About the TSB

Transcript of the video about the TSB

Every year, thousands of accidents take place across Canada in our airspace, on our waterways, on our rail systems, and our pipelines.

At the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, our mandate is to advance transportation safety by conducting independent investigations into selected transportation occurrences to find out what happened and why, and how it can be prevented from happening again.

When an accident occurs, we deploy to the site to examine, document and collect anything relevant to the investigation. We bring materials back to our engineering lab for further analysis. There, we have a range of experts who examine wreckage, test components. If it moves, whirls or hums, we'll look inside to see what role it may have played.

We also carefully examine communications data from video and voice reports, aka “black boxes”, and other sources to identify the causes and contributing factors leading up to the occurrence, to piece together the exact sequence of events.

As a world leader in transportation accident investigation, the TSB is often called upon to share our knowledge and expertise with the international transportation safety community to advance transportation safety worldwide.

As the industry and the landscape continue to evolve, we'll keep pushing for the changes that need to be made.

That's our commitment—to Canadians and the world.

Organizational structure

The Board itself has up to five members, including a chairperson (see the current members). A staff of 245, led by the chief operating officer and the Executive Committee, supports the Board (see the organizational structure and A career with the TSB).

Location

The TSB's head office is in Gatineau, Quebec, but most of its investigators work from field offices across the country so that they can respond quickly to transportation occurrences (either accidents or incidents) anywhere in Canada.

Mandate

The TSB's mandate—as described in the Act that governs its work—is to advance safety in air, marine, pipeline, and rail transportation by

• conducting independent investigations, including public inquiries when necessary, into selected transportation occurrences, in order to make findings regarding their causes and contributing factors;
• identifying safety deficiencies, as evidenced by transportation occurrences;
• making recommendations designed to eliminate or reduce such safety deficiencies;
• reporting publicly on our investigations and findings in relation thereto.

While it is not the function of the Board to assign fault or determine civil or criminal liability, the Board reports fully on the causes and contributing factors of an occurrence, even in cases where fault or liability might be inferred from the Board's findings. Findings of the Board are not binding on the parties to any legal, disciplinary, or other proceedings.

To instill public confidence in the TSB, it is essential that the agency be free of any conflict of interest when investigating accidents, identifying safety deficiencies, and making recommendations. That is why the TSB is independent and separate from other government departments. It currently reports to Parliament through the President of the King's Privy Council for Canada.

The TSB and other organizations

The TSB's mandate is distinct from those of other organizations such as Transport Canada, the Canadian Energy Regulator, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Canadian Coast Guard, and the Department of National Defense, all of which have a role in the transportation sector.

• Transport Canada is concerned with developing and administering policies, regulations, and services for transportation systems in Canada with respect to federally regulated air, marine, and rail modes of transportation.
• The Canada Energy Regulator is responsible for regulating pipelines under federal jurisdiction.

As an independent federal agency, the TSB is not associated with any of these organizations. It does, however, cooperate with them when conducting investigations and making safety recommendations.

When the TSB investigates an accident, no federal department except the Department of National Defense may investigate for the purpose of making findings as to the causes and contributing factors of the accident.

Transport Canada and the Canadian Energy Regulator may investigate for any other purpose, such as regulatory infractions.

International collaboration

The TSB, a leader in its field, shares knowledge and experience with the international transportation safety community to advance transportation safety worldwide. The Agency also participates in foreign investigations to represent Canadian interests and, occasionally, to provide investigation services (see International collaboration).