Canada's TSB highlights fatigue on safety watchlist

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) this week released its Watchlist 2018 to highlight seven safety hazards in the industry.

This year's list cites the TSB's call to action on safety management and employee fatigue issues across transportation modes, board officials said in a press release.

Employee fatigue has been found to be a risk or contributing factor in more than 90 TSB investigations since 1992, they said.

"Transport Canada, operators, unions, and employees all share the responsibility for preventing and managing fatigue at work. This also calls for a profound change in attitudes and behaviors, both at the management and operational levels," said TSB Chair Kathy Fox.

Meanwhile, two items related to rail were removed from the Watchlist due to actions taken by stakeholders and/or progress achieved in reducing the underlying safety deficiencies. They are: the transportation of flammable liquids by rail and the need for on-board voice and video recorders in main-track locomotives.

The TSB will continue to monitor progress in those areas through its investigations, active recommendations and outreach activities, officials said.

However, still on the Watchlist: the lack of additional physical defenses to ensure that railway signals are consistently followed.