Rail unions increase speed for a driver – collective.pl

The Ministry of Infrastructure plans to raise the speed limit to 160 km / h in case there is only one driver in the cabin and that the ETCS / ERTMS system does not work. The railway unions are opposite.

Currently, if the line is not equipped with an effective ETCS / ERTMS system, a train with a driver in the cabin can move up to 130 km / h. If the carrier wants his vehicle to move at a higher speed, he must place an extra driver in the cab. A single driver can drive the vehicle alone when the ETCS cab system is functional, which transmits the indication of the railway signaling to the driving position.

The Ministry of Infrastructure is planning to amend this legal clause and accept the presence of a driver up to 160 km / h, even in the absence of support ETCS system. By introducing the changes above, MI wants to help carriers partially solve the problem of lack of train drivers. For the moment, the authorities are evaluating the opinion of the carriers, the Office of Rail Transport and the railway organizations. All were asked to send their views on the proposed changes.

The opponents of the changes are trade unionists of the Federation of Railway Drivers and the Union of Drivers. According to the letter from the union leader to the deputy minister of Infrastructure, the introduction of such a solution could pose a serious threat to the safety of rail traffic. The unions even offer a reduction in the maximum speed for the service of rail vehicles to one person.

"Since the introduction of the possibility of driving vehicles up to 130 km / h, they have increased and have not reduced the psychophysical load of the driver due to a the wider range of parameters received by the driver in the cabin of modern vehicles, which must react but also signal the route to follow, for example the efficiency of TOP-y crossings, it would therefore be more reasonable to Consider reducing the driving speed of a person, thus increasing the reaction time rather than increasing it.The trade unionists to Andrzej Bittel (original spelling).

See the full letter of the union to Deputy Minister of Infrastructure