RIS-3279-TOM Issue 2 is the Rail Industry Standard for Hi-Visibility Clothing. It sets out the rail industry’s agreed minimum technical criteria for high visibility clothing that must be worn by staff when on the lineside or on or near the line. This standard took effect from September 7th, 2019 and supersedes RIS-3279-TOM Issue 1.
RIS-3279-TOM Issue 1 was published on December 3rd, 2016 and replaced the Railway Group Standard GO/RT 3279 without making any changes to the standard. All Leo Workwear garments certified to GO/RT 3279 continue to meet the requirements of RIS-3279-TOM (Issues 1 and 2).
RIS-3279-TOM Issue 2 specifies that high visibility clothing shall meet the minimum requirements for Class 2 garments set out in the International Organization for Standardization’s technical standard, ISO 20471:2013.
The purpose of RIS-3279-TOM is “to ensure that staff are sufficiently visible when on or near the line, allowing train drivers to give an early audible warning. They also assist staff such as look-outs and site wardens to determine if staff are moving to locations where they may not receive the necessary warning or if they are straying into places they should not be.” (RIS-3279-TOM Issue 2, G 2.1.2)
RIS-3279-TOM Issue 2 makes two changes from Issue 1.
First, additional guidance has been provided on the provision of garments which, on their own, do not meet the specifications for Class 2 garments. This guidance clarifies “If one high-visibility garment meets the Class 2 requirements, other high-visibility clothing that does not have sufficient surface area to meet Class 2 requirements can also be worn, provided the Class 2 garment is not obscured.” (RIS-3279-TOM Issue 2, G 2.1.3)
This recognises and approves the common practice of rail workers wearing Class 1 trousers with a Class 2 (or Class 3) upper garment, such as Leo Workwear’s Bideford Cargo Trouser with a Barnstaple Superior Railway Waistcoat.
It also allows the possibility of the reverse: a Class 1 upper garment with Class 2 trousers. Our experience is that this is most often found where a smaller upper garment is worn which lacks sufficient fabric area to meet Class 2, such as our Sandymere Women's Bodywarmer. In this situation RIS-3279-TOM would be satisfied by wearing Class 2 trousers, such as our Pennymoor Women's Poly/Cotton Cargo Trouser.
The second change in RIS-3279-TOM Issue 2 is more substantial. It removes “the ability to provide staff, whose nature of work does not involve possible obscuring of the high-visibility clothing, with a mini-vest that does not meet the minimum requirements for Class 2”. From 2019 onwards, all staff working on or near the line must wear at least one Class 2 certified garment.
We hope this summary of the changes introduced by RIS-3279-TOM Issue 2 is useful. As Hivizology specialists, Leo Workwear have decades of experience designing garments to keep railway workers safe. For more information and to explore our innovative range of products, head to https://www.leoworkwear.com/rail.