Depot driver salary?

[A-driver]

Bev that is completely the opposite of the real world it is the starter links that have most shed work with the top links who have hardly any and when they do get a shed turn go annual leave! I have done shed work with a few companies, taking uits on and off depots, wash roads, fuel roads etc. etc. I didn't fuel, tank, maintain, de-tank. water or the such like as this is not train driving. My job isn't monotonous it is different every day for me. For you NDD is by far the best job but for the majority out there it is not and this is a fact. If you do not believe me put up a vote and see what comes up first! If it is MDD I will take all back that I have said.

Not always-some companies have more shed work in the upper links-almost like retirement work. I may be wrong but I believe east coast kings cross top link do more thunderbird and ferry turns than mainline work.

 

[By 'eck]

I would like to add my opinion of the role of MDD to anyone in two minds whether to apply or not for any future vacancies.
I won’t go through the role as Beveridges has explained it spot on in many of his posts.
I have not done mainline driving before but I was previously a professional driver so I am familiar with driving for long hours on the same routes for many years.

For me the role is enjoyable, there is always something different to do both as the role of a driver and shunter.
A few pros would be:

Variety of work to carry out
Driving, prepping, shunting, fuelling, fault finding (lots of)

Variety of traction signed (at last issue)
Barrow: 142,153,156,185
Blackpool: 142,150,153,156,158,180,185
Heaton: 142,144,150,153,156,158,180,185, HST, Class 91/Mark 4, 08 shunter
Neville Hill: 142,144,150,153,156,158,321,333, 08 shunter
Newton Heath: 142,144,150,153,155,156,158,180

Working hours
We have a rota which enables me to know exactly what hours I am working on what day until I either leave, retire or the rota is changed (which would require a notice period)
Variety of shifts: earlies, days, backs, nights, also as some shifts are 10, 11 or 12 hours it means that the working hours are covered in a few days so we have plenty of rest days, as I mentioned I have not done mainline so I cannot comment on mainline hours.

Route
We sign the depot which may consist of 20+ miles of track, which may not seem a lot but with many signals, points, sheds and roads it provides many possible moves along with the varying number of units/traction learning all the stopping points to clear points/signals etc takes some doing.

Lots of outside working, and as Beveridges has previously mentioned walking, getting paid to keep fit! No need to go to the gym.

Cons
Little scenery, cold working outdoors in winter/bad weather, although warm/waterproof clothing is provided as well as regular breaks, lots of walking and climbing on/off units – I enjoy it as its great for keeping fit. Shift work – I personally like the variety, some don’t like early starts or night shift.

I am not saying it is the best job on the railways just don’t over look it, if its mainline driving you want to do then go for mainline, if it’s a change of career and you want a good job with good money MDD may just be for you, if its purely a higher salary Mainline is the better paid job, I would add that MDD is full money (in most depots) from day one, no training wage. Also if you are an outsider it will get you onto the railway so it may just help in getting you mainline when vacancies come available, if not you will still be driving trains of varying traction, albeit at 5mph, which isn’t too bad, you couldn’t carry out a lot of the moves any faster, infact it takes some experience to carry out a lot of the moves at much slower speeds, it is a safety critical post.

As for the earlier post I would imagine that the number of applications at Heaton would be due to the fact that there are hardly any training vacancies for drivers at Newcastle or Darlington (although there was a vacancy earlier this year at Darlington) due to people requesting transferring to Newcastle/Darlington from other depots.
As for not needing qualifications for an MDD role, I think without qualifications or experience in some form, the successful applicant would not have getting the position, you do need to stand out from all other applicants when applying for any job.

 

[TDK]

Not always-some companies have more shed work in the upper links-almost like retirement work. I may be wrong but I believe east coast kings cross top link do more thunderbird and ferry turns than mainline work.

The shed I refer to is the night shed, sorry I should have been clearer, maybe EC wqant the old hands off the main line maybe? In a general consensus though A Driver it is the base links that have the shed work or the drivers off track and restricted.

