ITSRR Advisory Board

Role and Function

The principal functions of the Independent Transport Safety and Reliability Advisory Board are set out in the Transport Administration Act 1988 and include:

• advising ITSRR and or making recommendations to ITSRR on safety and reliability;
• advising ITSRR on reports prepared by ITSRR and any other matter ITSRR may refer to the Board; and
• advising the Minister and or making recommendations on the safe operation of transport services (including safety regulation by transport authorities) and the reliability of publicly funded transport services.

The Advisory Board’s functions were amended by legislation in June 2005 to strengthen regulatory independence. This was part of the amendments necessary to implement the NSW Government’s response to the Special Commission of Inquiry into the Waterfall Rail Accident. The aim of these amendments was to remove any potential perception that the ITSRR Advisory Board undertakes a management function within ITSRR.

Meetings

The Board meets monthly, unless additional or extraordinary meetings are considered necessary.

The Chief Executive can, at her discretion, seek advice on rail safety matters from the ITSRR Advisory Board.

To meet its commitment to transparency and provide more balanced information concerning its activities, the Board recently agreed to replace its monthly report with a more structured and comprehensive Quarterly Board communiqué.

The first of these Quarterly communiqués covers the Board’s activities for the period July-September 2006.

Method and Terms of Appointment of Board Members

The Board consists of five members:

• a Chairperson appointed by the Governor, on the Minister’s recommendation;
• three members appointed by the Minister (the appointed members); and
• the Chief Executive, ITSRR.

The members are appointed by the Minister and must have experience in one or more of the following:

• rail safety management systems;
• safety science;
• customer service;
• accident investigation;
• public administration.

The Chairperson must have experience in transport safety management systems (including rail safety management systems). The Minister is to consult with the Chairperson before appointing Board members.

Mr Rob Schwarzer is the current Chairperson of the Board and was appointed in February 2006. The three appointed members were selected after carefully considering the skills, expertise, international reputation and pre-eminence of a range of nominees, and potential conflicts of interest and the extent of any potential conflict. These members were appointed for a period of three years from 16 December 2003.

ITSRR Advisory Board Members

Mr Rob Schwarzer, Chairperson

Rob Schwarzer (BE (Civil), FIEAust, Churchill Fellow) is GHD's Rail Business Development Manager providing liasion to the Railway Industry. A civil engineer, he has over 40 years experience in the transport industry covering freight and passenger services.

Mr Schwarzer has worked with government-owned rail, bus and ferry services and headed the private sector Sydney Light Rail Company. He has extensive experience in construction, operation, and strategic planning for transport systems in both public and private ownership.

Professor Jean Cross

Jean Cross (BSc, PhD, FIEAust, MAIP) is Head of the UNSW’s School of Safety Science and is involved in teaching and research in the area of risk management. Professor Cross has a degree and PhD in Physics gained in the UK . She is a Fellow of the Institute of Engineers Australia and a member of the Risk Management Institute of Australasia.

Professor Cross was Chair of the Australian Standards Committee which prepared the Australian/New Zealand Standard No. 4360 Risk Management and is a member of the International Standards Committee revising the IEC standard on Risk analysis of technological systems. She has participated in the preparation of Australian Standards handbooks on environmental risk management and risk management in outsourcing.

Dr Rob Lee

Rob Lee (BA (Hons), PhD, FRAeS, FCILT) has extensive experience in air safety investigation and is regarded as one of the foremost authorities on human factors in safety management.

Dr Lee was appointed to the Bureau of Air Safety Investigation as its first human factors specialist and, in 1989, was appointed Director.

Since 2000 Dr Lee has been an international consultant in human factors and systems safety in aviation, rail and other high technology industries. He has been an analyst on three major overseas civil air accident investigations, as well as providing evidence to the military Board of Inquiry into the RAN Sea King accident, 2005. His aviation clients have included Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Emirates, Qantas and CASA. Dr Lee also worked with State Rail in introducing human factors and systems safety concepts to rail operations and training. He was a member of the Expert Panel on Safety Management Systems that provided advice to the Special Commission of Inquiry into the Waterfall Rail Accident.

Dr Lee is a member of the Nuclear Safety Committee of the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency and a consultant on aviation psychology, human factors, systems safety and air safety investigation to the Australian Defence Force.

Ms Carolyn Walsh, Chief Executive ITSRR

Carolyn Walsh (B.Ec, GAICD) was appointed Chief Executive of ITSRR in January 2004. Carolyn joined the NSW Public Service in October 2000 and soon after was appointed Executive Director Strategy in the Office of the Coordinator General of Rail. Her responsibilities included coordinating operational and safety issues between publicly owned rail authorities in NSW. Carolyn provided advice in this capacity to the then Department of Transport on the preparation of the Rail Safety Act 2002. Prior to this Carolyn had extensive experience in the Commonwealth Government in policy development and program implementation in the areas of small business (regulation reform, export programs and access to finance), sectoral policies (particularly in steel, automotive and wood and paper products), science and innovation.

From 1996-1999 Ms Walsh was Minister-Counsellor, Industry Science and Technology, at the Australian High Commission in London.

Vacant

ITSRR will be undertaking the process of appointing a new Advisory Board member in the near future following Len Neist's resignation to take up his new position as Executive Director, Rail Safety Regulation, with ITSRR.