RailPro SMS — Operator's Manual

What is RailPro SMS? It's a web-based software platform built specifically for Canadian railways. It helps you manage your Safety Management System (SMS) — the set of processes required by Transport Canada under SOR/2015-26 (the Railway Safety Management System Regulations).

Think of your SMS like a recipe book for running a safe railway. Transport Canada says every railway must have one, and RailPro SMS is the digital filing cabinet, checklist, and alarm system that keeps it all organized and up to date.

Who is this manual for? This guide is for the person at your railway who is responsible for managing your SMS — whether that's the Safety Manager, Accountable Executive, or Designated Manager. No technical background needed.

When you first receive your login credentials, here's what to do in order:

Navigate to Company Profile in the sidebar. This is the foundation of everything in RailPro SMS.

What you need to fill in:

• Railway name and operating certificate number
• Railway type: Part 1, Part 2 Division 1, or Part 2 Division 2
• Primary contact and Accountable Executive details
• Address, territory of operation, and track miles
• Goods transported (including dangerous goods)
• Number of employees
• Last TC audit date and findings (if applicable)

The Compliance Dashboard is the first thing you should look at every time you log in. It shows you:

• Overall Compliance Score — a percentage showing how complete your SMS is. Aim for 100%.
• Process Status — each required SMS process (5a through 5l) shown as green (compliant), yellow (partial), or red (non-compliant).
• Overdue Items — tasks that are past their due date and need immediate attention.
• Upcoming Reminders — things due in the next 30 days.
• Recent Activity — what was last updated in your system.

How the score is calculated: Each SMS process contributes equally to your score. Within each process, the system checks if you have required documents uploaded, required fields filled in, and required records on file.

In plain English: Transport Canada requires you to name the person at the top who is ultimately responsible for safety (the "Accountable Executive" — usually the CEO or President), and to list what every manager is responsible for in the SMS.

What to do in RailPro SMS:

In plain English: You need a written document that says your company is committed to safety, signed by your top executive, reviewed every year, and shared with all your workers.

What to do in RailPro SMS:

In plain English: You need to know every law, rule, and Transport Canada order that applies to you — and prove you're following all of them.

What to do in RailPro SMS:

In plain English: Every time something goes wrong on your railway — a derailment, a collision, a near miss, an employee injury — you must write it down, report it to the right people, investigate why it happened, and make sure it doesn't happen again.

What is an occurrence?

• Accident — a derailment, collision, or any event that causes injury, death, or major damage.
• Incident — a less serious event that could have caused an accident but didn't.
• Near Miss — a close call where nothing was damaged or hurt, but it almost was.

In plain English: You need to regularly look at everything happening at your railway and ask: "What could go wrong? What patterns are we seeing? What worries us?" Then write it down.

Where do safety concerns come from? (Section 13 sources):

• Railway occurrence records
• Internal safety inspections
• Employee injury reports
• Employee reports and complaints
• Monitoring technology data
• Annual monitoring reports
• Audit findings

In plain English: When something worrying is identified, you need to formally ask: "How likely is this to happen? How bad would it be?" Then decide what to do about it.

When is a risk assessment required? (Section 15):

• When you identify a safety concern from your §13 analysis
• When you plan to start transporting dangerous goods (or a new type)
• When you introduce or eliminate a technology
• When you add or remove a railway work (track, bridge, etc.)
• When you significantly increase dangerous goods volume
• When you change the route for dangerous goods
• When you make significant personnel changes

In plain English: Once you know what the risks are, you have to fix them — and then check if your fixes actually worked.

In plain English: Every year, you need to set specific safety goals ("We want to reduce near misses by 20%") and plan exactly how you'll reach those goals.

In plain English: Your employees must be able to report safety problems or rule violations without being afraid of getting in trouble for speaking up. You need a written "no reprisal" policy.

In plain English: You need to know what skills every job requires, make sure the right people are in those jobs, keep records of their training, and test them to confirm they're still competent.

Tab 1 — Duties Register

List every essential duty performed at your railway. For each duty, enter:

• Duty title — e.g. "Locomotive Engineer," "Track Inspector," "Switch Operator"
• Required skills — e.g. "CROR rules knowledge," "track geometry inspection," "radio communication"
• Required qualifications — e.g. certificates, licences, medical clearances
• Safety-critical? — flag duties where errors could directly cause accidents

Tab 2 — Employee Records

Add a record for every employee (and contractor). Fill in:

• Full name & employee ID
• Position title — must match the Duties Register
• Employment type — employee, contractor, or non-employee (Section 26 covers all three)
• Department, email, phone, hire date
• Essential duties — list which duties from the Duties Register this person performs
• Required skills & qualifications — what this specific person needs to have
• Status — active, inactive, or on leave

Tab 3 — Training Records

Every time an employee completes any training, log it here:

