Safe trip: Factors contributing to slip, trip and fall risk at train stations

Area of Science:

• Urban planning and transportation safety.
• Human factors and cognitive ergonomics.
• Socio-technical systems analysis.

Background:

• Public transport systems are essential for urban development and require continuous adaptation for safety.
• Passenger safety, particularly minimizing slip, trip, and fall (STF) incidents, is a key objective in transport system design.
• Understanding STF causes related to user behavior and environmental factors is critical for enhancing safety.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify the primary causes of slip, trip, and fall (STF) incidents in public rail transport.
• To investigate the influence of train and station characteristics on STF events.
• To explore the role of passenger information processing and visual workload in STF incidents.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of 1247 historical slip, trip, and fall (STF) records from two Australian jurisdictions.
• Mixed-method field study involving 40 participants using eye-tracking technology on trains and at stations.
• Observation and data collection on passenger navigation and interaction with environmental cues.

Main Results:

• Identified key locations for STF incidents: stairs, ramps, escalators, train steps, and doorways.
• Observed that passengers' continuous search for information and information-provision gaps contribute to distraction and risky behavior.
• Eye-tracking data revealed a high visual workload associated with navigating complex transport environments.

Conclusions:

• Passenger distraction and increased risky behavior may stem from a disconnect between needed and provided information.
• Enhancing information design to lower passengers' visual workload is a potential strategy to reduce STF incidents.
• Improvements in information design can contribute to safer public transport experiences and sustainable urban mobility.