Citation

Davies JB, Wright L, Courtney E, Reid H. Cogn. Technol. Work 2000; 2(3): 117-125.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2000, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/PL00011494

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The paper describes CIRAS (Confidential Incident Reporting and Analysis System), a confidential reporting system developed by the authors in collaboration with ScotRail, the Health and Safety Executive, Railtrack and the (now defunct) British Rail Board. After a two-year pilot/developmental study with ScotRail during 1995-97, the system is now subscribed to by all but one of the major train operating companies, rail infrastructure and maintenance companies with a presence in Scotland; plus a developing profile in the rest of the UK. CIRAS gathers data in three ways: (i) from an initial report form or telephone call, (ii) from a structured follow-up telephone questionnaire, and (iii) from an in-depth interview with a researcher (telephone or face-to-face, according to priority). The interviews bring to light details of personal motive, and of intended/unintended actions, which are not commonly found on company-run databases because of their association with disciplinary procedures. Information is processed through a human factors model and fed back to the companies involved, in disidentified form, to take corrective action. The basic structure of the human-factors model is described; data are presented on reports received to date which have been processed through this model. The system has recently been recommended by a UK Parliamentary Committee and by Railtrack Safety and Standards Directorate for extension to the UK network as a whole.

Language: en