Safety management systems are at the heart of how other, much safer, transport modes are organised. Walk into any major aviation, maritime or rail operator and you will find formally documented and actively applied safety management systems.

These continuous improvement management systems not only ensure the safety of the transport infrastructure or services the company provides, but also provide external assurance of the safety which the client and the general public can expect. They are critical to the company’s success.

So in considering why to explore safety management systems consider the following questions:

  1. What risk management systems do you have in place, and how effective are they in managing the highest fatal injury risk in the Australian workplace?
  2. What would it take for your organisation to become an authentic leader in road traffic safety in your sector or your community?
  3. What benefits do you see from your organisation developing a more systematic response to the risk of work related road trauma?

This Thought Piece was developed for the NRSPP Utilities Forum to help provide partners with a piece that would assist them in fundamentally rethinking aspects of our approach to managing safety on the road.

So in reading this Thought Leadership please note, it is not about:

  • companies certifying to ISO 39001, although some companies will have lower costs or higher benefits than others in doing so
  • additional regulation, although there are obvious issues in current regulatory design and management