Rail Safety and Standards Board
Remit for Infrastructure Standards Committee
REMIT FOR INFRASTRUCTURE STANDARDS COMMITTEE
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Introduction
This document defines the working arrangements for the Infrastructure
Standards Committee (the Committee). It accords with the
requirements of:
The Railway Group Standards Code issue three (the Code).
The Standards Manual issue one (the Manual).
The Industry Standards Co-ordination Committee approved
statement for Infrastructure Standards Committee (see the
Manual section 6.6.1).
This document fulfils the requirements of section 6.3.2 of the Manual.
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The Committee's coverage
Within the scope defined in the remit, the Committee’s coverage
includes all railway infrastructure, other than signalling,
telecommunications and electrification equipment. It also includes the
management of risk from the railway environment.
The coverage therefore includes track, drainage, earthworks and
structures supporting or protecting the track, other adjacent structures
and buildings that could affect the safety of the railway, tunnels, station
infrastructure, infrastructure for access to or along the railway, level
crossing surfaces, lineside security and environmental conditions
(managing the risk from vegetation, weather and water). It also
includes those structures used to support signalling,
telecommunications, electrification, lighting and other equipment (for
example, gantries).
The Committee’s coverage includes consideration of the interfaces
between items within its coverage and those within the coverage of
other standards committees (for example, the interfaces between track
and structures and railway vehicles).
The Committee’s coverage includes consideration of requirements
relating to activities dealt with in general, multifunctional documents in
so far as they affect items within the Committee’s coverage. Such
activities include competence, procurement, construction, acceptance
and record keeping activities.
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The technical scope of the committee is co-terminus with the scope of
the Infrastructure sub-system, as defined for the purposes of
Interoperability.
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Membership
The committee has 12 members representing the following Industry
Categories:
1 x Passenger train operators
1 x Non-passenger train operators
2 x Network Rail and other infrastructure managers
1 x Rolling stock owners (including rolling stock leasing
companies)
3 x Infrastructure contractors
3 x Suppliers (including rolling stock manufacturers)
1 x Member of RSSB personnel
A list of current members, alternates and observers can be found on
RSSB’s website (http://www.rssb.co.uk/) and in the Catalogue of
Railway Group Standards published by RSSB.
Changes to membership arrangements will be subject to the relevant
change process.
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Alternate members
The arrangements for alternate members are as set out in section 7.2 of
the Manual.
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Co-opted members
If the members of the committee consider it necessary to ensure an
adequate spread of expertise on subjects within the committee’s
coverage the arrangements for co-opted members, as set out in section
7.3 of the Manual, will be applied.
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Observers
Observers are not co-opted members of the Committee, but are
permitted to speak at meetings. RSSB Technical Specialists
responsible for the technical content of standards and working
instructions within the scope of the committee, attend as observers.
Representatives of the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) and the
Department for Transport (DfT) attend as observers.
Organisations responsible for representation of the UK rail industry at
European level, other persons who are materially interested in the
relevant standards, and members of the committee may nominate
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persons as observers. Acceptance of nominations as an observer is for
the Committee as a whole to decide.
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Chairman and deputy chairman
The Chairman is elected in accordance with section 6.2 of the Manual.
The name of the current Chairman can be found on RSSB’s website
(http://www.rssb.co.uk/) and in the Catalogue of Railway Group
Standards published by RSSB.
It is a condition of membership that each member is willing to act as
deputy chairman of the Committee, if so requested by the Committee.
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Secretary
The RSSB has appointed a person as secretary (section 7.7.1 of the
Manual). The secretary is responsible for the circulation of papers
before meetings, and production and circulation of minutes. Minutes of
the previous meeting and other papers for a meeting are to be available
not less than five clear business days before the meeting.
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Decision taking on Railway Group Standards
The committee’s decisions relating to the approval of new or changed
Railway Group Standards (RGS) are to be made only in accordance
with section 4 of the Code and section 8 of the Manual.
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Delegated authority for support on standards issues
The Committee has agreed to give the Chairman of the Committee
delegated authority to approve on its behalf expenditure of up to
£10,000, for technical support on standards issues, for example:
Development of standards.
Enquiries on application of standards.
Deviations from standards.
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Decision taking on deviations from Railway Group Standards
The committee’s decisions relating to the approval of deviations from
RGS are to be made only in accordance with section 6 of the Code and
section 10.4 of the Manual.
Section 6.4.2 of the Code permits Temporary Non-compliances to be
approved by a Standards Committee Chairman outside of a committee
meeting. The circumstances where the Chairman of INS SC may
approve a TNC outside of a committee meeting are:
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(1)
Where there is insufficient time for the application to be considered
at the next meeting given the safety or economic implications of a
delay: or
(2)
The scope, impacts and proposed alternative actions are similar to
deviations previously approved by the committee: and
(3)
The proposed TNC is unlikely to increase risk
The Chairman may decline to make the decision if he:
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(1)
Lacks the necessary technical expertise
(2)
Believes it should be made by the whole of the committee
Frequency of meetings
The Committee has agreed to meet approximately every 8 weeks,
unless the Chairman, after consulting the secretary, considers there is
insufficient business to justify a meeting.
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Quorum
The Committee has agreed that a meeting is quorate if 7 members are
present (including the Chairman or deputy chairman), at least one of
whom is a member representing Network Rail and one railway
undertaking (passenger) representative.
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Establishing consensus
The Committee is to work by consensus Section 4.1.2 of the Code sets
out the rules for establishing consensus on matters within scope of the
Code, and defines it as:
Consensus: General agreement, characterised by:
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(a)
The absence of sustained opposition to substantive issues by any
member of the Committee concerned; and
(b)
A process that involves seeking to take into account the views of
all those members of the Committee concerned and to reconcile
conflicting arguments.
Conflicts of interest
The arrangements for dealing with potential conflicts of interest are set
out in section 7.10 of the Manual.
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Sub-committees
The arrangements for sub-committees are set out in section 7.9 of the
Manual.
The committee has delegated tasks relating to aerodynamics to a subcommittee, the Aerodynamics GB Working Group, that is also a subcommittee of Rolling Stock Standards Committee.
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Other rules of procedure
Subject to the provisions of section 6.3 of the Manual, the Committee
may regulate its proceedings as it sees fit. The Committee’s decisions
about its regulation are to be recorded in amendments to this remit.
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Liability and insurance
RSSB has arranged insurance cover for members of the Committee in
respect of claims arising out of duties performed in their capacity as
members and/or Chairman of the Committee. RSSB will supply details
of the insurance to members on request.
Bridget Eickhoff
Principal Engineer, Infrastructure and Research
RSSB Chairman, Infrastructure Standards Committee
15 September 2010
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