 

[Beveridges]

No point in doing a poll as Mainline Drivers outnumber shed drivers 100:1 both on here and in the real world

Mainline shed turns don't compare with MDD Driving - for example - Mainline drivers on shed turns normally work with a ground shunter who pulls their points and gives permission when to move - MDD's do it all themselves enhancing the role.
MDDs deal with demics, haulers, swingers, half units, propelling moves on a daily basis. Mainline drivers on shed turns (At most depots ) just put units to bed or prep and bring em off in the morning and little else.if this differs at where your at then that's an exception but it is often the case that a mainline driver on a shed turn is not the same as an MDD - even the driving side of it - the reasons I mentioned above scratch the surface on the differences
Plus any depot that is big and busy enough will have MDDs anyway

 

[reapz]

No point in doing a poll as Mainline Drivers outnumber shed drivers 100:1 both on here and in the real world

Mainline shed turns don't compare with MDD Driving - for example - Mainline drivers on shed turns normally work with a ground shunter who pulls their points and gives permission when to move - MDD's do it all themselves enhancing the role.
MDDs deal with demics, haulers, swingers, half units, propelling moves on a daily basis. Mainline drivers on shed turns (At most depots ) just put units to bed or prep and bring em off in the morning and little else.if this differs at where your at then that's an exception but it is often the case that a mainline driver on a shed turn is not the same as an MDD - even the driving side of it - the reasons I mentioned above scratch the surface on the differences
Plus any depot that is big and busy enough will have MDDs anyway

I think that mainline driving and depot driving are very very broad umbrellas for example a mainline driver at par is very different from a mainline driver in Manchester same goes for depot driving.

obviously where bev is he has it good same cannot be said for other depots so the argument is more based on region and location not depot v mainline, there is mainline drivers that just do 1 or 2 small routes.

A driver is a driver it does not matter what speed you drive at

 

[Silv1983]

Route
We sign the depot which may consist of 20+ miles of track,

What depot is this?

Newton Heath for example, is about 300 metres from neck buffer to neck buffer.
Carriage sidings and holdings roads etc range from about 100m to 200m say,

Therefore 20+ miles would be a depot with about 150 seperate strips! Perhaps have a rethink...

 

[notadriver]

What depot is this?

Newton Heath for example, is about 300 metres from neck buffer to neck buffer.
Carriage sidings and holdings roads etc range from about 100m to 200m say,

Therefore 20+ miles would be a depot with about 150 seperate strips! Perhaps have a rethink...

Is that the depot Beveridges is based at?

 

[Silv1983]

Is that the depot Beveridges is based at?

Quite possibly! He once said there were over 10,000+ moves at his depot... which using readily available online combination and permutation calculators - equates to roughly 142 seperate pieces of track. 8 Short. So Blackpool has 142 pieces of track I suppose. Plus a fuel pump, a hose and porta-loo. God I hate mainline...

 

[Beveridges]

If you think my driving expererience starts and ends at Blackpool SDGS then think again. Blackpool does not even have a Maintenance shed! I'm currently at NH
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

I think that mainline driving and depot driving are very very broad umbrellas for example a mainline driver at par is very different from a mainline driver in Manchester same goes for depot driving.

obviously where bev is he has it good same cannot be said for other depots so the argument is more based on region and location not depot v mainline, there is mainline drivers that just do 1 or 2 small routes.

A driver is a driver it does not matter what speed you drive at

I agree, both MDD and Mainline vary massively at different locations. For example, an MDD at Blackpool is a very different role to an MDD at NH or NL, which are very different to an MDD at Longsight.
On the mainline (Not my area this but I'll say it anyway) a driver for a TOC just doing 3 short commuter routes every day has a very different job to a freight driver who signs from one end of the country to the other.

 

[Dave1987]

Can I point out Bev that your description of Depot Driving is for a main maintenance depot. Depot Drivers at stabling yards don't routinely do half the stuff you clearly do.

 

[By 'eck]

What depot is this?

Newton Heath for example, is about 300 metres from neck buffer to neck buffer.
Carriage sidings and holdings roads etc range from about 100m to 200m say,

Therefore 20+ miles would be a depot with about 150 seperate strips! Perhaps have a rethink...

Key phrase was 'may sign up to 20+ miles', how about Neville Hill or Heaton, if I remember correctly I read that Heaton has 14miles of track, I would think Neville Hill is larger? Maybe other maintenance yards are larger still?

 

[Silv1983]

Key phrase was 'may sign up to 20+ miles', how about Neville Hill or Heaton, if I remember correctly I read that Heaton has 14miles of track, I would think Neville Hill is larger? Maybe other maintenance yards are larger still?

So putting "may" at the start of a sentence when sharing a perceived fact it covers people from scrutiny? Either way, it's still incorrect.

 

[Beveridges]

Who cares about milage of a depots tracks, this has been blown out of proportion. A part of MDD'ing that requires skill is the communication. Listening and understanding what other conflicting movements are taking place, and taking action based on the information you have received.
Any idiot can name all the depot roads, but driving around the depot when there are 7 other moves all taking place at the same time requires months of practice to be able to perform safely and takes years to master.

