#countdown to
International Railway Safety Council 2024
17 - 21 September 2024
hosted by
The world's largest conference on railway safety
PROGRAM
IRSC
17/09 - 21/09
2024
The IRSC 2024 conference will take place from Tuesday, September 17 to Saturday, September 21, 2024. The Core Conference Days are Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
The conference will focus on the topics of safety culture and new technologies from various perspectives as well as innovation in railway safety and the interaction between safety, innovation and sustainability.
In addition to a varied program with speeches, lectures, panel discussions and break-out sessions, there will also be exciting keynote speeches from national and international experts in various specialist areas relating to safety, rail transport and beyond. The program is complemented by 3 technical visits.
A tailormade program for accompanying persons will be published in the following weeks.
If you are interested in attending Innotrans in Berlin the following week (24 - 27 September 2024), the two events can easily be combined by train. Travel arrangements will be available soon.
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Faces of the conference
In the heart of Vienna.
Venue
Aula der
Wissenschaften
The "Aula der Wissenschaften" has always been a place of meeting and knowledge transfer. Built in the 17th century, the building and its lecture halls originally served the university. The top floor of the early Baroque building housed the Jesuit Theatre. The mixture of historical elements, such as the ceiling fresco in the Jesuit Hall, and large glass surfaces in a magnificent setting make the "Hall of Science" one of Vienna's top event venues in the heart of the city center.
Technical
Visits
The technical visits include various visits such as: Central Shunting Yard Vienna & Rescue Train, Technical Services Day & Night Train Maintenance Center or Tunnel Visit Semmering, one of the largest ongoing tunnel construction sites in Europe.
Technical visit 1 I September 17, 2024 I 3 hours
CENTRAL SHUNTING YARD VIENNA & RESCUE TRAIN
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Technical visit 2 I September 20, 2024 I 3 hours
TECHNICAL SERVICES DAY & NIGHT TRAIN MAINTENANCE CENTER
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Technical visit 3 I September 21, 2024 I 6-8 hours
TUNNEL VISIT SEMMERING, ONGOING CONSTRUCTION SITE
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Please note that the number of participants in technical visits is limited.
The availability of free places is indicated by the color code below. Please also note that technical visits may be subject to change.
Beyond
the "Aula"
Registration
EARLY BIRD UNTIL
MAY 24, 2024
Delegate
package
Our delegate package includes
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Conference days I September 18 - 20, 2024
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Welcome reception I September 17, 2024
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Gala dinner I September 18, 2024
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Get-together I September 19, 2024
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Technical visits (September 17 I September 20 I September 21, 2024)
Cancellation Terms 15% cancellation fee will be charged in case of cancellation until June 30, 2024 45% cancellation fee will be charged in case of cancellation until September 01, 2024 90% cancellation fee will be charged in case of cancellation until September 08, 2024 100% cancellation fee will be charged in case of cancellation after September 8, 2024 or in case of no-show. ​ If participation is not possible, you have the option of naming a substitute. In this case, we reserve the right to charge a processing fee of EUR 50.00 (excl. VAT). ​ Timely cancellations must be made in writing to Conventive Kongressagentur GmbH via e-Mail office@conventive.at
Travel &
Accommodation
Going to Vienna
Getting to IRSC 2024
The nearest railway station to the conference venue and suggested hotels is "Wien Mitte-Landstraße Bahnhof".
Easy access from Vienna Airport via the
"REX 7" or "S7" trains and the "City Airport Train (CAT)".
By Train
Travelling by train is by far the most environmentally friendly mode of transport. We encourage all delegates to take advantage of the wide range of rail connections available to travel to Vienna.
ÖBB Nightjet - Travelling comfortably overnight
Travelling through the night, our sleepers, couchette coaches and day coaches allow you to pass the night with sweet dreams. The next morning, you arrive fully recuperated and relaxed at your destination - right in the city centre. Book your nightjet ticket here and get more information about the ÖBB Nightjet offers.
ÖBB Railjet – connecting Austria and Europe
With a maximum speed of up to 230 km/h, the Railjet (RJ) takes you through all of Austria to Germany, Italy, Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia or Switzerland. The brand new generation of Railjets is in use on the Brenner line between Munich - Innsbruck - Bozen and Veron, and will offer our passengers even more comfort. Tickets can be booked here.
By Plane
Vienna’s central position in Europe makes it a hub offering optimal transportation connections to the world. When booking a flight to the event using one of the Lufthansa Group airline carriers, you can profit from the reduced fares* using the event code: ATAPYTJ via the booking platform
*The reduced fares are automatically displayed.
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Please enable pop-ups permanently in your browser while booking, otherwise the window in the booking platform will not open.
Hotel Map
Rooms for delegates have been reserved in hotels of various categories. These are call-off contingents and you can book your room directly with the hotel. Depending on the hotel chosen you can either book online, via e-mail or fax form.
Abstracts
IMPORTANT DATES
TO CONSIDER
Abstract Submission Deadline: 31 May, 2024
Notification of Acceptance: 14 June, 2024
Paper & E-Poster Submission Deadline: 17 July, 2024
Abstract
guidelines
Abstract submission
categories
All those interested in presenting a paper or e-poster at the IRSC 2024 Congress are invited to submit their abstract for review.
Selected abstracts will be chosen for papers for an oral presentation during the Congress sessions or as e-posters for virtual consultation.
Please read the following submission rules carefully before submitting
​an Abstract:​
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Abstracts must only be submitted via the IRSC 2024 website.
