Common language mooted to prevent more train disasters

Date: 14/06/01

TRAIN drivers and network controllers across Europe may soon have to communicate in English to avoid the misunderstandings which can lead to rail disasters.

The European Association of Railway Interoperability (AEIF) is to be mandated by the European Commission to draw up new standards to harmonise rail services across the Union, removing obstacles to border-crossing trains.

Representatives from the 15 EU countries will consider setting a list of common vocabulary for communications - probably in English - when they meet to discuss new 'interoperable' technical and operational standards in the coming months."Adopting a single language definitely helps solve a lot of the safety problems," said Loris Di Pietrantonio, AEIF deputy secretary general. "The airlines solved this problem by adopting English - that's now a possibility for railways."

The working group on human resources will draw lessons from the 27 March train crash outside Brussels, in which eight people died. Controllers knew the trains were on collision course minutes before the disaster, but railway officials later admitted a misunderstanding between French and Dutch-speaking staff had hampered efforts to prevent the tragedy. "The crash is a good example of a failure of interoperability within one country," said one Commission official. "The conversation they could have had by phone would have prevented the crash, if they'd been able to communicate."

But any move towards a single language - particularly English - will be politically sensitive, especially for France and Germany's powerful transport unions, who say it is too early to address the issue. "There's nothing in the Commission's directive on the question of languages," said Patrick Chamaret, head of the railway division of the French CGT union. "It's very premature to say there should be a single language."

Train drivers and network controllers across Europe may soon have to communicate in English to avoid the misunderstandings which can lead to rail disasters.