• Employee name & ID
• Training title — e.g. "CROR Rules Refresher," "Dangerous Goods Handling," "First Aid"
• Training type — classroom, online, on-the-job, simulation
• Date completed & expiry date (if the certification expires)
• Provider / instructor name
• Result — pass/fail/in-progress
• Upload certificate — attach the completion certificate or record

Tab 4 — Competency Tests (Efficiency Tests)

Section 27 requires periodic competency testing. For each test, log:

• Employee name & ID
• Test title — e.g. "Locomotive Engineer Annual Efficiency Test"
• Test type — written exam, practical observation, oral exam, efficiency test, simulation, on-the-job assessment
• Assessor name — who conducted the test
• Test date & next test date
• Score & pass mark — default pass mark is 80%
• Result — pass, fail, or pending
• Duties assessed — which duties from the Duties Register were tested
• Upload test record — attach the completed test form

Tab 5 — Skills Evidence

Upload documents that prove employees have the required skills — copies of licences, certificates, diplomas, or other credentials. Link each uploaded document to the specific employee and the duty it covers.

Tab 6 — Third-Party Verification

Section 26 applies to contractors and non-employees performing safety-critical work. Use this tab to log how you verified that contractors have the required qualifications before they began work. Enter:

• Contractor name and company
• Duties being performed
• How qualifications were verified (checked their licence, reviewed their training records, etc.)
• Date of verification

Tab 7 — Compliance Monitoring

This tab gives you a summary view showing which employees have expired or missing training, upcoming competency test due dates, and overall training compliance rates. Use it to identify gaps before a TC audit.

In plain English: You can't schedule your train crews or safety-critical staff in a way that makes them dangerously tired. The schedule has to be based on what science says about how tiredness affects people.

In plain English: Your SMS is never "done." You have to keep checking that it's working, fix what isn't, and formally audit the whole thing every 3 years.

Part 1 — Annual Monitoring Report (Section 29)

The Annual Monitoring Report section has an upload form. Here's what to include in it:

• Report title & year — e.g. "Annual SMS Monitoring Report — 2026"
• Monitoring period — the calendar year being reviewed
• Conducted by — name of the person who led the monitoring review
• Processes reviewed — confirm each of the 12 SMS processes was reviewed
• Were procedures followed? — document yes/no for each process and explain any gaps
• Were targets achieved? — review the Safety Targets from §5(h) and record actual vs. target values
• Employee involvement verified? — confirm employees were consulted where required (§16, §19, §24)
• Conclusions & recommendations — what needs to improve next year
• Accountable Executive review date — Section 29(4) requires the AE to review conclusions. Log when this happened.
• Upload the signed report document

Part 2 — Internal Audit every 3 years (Section 30)

The Internal Audit Plan section is a separate upload form. Here's what to include:

• Audit plan title & reference number
• Audit scope — which processes and areas will be audited (usually all 12)
• Evaluation criteria — what standards each process will be measured against (typically the SOR/2015-26 regulatory text)
• Audit method — document review, interviews, field observations, records sampling
• Schedule — planned dates for each phase of the audit
• Auditor name(s) — who will conduct the audit (must be independent of the area being audited)
• Audit Report — the completed findings document, signed by the Accountable Executive (§31)
• Action Plan — corrective actions for any deficiencies, approved by the AE (§32)

📊 Analytics (§13) — Monthly Review Panel

The Analytics page serves two purposes: visual charts AND your mandatory §13 compliance record. Every month, you must complete the §13 Monthly Review Panel at the top of this page. Here's how:

• Set the time range filter (Last 3 Months is recommended for monthly reviews)
• Check all 9 boxes — each represents a data source you must consider under §13: railway occurrences, internal documentation, injury reports, inspection results, employee reports, safety complaints, monitoring technology data, annual monitoring report, and audit findings
• Write your findings — summarize what you reviewed and any trends, emerging risks, or repetitive situations identified. If nothing was found, state "No significant trends identified in this period." This is required text.
• Click "Accept as Reviewed — Save Compliance Record" — this saves a dated record proving you completed the §13 analysis

Below the review panel, the charts show: occurrence trends by month, residual risk distribution, remedial action completion rates, safety concern categories, leading vs. lagging indicators, and safety target progress.

📁 SMS Upload

Upload your entire SMS document (e.g. a Word or PDF file containing all your procedures). The AI reads it and automatically maps the content to the right regulatory sections, saving you hours of manual data entry. After uploading, review each mapped process to confirm the AI extracted the right information.

🤖 SMS Assistant (AI Chat)

The SMS Assistant is like having a regulatory expert available 24/7. Ask it anything: "What does Section 16 require?" or "Help me write a safety concern for a track inspection finding." or "Draft a remedial action for a broken signal light." It uses your company's data to give relevant answers.

