Executive summary
On Saturday 2 October 2004, at about 1015, an exhaust outlet at the top of a bulldozer being conveyed on a road trailer collided with the underside and damaged rail over road bridge No.98, located at 117.95 km on the Wairarapa Line, about 9 km south of Eketahuna.
A nearby farmer who had heard the collision reported details of the damage to train control. The person sent to inspect the damaged bridge inadvertently inspected 2 undamaged bridges located nearby before informing train control the track was safe and clear for traffic.
Two days later on Monday 4 October, another farmer contacted Transfield Services directly to advise of the unsafe condition of the bridge. The bridge was closed to rail traffic and only re-opened after major repairs had been completed.
Safety issues identified included:
- the movement of an over-dimension road load without surveying clearances on the intended route
- the special inspection process of rail over road bridges
One safety recommendation has been made to the Chief Executive of New Zealand Railways to address these issues.
Related Recommendations
fix identification plates on all rail over road bridges that have a height restriction of 4.4 m or less. Plates should be visible to road users and identify each bridge by its number and rail metrage, and include an emergency contact number. Similar plates should be fixed to other bridges where NZRC determine a need because of previous history.
reinforce the principles of Crew Resource Management in regard to clear and concise communication to all levels of infrastructure staff.