HS1 Ltd contracts much of its operating, maintenance and renewal functions to NR(HS) and ABM. We consider that all these organisations have obligations under health and safety legislation.

Both NR(HS) and ABM hold safety authorisations as infrastructure managers under the Railways and Other Guided Transport Systems (Safety) Regulations. NR(HS) is responsible for the operation of HS1 railway infrastructure from London St. Pancras to the Channel Tunnel, as well as London St Pancras International, Stratford International and Ebbsfleet International stations. 

During the reporting year, responsibility for the fourth station on the network, Ashford International, was passed from Mitie to ABM. As the new station facility owner, we issued ABM with a five-year safety authorisation to act as an infrastructure manager on 1 October 2023.

HS1 Ltd retains its own health and safety responsibilities, having an important role as both the asset steward and client for works on its network, stations and associated infrastructure.

The HS1 network has historically seen relatively low levels of incidents and accidents involving members of the public and the workforce. However, the previous reporting year saw a number of incidents of injuries to NR(HS) and other contractors’ employees. 

This year, HS1 Ltd has worked collaboratively with NR(HS) and other contractors to implement arrangements to bring about the necessary improvements in health and safety risk control.

In the previous year, the key performance indicator for workforce safety performance (fatalities and weighted injuries (FWI) per million hours worked) fell outside the target set by HS1 Ltd, of 0.060. This year we were pleased to see the FWI score return to below the threshold of 0.060, with an aggregate figure of 0.055 FWI across the year. 

There has been a slight reduction in the number of incidents involving contractors’ staff compared with the previous reporting year, with most incidents resulting from assaults to front-line staff. While this trend is unfortunately replicated across much of the railway industry and wider society, HS1 Ltd; its contractors; and key industry stakeholders have taken action to address this issue across its operations. 

Actions taken included the roll-out of body-worn cameras to customer-facing staff and intelligence-led deployment of British Transport Police resources.

There were two incidents of note during the reporting year which, under slightly different circumstances, could have had potentially serious outcomes:

On 16 November 2023, two on-track machines operated by a contractor collided at low speed while working in an engineering possession of the railway tracks/network. A member of the contractor’s staff was struck by one of the machines and lost consciousness. Fortunately, they made a prompt recovery, suffering no long-term effects because of the incident. The matter remains under investigation by the Rail Accident Investigation Branch.

On 30 November 2023, an incident took place at the HS1–Eurotunnel network boundary that resulted in the dewirement of the overhead line equipment and the stranding of a Eurostar train service travelling from London St. Pancras International to Amsterdam Central station.

While there were no injuries, it took around eight hours for the train to be recovered, during which time the conditions for the approximately 800 passengers and crew onboard deteriorated considerably. We note that subsequently HS1 Ltd has started work with train operators and infrastructure managers to develop and improve the arrangements for the recovery of stranded trains on its own and neighbouring infrastructure. 

We will continue to monitor how HS1 Ltd works with these other parties to ensure better management of future potential incidents.

We also note a flooding incident that occurred in the Thames Tunnel in December 2023, resulting in the suspension of domestic and international services to and from London St. Pancras International. Although there were no safety incidents directly related to the flooding, it was necessary for the station staff to implement crowd management arrangements at London St. Pancras International.

This reporting year we carried out the following health and safety regulatory activities: 

• supervision, including monthly liaison meetings with NR(HS)’s safety leadership team, and quarterly liaison meetings with HS1 Ltd’s Head of Assurance, to discuss safety performance, improvement plans and incidents
• permissioning: the assessment and acceptance of ABM’s application for a safety authorisation in respect of its role as the infrastructure manager and station facility operator for Ashford International station

While HS1 Ltd and its contractors continue to manage the health and safety risks associated with high-speed operations, recent incidents have shown the potential risks to both staff and customers. 

Combined with the progression of the HS1 asset life cycle (moving from ‘new’ assets into the first full cycle of renewals), it is important that HS1 Ltd and its contractors have appropriate arrangements in place to manage current and future risks.

Further information on health and safety performance on all of Britain’s railways can be found in our annual health and safety report, and the Rail Safety and Standards Board (RSSB) Annual Safety Performance Report. 

Information on our approach to regulating health and safety risks can be found in the strategic risk priorities section of our website.