Autumn Response Teams Framework

Autumn Response Teams (ART) provide proactive and reactive mitigation to manage low adhesion risk, protect operational safety, and improve overall network performance. Autumn is historically one of the most challenging seasons for railway operations due to railhead contamination caused primarily by leaf fall. Compacted leaf matter significantly reduces wheel–rail adhesion, increasing the risk of Signals Passed at Danger (SPADs), station over-runs, braking performance issues, and consequential service disruption.