 

[Press & call]

I would like to add my opinion of the role of MDD to anyone in two minds whether to apply or not for any future vacancies.
I won’t go through the role as Beveridges has explained it spot on in many of his posts.
I have not done mainline driving before but I was previously a professional driver so I am familiar with driving for long hours on the same routes for many years.

For me the role is enjoyable, there is always something different to do both as the role of a driver and shunter.
A few pros would be:

Variety of work to carry out
Driving, prepping, shunting, fuelling, fault finding (lots of)

Variety of traction signed (at last issue)
Barrow: 142,153,156,185
Blackpool: 142,150,153,156,158,180,185
Heaton: 142,144,150,153,156,158,180,185, HST, Class 91/Mark 4, 08 shunter
Neville Hill: 142,144,150,153,156,158,321,333, 08 shunter
Newton Heath: 142,144,150,153,155,156,158,180

Working hours
We have a rota which enables me to know exactly what hours I am working on what day until I either leave, retire or the rota is changed (which would require a notice period)
Variety of shifts: earlies, days, backs, nights, also as some shifts are 10, 11 or 12 hours it means that the working hours are covered in a few days so we have plenty of rest days, as I mentioned I have not done mainline so I cannot comment on mainline hours.

Route
We sign the depot which may consist of 20+ miles of track, which may not seem a lot but with many signals, points, sheds and roads it provides many possible moves along with the varying number of units/traction learning all the stopping points to clear points/signals etc takes some doing.

Lots of outside working, and as Beveridges has previously mentioned walking, getting paid to keep fit! No need to go to the gym.

Cons
Little scenery, cold working outdoors in winter/bad weather, although warm/waterproof clothing is provided as well as regular breaks, lots of walking and climbing on/off units – I enjoy it as its great for keeping fit. Shift work – I personally like the variety, some don’t like early starts or night shift.

I am not saying it is the best job on the railways just don’t over look it, if its mainline driving you want to do then go for mainline, if it’s a change of career and you want a good job with good money MDD may just be for you, if its purely a higher salary Mainline is the better paid job, I would add that MDD is full money (in most depots) from day one, no training wage. Also if you are an outsider it will get you onto the railway so it may just help in getting you mainline when vacancies come available, if not you will still be driving trains of varying traction, albeit at 5mph, which isn’t too bad, you couldn’t carry out a lot of the moves any faster, infact it takes some experience to carry out a lot of the moves at much slower speeds, it is a safety critical post.

As for the earlier post I would imagine that the number of applications at Heaton would be due to the fact that there are hardly any training vacancies for drivers at Newcastle or Darlington (although there was a vacancy earlier this year at Darlington) due to people requesting transferring to Newcastle/Darlington from other depots.
As for not needing qualifications for an MDD role, I think without qualifications or experience in some form, the successful applicant would not have getting the position, you do need to stand out from all other applicants when applying for any job.

Your cons far outweigh the pros!!!! cold weather, dirty work, not respected and typecast as a idiot, lower wages, same old scenery, everyday is the same (trains arrive/depart at the same time everyday) prepping!!! Faults!!! Nothing excites me more. 5mph covering 20 miles of track, your yard must be small. Your obviously not a young bloke and enjoy the retired boring role of MDD. Just dating facts from past experience

 

[Dave1987]

Your cons far outweigh the pros!!!! cold weather, dirty work, not respected and typecast as a idiot, lower wages, same old scenery, everyday is the same (trains arrive/depart at the same time everyday) prepping!!! Faults!!! Nothing excites me more. 5mph covering 20 miles of track, your yard must be small. Your obviously not a young bloke and enjoy the retired boring role of MDD. Just dating facts from past experience

So if you have a few incidents and they tell you that you either go into the depot or resign I presume you wold resign then?

 

[By 'eck]

Your cons far outweigh the pros!!!! cold weather, dirty work, not respected and typecast as a idiot, lower wages, same old scenery, everyday is the same (trains arrive/depart at the same time everyday) prepping!!! Faults!!! Nothing excites me more. 5mph covering 20 miles of track, your yard must be small. Your obviously not a young bloke and enjoy the retired boring role of MDD. Just dating facts from past experience

Everyone is entitled to their opinion.
It's not a 'dirty' job, If you're good at the job you can fuel and tank all night and still keep your overalls clean, I would say you are certainly respected from all staff including the drivers who we all get on great with.
Everyday is the same? Is that not the same for the majority of jobs, including mainline driving? I can assure you the format may be the same but you always encounter different faults and need the experience to overcome them.
I know MDD's who are into their trains and are happy driving at 5mph just to drive the different traction
I can assure you I am certainly not that old!
What exactly do you?