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Abstracts submitted by e-mail will not be accepted.
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Abstracts must be received by the announced deadline.
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Abstracts received after the deadline will not be considered.
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Please indicate the topic from the abstract topics list and your preferred type of presentation (paper for oral presentation or e-poster) during online submission.
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The Committee will endeavor to schedule abstracts according to authors‘ preferences but reserves the right to decide on the final form of presentation.
Please consider the following compulsory instructions for Abstract submission:
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A specific template will be provided by Congress Secretariat for the abstract.
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The text should not exceed 400 words (excluding title, authors bibliography and key words)
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It is acceptable to include up to 2 tables, graphics, or images (jpg, jpeg, png format. Maximum size 3MB in total) as part of the abstract, however they must be of good quality.
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All abstracts must be submitted and presented in clear English with accurate grammar and spelling of a quality suitable for publication.
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Papers will not be edited by the Congress Secretariat prior to publication, therefore please check the grammar and spelling carefully.
Publication
All accepted papers will be published and available for download on the congress website until 18 October 2024, and permanently available on a IRSC official website to be checked with previous organizers.
Registration
Please note that the acceptance of an abstract does not include the congress registration. The presenting author must be a registered participant. Once the abstract is accepted,payment of the conference fee must be made no later than 2 weeks after acceptance. Otherwise, the presentation of the paper will not be included in the program.
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Safety on Track: CCS | ATO | ETCS | SSO.
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​How to achieve a high level of safety in train control (CCS - Control, Command and Signaling), considering cost-efficiency, innovation and interoperability? – in general and in specific for regional railways/secondary lines.
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Is the ongoing global transformation/technological development (CCS, ATO) addressing the future needs, demands and challenges, from the perspective of operators/customers/authorities?
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How sufficient are the ongoing efforts towards the corresponding harmonization of operational procedures/rules in particular to safety aspects?
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New vision: what would the best solution look like today, when considering maximum security, costs, available technology, expected leaps in technology, …?
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Safety in transition? What are the requirements, fields of application, challenges and potentials of ATO?
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What is the classification of signal passed at danger (SPAD) / stop signal overrun (SSO) and what approaches, methods, technologies and innovations can prevent the precursor to train collisions and train derailments?
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Safety Culture | Safety Performance | Safety in Transition.
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How safety culture and leadership help to improve safety performance?
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How to measure the effectiveness of safety culture?
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One term, one hundred meanings: variety of different safety culture approaches.
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Just culture: responsibility, underlying cause (e.g. HOF), safety behavior, risk perception.
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Lessons learned: best practices, real experiences, strengths, weaknesses, difficulties, accident investigations.
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Level Crossing | Safety on Rail & Road.
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What innovative concepts and potential will there be in the vehicle configuration?
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How to benefit from the interaction between road and rail. (e.g. virtual vehicle)
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Tunnel Safety.
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Ideas and approaches for creating the resilience of an efficient railway network - possible relocations in the event of system failure and/or failure of a main transport axis (tunnel).
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How could a tunnel be protected in the best possible way to minimise the impact of an accident? (e.g. tunnel safety strategies, efficient and target orientated emergency management, …)
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Lessons learned: best practices, real experiences, strengths, weaknesses, difficulties, accident investigations.
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Occupational Safety | Shunting.
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Which technologies can be implemented in order to stepwise support or release occupational safety?
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How can innovative concepts support or release the daily work-life? (e.g. drones, robotics, exoskeleton, smart glasses, VR/AR, DAC digital automated coupling, etc.)
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Rail Freight | Performance and Safety.
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Innovative concepts for the freight train of tomorrow, how can safety be improved? (e.g. RID)
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How to ensure the permanent (technical) monitoring of relevant conditions?
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How to prevent derailment (risk, new technologies)?
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How can the protection of the environment be ensured?
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How can the impact on the environment be decreased?
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Liberalization: risk or chance? What division of responsibility between railway undertakings and infrastructure managers is expedient in terms of safety? (e.g. In Europe: challenges posed by the 4th railway package)
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Urban Mobility meets Safety.
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What risks and opportunities can alternative drives generate?
(e.g. e-mobility, hydrogen, …) -
What influence do alternative drives have during transport?
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How can accidents to persons be prevented? (e.g. by technological innovations, …)
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Exchange of experience from various industries/sectors.
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Partner
The IRSC Conference is an ideal opportunity for any organization or company to showcase its initiatives and experiences to a high-level global audience from the railway sector and beyond. It is a platform to engage and network with a wide range of stakeholders including railway operators, infrastructure managers, safety authorities, manufacturing industry, academia, policy makers and many more. For more information please do not hesitate contact us.
Becoming
a partner
Interested in becoming a Partner?
Please contact us:
Viktoria Ziech, MA
IRSC 2024 I Project management
Phone: +43 664/61 78 395
E-Mail: irsc2024@oebb.at
About
IRSC
The International
Railway
Safety Council
The world's largest railway safety conference is being held in Vienna this year. Held annually since 1990, the International Railway Safety Council (IRSC) brings together safety experts from around the world. It is dedicated exclusively to railway safety issues and aims to exchange information and share experiences as well as lessons learnt in order to improve railway safety.
The diverse mix of railway safety experts attending the conference results in many thought-provoking and challenging ideas, as well as a deeper understanding of a range of issues that provide a useful reference tool for each participant. The IRSC makes a significant contribution to the continuous improvement of railway safety management and performance worldwide.