📋 SMS Index (§6) — What to fill in

Section 6 requires your SMS to contain an index of all processes. For each of your applicable processes (5a–5l), the SMS Index page has a row where you fill in:

• Process ID & Name — e.g. "5a — Accountability"
• Designated Manager — the person accountable for this process (name, position, email)
• Responsible Person — who actually runs the process day-to-day
• Procedures / Plans / Methods — list and link the documents that make up this process (e.g. "Occurrence Reporting Procedure v2.1")
• Last revision date — when the process documents were last updated
• Regulation sections covered — e.g. "§5(a), §7, §8" for the Accountability process
• Compliance notes — any notes about gaps or outstanding actions

👥 Employee Consultation — What to log

Many sections of SOR/2015-26 require employee consultation. The Employee Consultation page is your central log. For each consultation, fill in:

• Process area — which SMS process triggered this consultation (e.g. §5(f) Risk Assessment, §5(g) Remedial Action, §5(i) Reporting Procedure)
• Consultation type — regular consultation, risk assessment review, remedial action evaluation, or policy/procedure development
• Date — when the consultation happened
• Who was consulted — names and roles (employees, bargaining agent representatives)
• Method — meeting, survey, focus group, one-on-one, committee, email
• What was discussed — brief summary of the topics covered
• Feedback received — what employees said, suggested, or raised
• Actions taken — how you responded to their feedback
• Upload meeting minutes or record — attach any supporting documentation

📄 Templates

Pre-built regulatory templates for common SMS documents: safety policies, risk assessment forms, occurrence report forms, and more. Download, fill in your details, and upload back to the system.

📅 Meeting Minutes

Log safety meeting minutes here. These serve as evidence that your team is actively managing safety — valuable during a TC audit.

📬 Reminders

The system automatically creates reminders for recurring tasks (annual policy review, TC list check, etc.). You can also create custom reminders. When a reminder is due, you receive an email and it appears on your dashboard.

🗄️ Records (§33–36)

Section 33 of SOR/2015-26 requires records to be kept for 6 years. The Records page shows all your stored compliance records and ensures none are deleted prematurely.

📤 Filing (§37–38)

Sections 37–38 require railways to file certain documents with Transport Canada. The Filing page tracks which filings have been made and when.

📊 Reports

Generate PDF reports for internal use or for TC audits. Reports include compliance summaries, occurrence logs, risk assessment registers, and full SMS documentation packages.

🔍 Audit Mode

Audit Mode simulates a Transport Canada inspection. It walks through all required processes and generates a complete audit package — all documents organized the way TC expects them.

📧 Email Logs

Every automated email sent by the system (reminders, alerts, notifications) is logged here for your records.

🗑️ Manage Data

Admin-only tool to import or delete data in bulk. Use with caution — deleted records cannot be recovered.

⚙️ Settings

Change your railway type, update notification preferences, and manage user accounts. Only admins can invite new users.

Here's a simple routine to keep your SMS in excellent shape:

Every Day (5–10 minutes)

• Log in and check the Compliance Dashboard for any new red alerts or overdue items.
• If an occurrence happened yesterday, report it immediately under §5(d).
• Check email for any system notifications or reminders.

Every Week (30 minutes)

• Review the Reminders page for upcoming due dates.
• Check the Compliance page for any new TC regulatory alerts (the system scans every Friday).
• Update the status of any open remedial actions or investigations.
• Log any new safety concerns reported by employees.

Every Month (1–2 hours)

• Review the Analytics page for trends in occurrences and safety concerns.
• Update progress on Safety Targets.
• Conduct and log any scheduled competency tests.
• Hold (and log) a safety meeting with your team.

Every Year

• Review and update the Safety Policy (§9). Get it re-signed by the Accountable Executive.
• Verify your List of Instruments is current (§10).
• Establish new Safety Targets for the coming year (§21).
• Prepare the Annual Monitoring Report (§29). Bring conclusions to the Accountable Executive.
• Review training records for all safety-critical employees.

Every 3 Years

• Conduct the Internal SMS Audit (§30). Document findings in an Audit Report (§31).
• Prepare an Action Plan for any deficiencies found (§32).
• Have the Accountable Executive sign both the Audit Report and the Action Plan.

Transport Canada can inspect your SMS at any time. Here's how to be ready:

What TC inspectors typically look for:

• Is there a documented, signed Safety Policy? (§9)
• Is there a current List of Instruments? (§10)
• Is there an Accountable Executive designated in writing? (§7)
• Are occurrences being recorded and investigated? (§12)
• Are safety concerns being identified through §13 analysis?
• Are risk assessments being conducted when required? (§15)
• Are remedial actions being implemented and evaluated? (§18)
• Are targets set and communicated? (§21–23)
• Is there a non-reprisal reporting procedure? (§24)
• Are employees competency-tested? (§27)
• Is there an annual monitoring report? (§29)
• Is there an audit plan? (§30)
• Are records retained for 6 years? (§33)