 

[notadriver]

I love MDDs. They prep my my train and take it into and out of the depot for me. ☺

 

[Press & call]

I love MDDs. They prep my my train and take it into and out of the depot for me. ☺

Proves my point entirely you take the **** out of them cos you want to get something out the shift by not stabling it yaself, and your too lazy to prep. Tell me I'm wrong

 

[notadriver]

Proves my point entirely you take the **** out of them cos you want to get something out the shift by not stabling it yaself, and your too lazy to prep. Tell me I'm wrong

I don't think I'm lazy . The MDDs are booked to do some of these things. It's a team effort ?

 

[Dave1987]

I don't think I'm lazy . The MDDs are booked to do some of these things. It's a team effort ?

What grade are you in the railways if you don't mind me asking. As from your username you are not a driver?

 

[notadriver]

What grade are you in the railways if you don't mind me asking. As from your username you are not a driver?

We've had chats in detail via PM. The last one was 11 Dec 2012.

 

[Dave1987]

We've had chats in detail via PM. The last one was 11 Dec 2012.

Sorry will check my pm's

 

[Press & call]

What grade are you in the railways if you don't mind me asking. As from your username you are not a driver?

I'm a mainline competent driver 9 years.... don't mind you asking
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
I'm assuming all the people on here that are saying I'm talking rubbish are actually depot drivers??? NO your all mainline drivers who wouldn't work in the yard again or mainline drivers who have done something wrong, medically or for another reason are in there.... not through choice. The best job on the railways is as a driver, what grounding do you need??? You prep, drive then stable the train any faults on the mainline you are talked through by fleet.... case closed

 

[Tomnick]

The best job on the railways is as a driver

Speak for yourself chap. I'm quite happy sitting in my little signal box. It's nice and warm inside when it's miserable out, or a cool breeze with the windows open on a hot day - I feel more fortunate than the drivers who are forever complaining about useless cab heating in the winter and no air conditioning in the summer. I can have a cup of tea when I want it, cook a three course meal in the evening if I feel like it, put my feet up and relax between trains or chat with the boxes on either side. My only interaction with passengers is watching their often miserable faces sail by at 75mph.

Despite all that, we still all - from drivers to cleaners - do our bit to keep the job moving. We're all in it together, and I'm getting tired of reading all this point-scoring between different grades...!

 

[TDK]

Proves my point entirely you take the **** out of them cos you want to get something out the shift by not stabling it yaself, and your too lazy to prep. Tell me I'm wrong

Not too lazy to prep and if it isn't on your diagram to prep why should you do it when there is an MDD being paid to prep your train:roll:

 

[Beveridges]

MDD is the best job on the railway. Far, FAR better than sitting in a cab all day on same routes bored out of your head. Some of you dare say your talking the facts? your talking your opinions. I have no problem with you stating you opinion - it is what forums are all about - but when you are so arrogant to state your opinion on Shed driving then put "FACT" after it is almost criminal. I dont know why you get defensive about your jobs the ML Drivers often look a bit miserable and tired when I see them, to say the least - compared to MDD's.
MDD is without doubt the best job on the railway. You do get respect on this job, and you only ever work with other pros. You never even need to deal with the general public, who incidentally, don't respect railway staff.
Opinion from an MDD with an MSc who listens to MDDs who have done BOTH roles.

 

[GB]

Your one to talk. I'm sure you post the way you do just to wind people up:roll:

...and quite frankly I couldn't care less what academic qualifications you have as it has nothing to do with the topic in hand.

 

[Dave1987]

Look people take Depot Driving jobs for different reasons. I went for one as it was clearly stated that it was a stepping stone to mainline. Some ppl want to stay as Depot Drivers. People who say they will only ever go for trainee mainline jobs are seriously restricting their chances. Plus if you think that being a driver is the only job that is good enough for you you will not be the most liked person in the mess room. Many many drivers started as cleaners, guards, platform staff etc.

 

[A-driver]

...the ML Drivers often look a bit miserable and tired when I see them....

I'm not surprised!

If you harp on at them about how much better your job is than theirs half as much as you do on here then they certainly will be miserable and tired to see you!

 

[TDK]

MDD is the best job on the railway. Far, FAR better than sitting in a cab all day on same routes bored out of your head. Some of you dare say your talking the facts?

Bev, this is like a stuck record fella - MDD is the best job on the railway "in your opinion" it isn't the best job on the railway neither is mainline driving. In my opinion and many others opinion in the driving grade ML driving is better than being an MDD - it is all what people perceive of what their job entails and for you to harp on about MDD is the best job on the railway is very boring to keep reading the same thing over and over again. For you Bev and possibly only you on this forum MDD is the best job but it isn't for everyone!