The chain of responsibility is a policy concept used in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

transport Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land ( rail and road), water, cable, pipelin ...

legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred to ...

to place legal obligations on parties in the

supply chain In commerce, a supply chain is a network of facilities that procure raw materials, transform them into intermediate goods and then final products to customers through a distribution system. It refers to the network of organizations, people, activ ...

or across

industries generally. The concept was initially developed to apply in the heavy vehicle industry in regulated areas such as

speeding Speed limits on road traffic, as used in most countries, set the legal maximum speed at which vehicles may travel on a given stretch of road. Speed limits are generally indicated on a traffic sign reflecting the maximum permitted speed - expres ...

fatigue Fatigue describes a state of tiredness that does not resolve with rest or sleep. In general usage, fatigue is synonymous with extreme tiredness or exhaustion that normally follows prolonged physical or mental activity. When it does not resolve ...

and mass, loading and dimension. It has since spread to other transport sectors, particularly in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

where it has been applied in laws which apply to the rail, bus, marine and taxi industries.

Background

The chain of responsibility concept initially developed out of a recognition that unlawful behaviour by

truck drivers A truck driver (commonly referred to as a trucker, teamster, or driver in the United States and Canada; a truckie in Australia and New Zealand; a HGV driver in the United Kingdom, Ireland and the European Union, a lorry driver, or driver in ...

is influenced and often controlled by the actions of other parties. Concerns arose that transport laws had often focussed on the actions of drivers while failing to sufficiently recognise and regulate the actions of other key parties. Chain of responsibility laws therefore seek to provide that these other parties cannot encourage, create incentives for, demand or allow drivers to undertake unlawful actions.

Victorian reforms

Transport Legislation Review

In recent years, the chain of responsibility concept has been widely used as a basis for the reform of transport laws in the State of

. A major review of policy and legislation in that State, the

Transport Legislation Review The Transport Legislation Review is a policy and legislation review project conducted by the Department of Transport in the State of Victoria, Australia between 2004 and late 2010. The aim of the project was review of transport policy and laws a ...

, has led to the concept being adapted for use in a number of new statutes including the Rail Safety Act 2006, the Bus Safety Act 2009 and the Marine Safety Act 2010.

Rail Safety Act

faced the problem of ageing and inadequate transport legislation which failed to reflect modern policy. During his

second reading A reading of a bill is a stage of debate on the bill held by a general body of a legislature. In the Westminster system, developed in the United Kingdom, there are generally three readings of a bill as it passes through the stages of becoming ...

speech for a new rail safety statute in

, the then Minister for Transport explained that - ::"It is now recognised that this legislative framework has not kept pace with contemporary developments in safety regulation ... (T) the legislation does not establish a coherent chain of responsibility for the effective management of rail safety risks. For example, unlike other modern safety legislation, the (current) Act does not identify the key parties or individuals who can control risks and does not impose performance-based safety responsibilities." As a result, the Minister explained that - ::"... the Bill now before the House and include the establishment of performance-based rail safety duties for rail operators, managers of rail infrastructure, contractors working on rolling stock or rail infrastructure, and rail safety workers including drivers and maintainers of rolling stock and infrastructure to ensure safety so far as reasonably practicable. This effectively imposes rail safety duties and obligations on each person in the rail industry who is in a position to affect safety and clearly identifies the roles and the safety chain of responsibility between them. The duties emphasise the responsibility of each participant to take steps as far as reasonably practicable to identify hazards and manage risks to safety that are within their control. This includes persons whose influence on safety exists 'upstream', such as persons involved in design, manufacture, maintenance, repair and modification of rail infrastructure and rolling stock." The

Rail Safety Act The ''Rail Safety Act 2006'' is a law enacted by the Parliament of the State of Victoria, Australia, and is the prime statute regulating the safety of rail operations in Victoria. The Act was developed as part of the Transport Legislation ...

which emerged from that process therefore imposes a chain of responsibility across all key parties in the rail industry in Victoria who can influence safety outcomes. Accountability at law and sanctions and penalties are allocated according to the level of responsibility each party has for creating and managing safety risks. Similar approaches were taken by the

in its work which led to new statutes in Victoria in the bus, marine and taxi industries.

National impact

The Victorian work has had influence beyond that State. Following the enactment of the Victorian

in early 2006, Australian Transport Ministers approved a national Model Rail Safety Bill in June 2006 which drew heavily on the Victorian work including its adaption of the chain of responsibility concept. The national Bill proposal has since been adopted by all other States and Territories which have passed Rail Safety Acts reflecting the framework.See the article on the

References

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External links

National Transport Commission The National Transport Commission (NTC), previously known as the National Road Transport Commission, is an Australian statutory body created to develop regulatory and operational reform for road, rail and intermodal transport. Under Australia's ...

Department of Transport, Victoria

DOT, Transport Legislation Review

Chain of Responsibility

Chain of Responsibility Industry Terminology
Supply chain management Tort law Vehicle law Transport in Australia