Locomotive Voice and Video Recorder Regulations (SOR/2020-178)

Marginal note:Accountable executive

• 13 (1) A company must designate a member of senior management who is responsible for the operations of the company as the accountable executive to be accountable for meeting the requirements of these Regulations, including implementing the policy referred to in section 12.

• Marginal note:Notice to Minister

  (2) The company must submit to the Minister, within 30 days after the designation, the name and title of the accountable executive and a statement signed by that person confirming that they accept the responsibilities of the position.

Marginal note:Authorized persons — voice and video data

• 14 (1) A company must designate the persons it authorizes to take one or more of the following actions and make a record of their names and positions:

  • (a) collecting voice and video data from a crash-protected memory module or from any other storage location where such data is automatically stored;

  • (b) communicating voice and video data; and

  • (c) accessing and using voice and video data for the purposes of paragraph 17.91(1)(a) or (b) or subsection 17.91(3) of the Act, as applicable.

• Marginal note:Prohibition

  (2) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(c), the company must not designate any person who directly manages operating employees to access or use voice and video data under paragraph 17.91(1)(a) of the Act.

• Marginal note:Requirement

  (3) A company must ensure that only a person authorized to take the action referred to in paragraph (1)(a), (b) or (c) takes that action.

• Marginal note:Record keeping

  (4) The company must keep any record required under subsection (1) while it is current and for a period of six years after the day on which it is revised and provide a copy to the Minister on request.

Marginal note:Authorized persons — training

• 15 (1) A company must provide training on the policy required under section 12 to each person designated under subsection 14(1) before the person takes any actions referred to in paragraphs 14(1)(a) to (c).

• Marginal note:Additional training

  (2) If the company makes any changes to the policy, the company must provide training on the changes to each person designated under subsection 14(1).

Marginal note:Safeguards — LVVR system

• 16 (1) A company must ensure that an LVVR system is equipped with physical safeguards that are designed to prevent tampering, including reducing the field of view of the cameras.

• Marginal note:Safeguards — voice and video data

  (2) A company must ensure that crash-protected memory modules and any other storage locations containing voice or video data that was recorded in a controlling locomotive operated by the company are subject to safeguards that are designed to prevent unauthorized access to the data, including physical safeguards such as locked filing cabinets and restricted access to offices, organizational safeguards such as requiring a continuous chain of custody and technological safeguards such as the use of passwords and encryption.

Marginal note:Clarification

17 For greater certainty, even if a company uses a storage provider operated by a third party to back up or store voice or video data that was recorded in a controlling locomotive operated by the company, the company is responsible for complying with the provisions of the Act and these Regulations in respect of that data.

Marginal note:Virtual storage provider

18 If a company uses a virtual storage provider, including a cloud storage provider, to back up or store voice or video data that was recorded in a controlling locomotive operated by the company, the company must ensure that the provider is accredited under a current internationally recognized standard respecting information security management systems.

Marginal note:Record of data access or download

• 19 (1) A company must ensure that any technological means it uses to access or download voice or video data from a crash-protected memory module, or any other storage location where such data is automatically stored, automatically generates an unalterable record each time such data is accessed or downloaded.

• Marginal note:Contents of record

  (2) The record must include the following information:

  • (a) an electronic signature that uniquely identifies the person who accessed or downloaded the voice or video data;

  • (b) the date and time the data was accessed or downloaded;

  • (c) the date and time stamps of the data; and

  • (d) the number or other identifier that uniquely identifies the controlling locomotive in which the data was recorded.

• Marginal note:Monthly report

  (3) The company must, on a monthly basis, make available to all operating employees a report that includes the information referred to in subsection (2) that was generated during the preceding month.

• Marginal note:Retention of documents

  (4) The company must keep the records and reports described in subsections (1) and (3) for a period of six years after the day on which they are created and provide a copy to the Minister on request.

Communication Requirements

Marginal note:Request from Minister or inspector

20 On receipt of a request to obtain, for use by the Minister under paragraph 17.92(1)(b) or (c) of the Act or for use by a railway safety inspector under subsection 17.93(1) of the Act, voice or video data that was recorded in a controlling locomotive operated by the company, the company must communicate the data to the Minister or the railway safety inspector, as the case may be.

Marginal note:Secure communications

21 If a company communicates voice or video data that was recorded in a controlling locomotive operated by the company, it must communicate the data in a format that prevents unauthorized access.

Marginal note:Communications with TSB

• 22 (1) If a company communicates to the TSB voice or video data that was recorded in a controlling locomotive operated by the company, it must provide the software and equipment required to use the data, either in advance of or at the time that it communicates the data.

