Welcome to the National Transport Library Catalogue

Normal view MARC view

Allow for the unanticipated : a key element of tunnel safety decision-making

By: Publication details: Borås : RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, 2020Description: s. 115-126Subject(s): Online resources: In: Proceedings from the Ninth International Symposium on Tunnel Safety and Security, Munich, Germany, March 11-13, 2020Abstract: Incidents within tunnels, whether involving fire or not, may be regarded as falling into either of two categories: (1) those incidents which may be regarded as having been explicitly anticipated as possibilities and (2) those incidents which may be regarded as not having been explicitly anticipated, i.e. those incidents which may be regarded as having been unanticipated. This classification would also apply to safety-related incidents whether they involve fire or not. It may be the case that an unanticipated incident may have a significant adverse consequence. Also, an unanticipated sequence which does not have a significant adverse effect may still be very important in that one or more causal factors may exist also in a different unanticipated sequence which does have serious adverse consequences; the effect of a causal factor depends on context. (This paper does not address the issue of what may be regarded as ‘acceptable’ or otherwise.) Here ‘consequence’ is taken to relate to life safety, property damage or disruption of operation. Given the fore-going, it becomes of primary importance to consider why an incident may be unanticipated and what might have been done within the system, before-hand, to mitigate any adverse consequences of an unanticipated event. This paper attempts to explore these difficult matters and aims to bring to the surface some pertinent issues and factors so they may be discussed further and possible measures taken with the ultimate objective of trying to ‘allow for the unanticipated’.
Item type: Reports, conferences, monographs
No physical items for this record

Incidents within tunnels, whether involving fire or not, may be regarded as falling into either of two categories: (1) those incidents which may be regarded as having been explicitly anticipated as possibilities and (2) those incidents which may be regarded as not having been explicitly anticipated, i.e. those incidents which may be regarded as having been unanticipated. This classification would also apply to safety-related incidents whether they involve fire or not. It may be the case that an unanticipated incident may have a significant adverse consequence. Also, an unanticipated sequence which does not have a significant adverse effect may still be very important in that one or more causal factors may exist also in a different unanticipated sequence which does have serious adverse consequences; the effect of a causal factor depends on context. (This paper does not address the issue of what may be regarded as ‘acceptable’ or otherwise.) Here ‘consequence’ is taken to relate to life safety, property damage or disruption of operation. Given the fore-going, it becomes of primary importance to consider why an incident may be unanticipated and what might have been done within the system, before-hand, to mitigate any adverse consequences of an unanticipated event. This paper attempts to explore these difficult matters and aims to bring to the surface some pertinent issues and factors so they may be discussed further and possible measures taken with the ultimate objective of trying to ‘allow for the unanticipated’.