James Morrison

James is railway safety engineer who has demonstrated aptitude for providing both consultancy and certification services by understanding and delivering on client requirements.

He possesses a mechanical engineering background that has been used to evaluate risk areas in rolling stock fleets that are susceptible to stress corrosion cracking. He also recently supported Metrolinx in their Safety and Systems Assurance team to improve safety performance reporting and operational risk management practices. 

Away from project work, James was a finalist in the Institute of Mechanical Engineers' Future of Rail competition after winning regional division and has presented research to industry experts on the issues around icing of overhead line equipment, including potential mitigations.

He represents Ricardo at Journey, an LGBT+ transport network that brings together operators, rolling stock suppliers and other railway companies to collaborate on EDI initiatives.

I relocated to Toronto from the UK straight after graduating university at 23. I'd always known I'd wanted to work abroad so I kept asking myself "If not now then when?" The first thing you need to know is it's going to be hard. The second (and more important thing) is that it's going to be so rewarding.

From a career perspective, I've been at the forefront of rail development. Canada is having a bit of a transport revolution at the moment. I've worked on a wide range of new build projects such as driverless metros (REM and Ontario Line), regional heavy rail (GO Expansion) and light rail (Finch West and Eglinton Crosstown lines). There's even talk of a new high-speed line between Toronto and Quebec in the not too distant future. With all these new build projects, I've gained great experience on the different operating environments and how individual hazards can be drawn from this environment. Through the Canadian projects I've worked on, I've been able to form a solid foundation for building on my career going forward.

I've also met some great people from moving. The people in the office are great, and there's a lot of community from the fact that many of us have moved here from other countries. A group of us from the Toronto office went skiing and snowboarding a couple times last year as a day trip, and there will always be someone up for going for a drink or watching the Blue Jays play baseball. Outside of work, it’s surprisingly easy to make friends with people. I joined a rugby team (despite never playing before), and I've attended a couple of International events, which is a social group of people who have come from all over the world. Toronto is such a diverse place that wherever you come from, you'll hear your accent quite soon after landing.

If you think you're ready to embark on a new adventure, my advice would be to do it. My experiences and perspective have been dramatically changed from saying yes to this opportunity.