SPR 22-615, Evaluating the Use of a Near-Miss Reporting Program to Enhance Employee Safety Performance

PROBLEM STATEMENT Using accidents to improve safety performance is an outdated and reactive practice. One component of a modern safety approach is a near-miss reporting program which tracks close calls or near misses that do not result in an accident but that can be harbingers future incidents. A well-defined, comprehensive near-miss reporting program can lower total recordable incident rates (TRIR), increase communication and trust about safety, and help workers identify hazardous conditions and unsafe behaviors. A recent study found that KYTC’s safety program could benefit from increased employee engagement efforts. A well-executed near-miss reporting program helps address that issue. KYTC’s Office of Safety’s near-miss reporting system uses GIS to map and describe incidents. This research will (1) explore opportunities to advance the program through documented, successful methods applied in other industry sectors and (2) evaluate the potential impact of a more comprehensive near-miss reporting program. OBJECTIVES • Investigate and document near-miss programs used by other state DOTs • Identify strategies KYTC can readily adopt to improve its existing-near miss program • Develop a vision for a comprehensive near-miss reporting program WORK PLAN (Major Tasks and Activities) Task 1: Literature review Task 2: Review and document other DOT strategies for near miss reporting and tracking Task 3: Document KYTC’s current approach to near miss reporting and tracking Task 4: Identify and develop KYTC-specific strategies for near-miss reporting Task 5: Develop best practices and plan for a state-of-the-art near-miss reporting program Task 6: Prepare a final report