Information Bulletin: Railway Safety Management System (SMS) Audits

Background

This bulletin applies to provincially regulated and certified railways in British Columbia. It explains how railways can prepare for an audit of their Safety Management System (SMS) and what to expect if they are selected for an audit by Technical Safety BC’s safety officers. 

 

Please refer to IB-RW 2025-01 Accountable Executive and Safety Management System Requirements for Railway Companies for more information.  

 

Definitions

Railway Company: means a company that has received an authorization under section 3 of the Railway Act. 
Accountable Executive: means an executive of a railway company who is designated to be responsible for the operations and activities of the railway company and accountable for meeting the requirements of the Safety Management System Regulations.  The requirement for an accountable executive is found under section 8 of the Safety Management System Regulations.

Railway Safety Officer: means an employee of Technical Safety BC with delegated statutory powers of a “railway safety inspector” per the adopted provisions of the Railway Safety Act (Canada). 

 

Introduction

Technical Safety BC (TSBC) provides regulatory oversight of railway companies in BC. This includes verifying that railway companies are accountable and meeting the obligations assigned to them under the Railway Safety Act (BC) and associated rules and regulations.   

On November 21, 2019, the Province of British Columbia adopted the federal Railway Safety Management System Regulations, 2015 (SOR/2015-26) into its regulatory regime. Under these regulations, all provincially-regulated railway companies must develop and implement a railway SMS. In order to receive or maintain a valid operating permit under section 11 of the Railway Safety Act (BC), a railway company must have submitted an acceptable SMS.

Audit Scope

Technical Safety BC may verify that provincially-regulated railway companies:  

1. have an appropriately designated accountable executive; 
2. have implemented their railway SMS; and  
3. are conducting annual self-audits to evaluate their railway SMS’ effectiveness in achieving the highest level of safety in their railway operations. 

Railway Safety Officers have the authority and discretion to conduct an audit of any of the twelve adopted processes of the SMS below, or to audit or inspect any other adopted regulation, rule, or standard in effect in BC per the Railway Safety Adopted Provisions Regulations.    

A railway company’s SMS should include the following:

1. a process for accountability; 
2. a process with respect to a safety policy; 
3. a process for ensuring compliance with regulations, rules and other instruments; 
4. a process for managing railway occurrences; 
5. a process for identifying safety concerns; 
6. a risk assessment process; 
7. a process for implementing and evaluating remedial action; 
8. a process for establishing targets and developing initiatives; 
9. a process for reporting contraventions and safety hazards; 
10. a process for managing knowledge; 
11. a process with respect to scheduling; and 
12. a process for continual improvement of the safety management system. 

A “process” is defined as procedures, methods, and plans specific to the railway company, under the SMS regulation section 3 (2). Specific requirements of what each process must include are listed within the regulation.

Audit Selection

Technical Safety BC will select railways for SMS audits and onsite inspection using risk-based criteria. These criteria are based on the risk profile of the railway’s operations and the railway’s current and historical safety performance. 

If Technical Safety BC selects a railway company for an SMS audit, a Railway Safety Officer will contact the railway company directly to schedule the audit and onsite inspection. 

Technical Safety BC may not select every railway company for an SMS audit or site inspection each year. In that case, railway companies must still meet all regulatory requirements and conduct an independent audit of their own SMS to ensure its effectiveness and provide it to Technical Safety BC upon request. 

Railway Safety Officers may still choose to audit or inspect a railway at any time according to the powers assigned to them under section 28 of the adopted Railway Safety Act (Canada). This could be triggered by reported hazards, occurrences, or other risk-based factors.  

Technical Safety BC will select railways for SMS audits and onsite inspection using risk-based criteria. These criteria are based on the risk profile of the railway’s operations and the railway’s current and historical safety performance. 

If Technical Safety BC selects a railway company for an SMS audit, a Railway Safety Officer will contact the railway company directly to schedule the audit and onsite inspection. 

Technical Safety BC may not select every railway company for an SMS audit or site inspection each year. In that case, railway companies must still meet all regulatory requirements and conduct an independent audit of their own SMS to ensure its effectiveness and provide it to Technical Safety BC upon request. 

Railway Safety Officers may still choose to audit or inspect a railway at any time according to the powers assigned to them under section 28 of the adopted Railway Safety Act (Canada). This could be triggered by reported hazards, occurrences, or other risk-based factors.  

Prepare for an SMS Audit  

If a railway company is selected for an audit, a Railway Safety Officer will contact the railway company to schedule it and provide further instructions about the audit scope and requirements. 

 In general, the railway company must provide the Railway Safety Officer with:  

• copies of, and access to, key documents before the audit and during any onsite component (e.g., self-audit reports, training and personnel records, maintenance and repair logs, occurrence reports, internal policies and procedures);
• access to relevant personnel for interviews;
• access to the railway for the purposes of onsite observations or inspection;

• any other records or personnel the safety officer deems necessary for the purposes of their audit: and 

• access to track, locomotive, or other railway infrastructure or equipment to support verification. 

Audit Outcomes and Enforcement   

After the audit, Technical Safety BC will provide the railway company with the final audit report. The report will identify any non-compliances, required corrective actions, and opportunities for improvement. 

Further enforcement action may be taken if a Railway Safety Officer determines that the employees of a railway company do not have sufficient knowledge or experience to operate a railway safely, or if Technical Safety BC determines that the railway company has implemented an incomplete or ineffective SMS that does not adequately mitigate threats to railway safety. 

Enforcement action may include a Notice, or a Notice-and-Order that suspends railway operations until the railway company makes corrections to the Railway Safety Officer’s satisfaction. Technical Safety BC may also escalate the matter to the Registrar of Railway Safety (Ministry of Transportation and Transit), who may suspend or permanently cancel the railway company’s operating permit. 

Fees  

Technical Safety BC is a self-funded regulatory body. This means our services are not covered through funding from the Provincial Government. We must directly recover the time and cost spent on our regulatory services, per our fee schedules which were set after public consultation. 

Our annual assessment fees currently include a wide range of services such as regulatory consultation support and education; onsite and remote audits, assessments; incident and hazard follow up; non-compliance management; and safety policy and regulatory improvement support. These fees are risk and performance-based and are meant to be scaled to the size of the railway operation for fairness purposes. 

Railway companies must continue to pay annual operating fees under the published fee schedule, whether or not Technical Safety BC conducts an SMS audit or site inspection. Additional fees at the professional hourly rate may also apply. See the railway fee schedule for more details. 

Questions?

If you have any questions, please contact us at: railway@technicalsafetybc.ca.    

 

Jim Wang 
Manager, Safety Management Approaches & Rail 
Technical Safety BC