• This document must be read in conjunction with Guideline 01: The Main Document, which addresses all definitions and standards used in the set of guiding documents.

• The purpose of this document is to assist in reviewing and providing the necessary guidelines regarding railway activities related to how to notify the Transport General Authority in the event of an accident, incident, or a near-miss accident. This guide also provides a framework for classifying railway incidents and defines the responsibilities of the railways and the authority in conducting the necessary investigations into the incidents and the associated follow-up procedures.

• This evidence applies to all railway systems and other guided transport systems in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that own or seek to obtain an operating license for railway activities and a safety certificate.

• - It is a regulatory requirement that investigations into serious railway incidents be conducted properly to determine the causes that led to their occurrence. This is stipulated and emphasized in:

  • Railway Transport Law

  • Implementing Regulation of the Railway Transport Law

  • Any related laws and regulations

• - This requires railway service providers to do the following:

  • Keep accident sites secure

  • Notify the Transport General Authority of incidents

  • Preserve and secure evidence

  • Conduct specialized investigations

  • Prepare reports on the state and circumstances of the incident

  • Provide and implement recommendations to prevent the recurrence of further incidents

• - This requirement is merely part of the broader scope of safety management, where it is the duty of railways, through the Safety Management System (SMS), to report, record, and investigate all incidents until the causes are fully understood, trends are identified, and corrective actions are taken before another more serious incident occurs.

• - Notifying the authority of an incident is considered a fundamental step in this regard and this process allows for the preparation, compilation, and management of a national database for incidents and accidents, and benefits from the exchange of safety lessons with other railways in the Kingdom.

• - Incidents, accidents, and near-miss events are classified into three groups:

  • Category (A) for high-risk incidents

  • (B) for medium-risk incidents,

  • (C) for low-risk incidents that still require reporting.

• - When an incident, accident, or near-miss occurs, the licensee must determine the category under which it is likely to fall and notify the Transport General Authority in accordance with Section 5 of this guide.

• - In some cases where incidents and accidents are reported from the scene to the operational centers in the railways, the type and severity of the incident (or its potential severity as a near-miss) may not be immediately clear for categorization. The severity of the incident and the number of injured persons or the extent of damage may vary based on initial estimates. Therefore, it should be assumed that the initial category of the event is the worst-case scenario, and if there is any ambiguity regarding the category under which the incident is classified, the most severe and dangerous category should be adopted to ensure the application of the most hazardous category.

It includes: