WAC 468-550-030   Definitions.  For the purposes of this chapter, the following definitions of terms shall apply unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

     (1) Accident, reportable means any event involving the operation of a RFGS along a revenue line segment, if as a result:

     (a) An individual dies; or

     (b) An individual suffers bodily injury and immediately receives medical treatment away from the scene of the accident; or

     (c) A collision, derailment, or fire causes property damage in excess of $25,000.

     (2) APTA Guidelines means the American Public Transit Association's "Manual for the Development of Rail Transit System Safety Program Plans."

     (3) Chief executive officer means, but is not limited to, the mayor, county executive, or chair of the municipality, or corporate president of the public or private entity that owns, operates, or maintains a RFGS.

     (4) Contractor means an entity that performs tasks required by this chapter on behalf of the department or a RFGS.

     (5) Department means the Washington state department of transportation which has been designated as the state safety oversight agency.

     (6) Directional route mile means the mileage in each direction over which public transportation vehicles travel while in revenue service. Directional route miles are a measure of the route path over a facility or roadway and not the service carried on the facility. Directional route miles are computed with regard to direction of service, but without regard to the number of traffic lanes or rail tracks existing in the right of way. Directional route miles do not include staging or storage areas at the beginning or end of a route.

     (7) Emergency means a situation which is life threatening to passengers, employees, or others or which causes damage to any rail fixed guideway vehicle or facility or results in a significant theft of services which severely affects the ability of the system to fulfill its mission.

     (8) FTA means the Federal Transit Administration, or its successors, an agency within the U.S. Department of Transportation.

     (9) Hazardous condition means a set of circumstances that if not identified and corrected has or will result in personal injury or property damage. It includes unacceptable hazardous conditions.

     (10) Incident reporting thresholds are criteria established by Federal Transit Administration in CFR 49 Part 659 and further by the Washington state rail safety oversight program standard for determining which accidents/incidents require investigation.

     (11) Investigation means a procedure that the department or a RFGS utilizes to determine the cause of a reportable accident, hazardous condition, or security breach.

     (12) Medical attention means emergency care at a state-licensed general hospital, critical access hospital, or health clinic, or by a religious practitioner.

     (13) Plan means the system safety program plan and the security and emergency preparedness plan of rail fixed guideway systems not regulated by the Federal Railroad Administration adopted by the RFGS detailing its safety and security policies, objectives, responsibilities and procedures.

     (14) Procedure means an established and documented method to perform a task.

     (15) Rail fixed guideway system or "RFGS" means a light, heavy, or rapid rail system, monorail, inclined plane, funicular, trolley, or other fixed rail guideway component of a high-capacity transportation system that is not regulated by the Federal Railroad Administration or its successor. "RFGS" does not include elevators, moving sidewalks or stairs, and vehicles suspended from aerial cables, unless they are an integral component of a station served by a rail fixed guideway system.

     (16) Revenue line segment means that portion of a fixed guideway system upon, under, or through which a RFGS provides service available to the general public. It includes stations used by the system's passengers to enter or leave the RFGS's conveyance.

     (17) Risk means the probability that a security breach will occur.

     (18) Safety means freedom from danger.

     (19) Security and emergency preparedness plan or "SEPP" is a document developed and implemented for each rail fixed guideway system which describes its security policies, objectives, responsibilities, and procedures. This plan is a requirement of RCW 81.104.115 and meets the standards established by the Federal Transit Administration in CFR 49 Part 659 and the Washington state rail safety oversight program.

     (20) Seasonally means the provision of service available to the general public fewer than a total of one hundred eighty days within a twelve-month period. The provision of service any time on a calendar day is a day counted towards the threshold of one hundred eighty days.

     (21) Security means freedom from intentional danger.

     (22) Security breach means an unforeseen event or occurrence that endangers life or property and may result in the loss of services or system equipment.

     (23) Service available to the general public does not include operations for a specific private function when a RFGS accepts hire, such as group charters, weddings, or other private events that are not available to the general public on a walk-in basis.

     (24) Standard means the system safety and security program standard which is the standard developed and adopted by the department which complies with the requirements of CFR 49 Part 659.

     (25) System means a composite of people, property, environment, and procedures which are integrated to perform a specific operational function in a specific environment.

     (26) System safety program plan or "SSPP" is a document developed and implemented for each rail fixed guideway system which describes its safety policies, objectives, responsibilities, and procedures. The requirements for this plan are established by the Federal Transit Administration in CFR 49 Part 659 and further by the Washington state rail safety oversight program standard.

     (27) Triennial safety and security audit means a formal, comprehensive, on-site examination by the department of a RFGS's safety and security procedures to determine whether it complies with the RFGS's policies and procedures as outlined in the RFGS's plan.

     (28) Washington state rail safety oversight program is the program administered by the Washington state department of transportation to ensure compliance by rail fixed guideway systems with the Washington state rail safety oversight program standard.

     (29) Washington state rail safety oversight program standard is a document developed and adopted by the Washington state department of transportation that describes the policies, objectives, responsibilities, and procedures used to provide safety and security oversight of rail fixed guideway systems. This document is a requirement established by the Federal Transit Administration in CFR 49 Part 659.

     (30) Unacceptable hazard is a real or potential condition that may endanger human life or property that after an assessment of its severity and probability cannot remain and must be mitigated.

     (31) Unacceptable hazardous condition means a hazardous condition classified by the rail transit agency as being unacceptable based on a hazardous resolution matrix or other evaluation methodology approved by the department.



[Statutory Authority: RCW 81.104.115. 08-15-078, § 468-550-030, filed 7/15/08, effective 8/15/08. Statutory Authority: RCW 81.104.115(5). 02-13-004, § 468-550-030, filed 6/6/02, effective 7/7/02. Statutory Authority: 1999 c 202 § 7. 99-18-059 (Order 193), § 468-550-030, filed 8/30/99, effective 9/30/99. Statutory Authority: RCW 43.06.120. 98-19-052, § 468-550-030, filed 9/15/98, effective 10/16/98.]