• Marginal note:Communications with Minister

  (2) If a company is required to communicate voice or video data that was recorded in a controlling locomotive operated by the company to the Minister, the company must transfer the data to the Minister and, on request, provide the software and equipment required to use the data.

• Marginal note:Communications with railway safety inspector

  (3) If a company is required to communicate voice or video data that was recorded in a controlling locomotive operated by the company to a railway safety inspector, the company must make the data available to the inspector.

Marginal note:Playback of data

• 23 (1) A company must ensure that voice and video data is capable of being played back in such a way that

  • (a) the communications of the operating employees are understandable; and

  • (b) the voice of each operating employee is identifiable and clearly distinguishable.

• Marginal note:Playback system

  (2) A company must ensure that any playback system used to review voice or video data allows for an uninterrupted review of the data and includes play, pause, rewind and fast-forward functions.

Accident and Incident Investigations

Marginal note:Accessing and using data — conditions

• 24 (1) A company must not access or use, for the purpose of paragraph 17.91(1)(b) of the Act, voice or video data that was recorded in a controlling locomotive operated by the company unless it

  • (a) has identified that the controlling locomotive was involved in the accident or incident; and

  • (b) has reason to believe that activities in the controlling locomotive caused or contributed to the accident or incident.

• Marginal note:Accessing and using data — types

  (2) For the purpose of paragraph 17.91(1)(b) of the Act, the voice and video data that a company may access and use is the data from the controlling locomotive involved in the accident or incident that was recorded

  • (a) during the shift of any operating employee who was present when the accident or incident occurred; and

  • (b) during a shift immediately preceding a shift referred to in paragraph (a) if, prior to accessing or using the data, the company has notified all operating employees who are present on the recording, and any bargaining agents representing those employees, that it intends to use the data.

• Marginal note:Clarification

  (3) For greater certainty, if, at the time of an accident or incident, a company cannot identify which controlling locomotive was involved, the company must not use voice or video data for the purpose of making that determination.

Marginal note:Data collection

25 On receipt of a request for voice or video data related to an accident or incident for use by the Minister under subsection 17.92(1) of the Act or for use by a railway safety inspector under subsection 17.93(1) of the Act, a company must ensure that, before the data is permanently erased, it is collected from the crash-protected memory module or any other storage location where the data is automatically stored, and preserved in another storage location.

Random Selection

Marginal note:Process

• 26 (1) To randomly select voice and video data as required by subsection 17.91(2) of the Act, a company must use a random number generator to select, in the following order,

  • (a) the day of the month from which the data will be selected;

  • (b) the controlling locomotives from which the data will be selected; and

  • (c) a maximum of three start times, to the minute, for each of the controlling locomotives.

• Marginal note:Random selection

  (2) The company must ensure that, when making the selections set out in subsection (1), no day, controlling locomotive or start time has a greater likelihood of being selected than another.

• Marginal note:Selecting the day of the month

  (3) For the purpose of paragraph (1)(a), the company must use the random number generator during the week preceding the beginning of the month.

• Marginal note:Selecting controlling locomotives

  (4) For the purpose of paragraph (1)(b), the company must select at least two controlling locomotives from among all of the controlling locomotives that the company is scheduled to operate in Canada on the day selected under paragraph 1(a). The number of controlling locomotives selected must not exceed 10% of the controlling locomotives that the company is scheduled to operate in Canada on that day.

• Marginal note:Selecting start times

  (5) For the purpose of paragraph (1)(c), the company may include parameters to ensure that the selected start times are chosen from among the times that the controlling locomotives are scheduled to operate.

• Marginal note:Obligation to download

  (6) A company must download 30 minutes of voice and video data beginning from each selected start time before the data is permanently erased from the crash-protected memory module or any other storage location where such data is automatically stored.

• Marginal note:Prohibition — maximum of 30 minutes

  (7) A company must not download more than 30 minutes of voice and video data beginning from each selected start time.

• Marginal note:Prohibition — repeated selection process

  (8) A company must not perform the selections set out in paragraph (1)(a) to (c) more than once in respect of a given month.

• Marginal note:Random selection policy

  (9) A company must develop and implement a written random selection policy that

  • (a) identifies the persons in the company who are authorized to perform the selections set out in subsection (1);

  • (b) ensures that no person who schedules or manages employees performs the selections set out in subsection (1) or influences any person who does; and

  • (c) identifies and describes the random number generator that the company uses to perform the selections set out in subsection (1).

Marginal note:Use of voice and video data

27 For the purpose of paragraph 17.91(1)(a) of the Act, a company must use all voice and video data selected in accordance with section 26 within 30 days after downloading the data.