A rail tale

Abstract

In 2005, Parliament passed new legislation to regulate railway safety in New Zealand. Applying international best practice, the Railways Act took a goal-based approach that utilised the Safety Case concept as the foundation for regulatory oversight. This article describes the Transport Agency’s experience in implementing this regulatory approach, particularly the Safety Case concept. The change required the Transport Agency to first recognise that fully harnessing the legislation required a transformational response and then, along with the wider industry, address the challenges faced in developing and implementing an appropriate regulatory operating model.