 Kb)

Produced by the Health & Safety Laboratory (split 2)
27 Nov 2006
A survey of UK tram and light railway systems relating to the wheel/rail interface - 14 March 2006 (split 3)
( PDF 3140 Kb)

Produced by the Health & Safety Laboratory (split 3)
22 Nov 2006
Investigation of the dynamic behaviour of aluminium welds in rail vehicle applications - 17 July 2006
( PDF 5130 Kb)

Produced by the Health & Safety Laboratory
22 Nov 2006
Dynamic Properties of Aluminium Alloys Literature Review - 4 August 2004
( PDF 426 Kb)

Produced by the Health & Safety Laboratory
15 Aug 2006
Manual handling in the rail sector in South Wales
( PDF 1315 Kb)

Produced by the Health & Safety Laboratory

Published by HSE Rail prior to 1 April 2006

2005 - Dynamic tensile properties of thin sheet materials
( PDF 2139 Kb)
2005 - Development and validation of the HMRI safety culture inspection toolkit
( PDF 1387 Kb)
2005 - Level crossing: Summary of finding and key human factors issues
( PDF 1873 Kb)
2004 - Recruiting safe employees for safety-critical roles
( PDF 587 Kb)
2004 - Evaluation of The Railways (Safety Case) Regulations
( PDF 2127 Kb)
2003 - Transport fatal accidents and FN-curves: 1967-2001
( PDF 379 Kb)
2003 - Train protection: Technical review of ERTMS programme team report
( PDF 780 Kb)
2003 - Train protection: Review of economic aspects of the work of ERTMS programme team
( PDF 684 Kb)
2003 - Public dialogue on train protection
( PDF 1104 Kb)
2002 - Main changes between 2001 and 2003 editions of the regulations concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Rail (RID)
( PDF 807 Kb)
2001 - Speed and rolling stock of trains in fatal accidents on Britain's mainline railways
( PDF 309 Kb)
2001 - Development of a multiskilling life cycle model
( PDF 842 Kb)
2001 - Valuation of benefits of health and safety control: Follow-up study
( PDF 323 Kb)
2000 - Studies into the 2-4 hour shift phenomenon
( PDF 7260 Kb)
1999 - Guidance on the definition of activities regarded as safety critical under the Railways (Safety Critical Work) Regulations 1994
( PDF 312 Kb)
1999 - Implications of overcrowding on railways
( PDF 668 Kb)
1998 - Assessing the risks associated with fatigue in railway safety-critical tasks
( PDF 3475 Kb)
1998 - 1994 data on the transport of dangerous substances
( PDF 2103 Kb)
1998 - Implications of major hazard sites in close proximity to major transport routes
( PDF 4031 Kb)
1998 - Structural assessment of railway bridges
( PDF 1566 Kb)
1997 - Risk to the public at unsupervised stations
( PDF 1532 Kb)
1997 - Human factors research into use of user-worked level crossings
( PDF 6488 Kb)
1996 - Review of (the approach to) Railway Safety Cases
( PDF 2369 Kb)
1996 - Vehicle driver behaviour at level crossings
( PDF 2212 Kb)
1996 - Study of upward flame spread on inclined surfaces
( PDF 1618 Kb)
1992 - Human factors approaches for the design of VDU interfaces to computer-based railway signalling systems
( PDF 1129 Kb)