Route knowledge: who signs what?

[Nicholas43]

Have I got it right that every driver has an (old-fashioned, actual paper?) 'route card' which lists all the routes they know and have been tested on and are regularly driving?

If so, I'm curious to know how the 'signing' works. Does the driver sign a declaration on the lines 'I've thoroughly absorbed everything in the relevant pages of the sectional appendix etc etc and driven the route x times with an instructor, and ... ' ?

Does a manager sign to the effect 'I've tested the driver's knowledge of route such-and-such, and in my considered opinion it is adequate / comprehensive / whatever' ?

 

[bunnahabhain]

It's all done online now for us, so we check our route card during a biannual assessment and confirm that we're up to knowledge with it. Aside from that it's self management and down to us to decide if we need a road review or not, and to put the request in. We don't automatically lose routes at our TOC however that isn't the same at other TOCs.

At the end of the road learning process for a Guard you're given an exam on the route by an assessor competent on that route themselves and will quiz you on all of the details that you need to know, especially the more unusual aspects of a route, in addition during ride outs we get asked a few questions about the route we're on.

 

[theironroad]

Have I got it right that every driver has an (old-fashioned, actual paper?) 'route card' which lists all the routes they know and have been tested on and are regularly driving?

If so, I'm curious to know how the 'signing' works. Does the driver sign a declaration on the lines 'I've thoroughly absorbed everything in the relevant pages of the sectional appendix etc etc and driven the route x times with an instructor, and ... ' ?

Does a manager sign to the effect 'I've tested the driver's knowledge of route such-and-such, and in my considered opinion it is adequate / comprehensive / whatever' ?

Pretty much. Ours is on the company intranet system, though I think we still sign a paper print out. It means that resource managers and control can get real time access to see what you sign for diversion during disruption. Drivers learning or refreshing routes still fill in paper to say what trains they've been on and these are supposed to be kept for audit purposes, whether they are digitised or not I don't know.

Essentially after paper and practical route exams both parties (driver and manager) sign to say they both happy as you've described.

 

[ComUtoR]

I have a counterfoil on with my EU license which states the routes and traction I sign.

 

[Nicholas43]

Thanks for filling me in.

 

[TheSeeker]

How does this work with steam drivers on the mainline? They seem to go all over the place and you'd think they'd need considerable route knowledge. Are the rail tour companies considered to be TOCs?

 

[tiptoptaff]

How does this work with steam drivers on the mainline? They seem to go all over the place and you'd think they'd need considerable route knowledge. Are the rail tour companies considered to be TOCs?

Each TOC has it's own safety case - WCRC and LSL will have safety cases for training their drivers over the routes they operate, same as any other TOC. DBC's drivers will drive steam over the routes they have on their card for their day-to-day work, although some of the steam link drivers do go out and gain extra knowledge for the purpose, which is then added to their card for day to day work