ABSTRACT
This chapter provides the background to work and details the way in which the health and safety executive's Fatigue Index has been incorporated into our software. Fatigue in humans impairs performance and can lead to reduced attention, poor decision making, delayed reaction time and human errors. The chapter focuses on fatigue risk management for train drivers. However, the issues raised and the recommendations made could equally be applied to other railway workers. AEA Technology Rail has been actively involved in assisting train operating companies in the generation of optimal driver rosters via the use of rostering software, IRMA. IRMA is a flexible, user-friendly computer package designed by roster clerks within the rail industry as a tool to assist in producing base, weekly and daily rosters. The chapter provides a key fatigue research findings and their applicability to the rail industry. The Fatigue Index is a tool for assessing whether intended changes to work patterns will increase the risk of fatigue.
