Victorian Consolidated Legislation

Rail Safety Act 2006 - SECT 79

Drug assessment

79. Drug assessment



(1) A transport safety officer may at any time require a rail safety worker
whom he or she believes on reasonable grounds is about to carry out, or is
carrying out, rail safety work to undergo an assessment of drug impairment if
in the opinion of the transport safety officer, that rail safety worker's
behaviour or appearance indicates that the rail safety worker may be impaired
for a reason other than alcohol alone.





(2) A transport safety officer or, subject to subsection (3), a member of the
police force, may require-

   (a)  a rail safety worker whom he or she believes on reasonable grounds has
        within the last 3 preceding hours carried out rail safety work on a
        railway when an accident or irregular incident occurred involving the
        rail safety worker; or

   (b)  a rail safety worker whom he or she has required under section 77 to
        undergo a preliminary breath test; or

   (c)  a rail safety worker required under section 78 to furnish a sample of
        breath or from whom a sample of blood was required to be taken under
        section 78(9)-

to undergo an assessment of drug impairment if, in the opinion of the
transport safety officer or member of the police force, that rail safety
worker's behaviour or appearance indicates that he or she may be impaired for
a reason other than alcohol alone and for that purpose may further require the
rail safety worker to accompany a transport safety officer or member of the
police force (as the case requires) to a place where the assessment is to be
carried out and to remain there until the assessment has been carried out or
until 3 hours after the carrying out of the rail safety work, whichever is
sooner.

(3) A member of the police force only has power to require a rail safety
worker to undergo an assessment of drug impairment under subsection (2)(a) in
the case of an irregular incident if-

   (a)  he or she has contacted a person nominated for the purposes of this
        provision by the person or body responsible for the operation of the
        railway; and

   (b)  the person contacted has confirmed that an irregular incident did
        occur and has agreed that it is appropriate to conduct an assessment
        of drug impairment.

(4) A rail safety worker is not obliged to undergo an assessment of drug
impairment if more than 3 hours have passed since the rail safety worker last
carried out rail safety work.

(5) An assessment of drug impairment must be carried out by-

   (a)  a transport safety officer authorised to do so by the Safety Director;
        or

   (b)  a member of the police force authorised to do so by the Chief
        Commissioner of Police.

(6) An assessment of drug impairment must be carried out in accordance with
the procedure specified in a notice under subsection (7).

(7) The Safety Director may, by notice published in the Government Gazette,
specify the procedure to be followed in assessing drug impairment.

(8) The carrying out of an assessment of drug impairment on a rail safety
worker must be video-recorded if the rail safety worker was involved in an
accident or irregular incident unless the prosecution satisfies the court that
a video-recording has not been made because of exceptional circumstances.

(9) If the rail safety worker on whom an assessment of drug impairment was
carried out is subsequently charged with an offence under section 76(1)(b),
and the carrying out of the assessment of drug impairment is video-recorded, a
copy of the video-recording must be served with the summons or, if a summons
is not issued, within 7 days after the making of the charge.

(10) Subject to subsection (11), the video-recording of the carrying out of an
assessment of drug impairment on a rail safety worker is only admissible in a
proceeding against that rail safety worker for an offence against this Act for
the purpose of establishing that the assessment of drug impairment was carried
out in accordance with the procedure specified in a notice under subsection
(7).

(11) Evidence obtained as a result of an assessment of drug impairment carried
out on a rail safety worker is inadmissible as part of the prosecution case in
proceedings against that rail safety worker for any offence if the
video-recording of the assessment and any related material and information
should have been but has not been destroyed as required by section 81.

(12) In any proceeding under this Act-

   (a)  the statement of a transport safety officer that on a particular date
        he or she was authorised by the Safety Director under subsection
        (5)(a) to carry out an assessment of drug impairment; or

   (b)  the statement of a member of the police force that on a particular
        date he or she was authorised by the Chief Commissioner of Police
        under subsection (5)(b) to carry out an assessment of drug impairment;
        or

   (c)  a certificate purporting to be signed by the Safety Director that a
        transport safety officer named in it is authorised by the Safety
        Director under subsection (5) to carry out an assessment of drug
        impairment; or





   (d)  a certificate purporting to be signed by the Chief Commissioner of
        Police that a member of the police force named in it is authorised by
        the Chief Commissioner of Police under subsection (5) to carry out an
        assessment of drug impairment-

is admissible in evidence and, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, is
proof of the authority of that transport safety officer or member of the
police force (as the case requires).