The Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) welcomes amendments to the Private Members Bill to mandate improvements to lighting on trains following genuine consultation to ensure the changes are practical and safe for everyone.

The Cook Government’s proposed changes to the Rail Safety National Law Application Amendment (Rolling Stock Lighting) Bill 2026 were made following consultation with rail workers, operators and advocates.

The RTBU raised concerns about the original Bill, with lighting requirements creating glare, distraction and fatigue for drivers. Concerns were also raised about penalties that would have been imposed on individual train drivers rather than operators who decide how trains are fitted.

The amendments address these major flaws and ensure rail safety reforms are practical, evidence-based and aligned with national standards without compromising train drivers’ vision or imposing unfair penalties. They include:

• Align rolling stock lighting and visibility requirements with relevant Australian standards;
• Require appropriate lighting and beacons on lead locomotives, together with reflective delineators on freight wagons;
• Better target the requirements to where they will deliver the greatest safety benefit, particularly public-road level crossings that rely on passive controls, while providing sensible exemptions for closed systems, low-risk networks and heritage and tourist railways;
• Remove the ability to fine individual train drivers; and
• Provide the rail industry with an appropriate transition period, while allowing WA-specific requirements to be superseded if equivalent national standards are introduced.

RTBU WA Secretary Josh Dekuyer said: “We thank the Cook Government for listening to frontline workers who operate the rail network every day, taking them on board and working towards a safer outcome. Any new legislation must solve problems, not create new ones.

“We acknowledge the families who have carried this fight, pushing governments and the rail industry to act. Our union has never objected to lighting changes that make trains safer. Rail workers understand the tragic consequences of level crossing collisions and understand the operational environment and the risks that poorly designed lighting can create.

“The proposals in the original Bill would have put real strain on train drivers, and the extra stress of an individual being fined for something they have no control over was never going to make level crossings safer.

“These amendments mandate genuine improvements to lighting without introducing new risks and have been built cooperatively with workers, industry, government and the community to achieve practical safety outcomes. This bill delivers for the safety of both workers and the community.”

RTBU National Secretary Alex Claassens said: "As a union we have a right to push for an industry that is safe for the people who work in it and for the community who lives alongside it. Worker safety and community safety are not in competition and any reform has to deliver both.

“This outcome shows what can happen when workers are consulted and our concerns are treated seriously. The bill is stronger now because of it.

“We respect all families and advocates who are close to this issue due to horrific experiences and we share in their determination to stop these tragedies from happening.

“Our union will keep working with the Government, operators and regulators to ensure level crossings are safer for all. Lighting is one part of the answer but the real solution is to get rid of level crossings altogether. Elimination remains the only permanent fix.”