Guards on SWT

[island]

In many cases on SWT there's a stop every few minutes so the guard has to do the doors, and I believe some SWT stock doesn't have local door controls so they can only be operated from the rear cab.

 

[RobShipway]

In many cases on SWT there's a stop every few minutes so the guard has to do the doors, and I believe some SWT stock doesn't have local door controls so they can only be operated from the rear cab.

Correct, I think class 458's being a prime example of this point.

 

[PinzaC55]

Can I gently suggest that the poster who has a problem with SWT guards and needs to monitor them should obtain a job with SWT and find out how, after say 6 months, his/her attitude has changed?

 

[156441]

I wonder have you ever asked the guard face to face why he's not walking his train or are you just another faceless 'customer' with nothing better to do than fire off emails to random companies about things that really aren't your business?

You strike me as the sort of person who writes into the Daily Mail 'your letters' section.......
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
.....and yes that was food for the troll but tbh I like to feed the animals!

 

[wintonian]

Before this thread gets locked,

Certainly on the SWML it is easier to find the guard than it used to be a few years ago when it was common in the evening not find the guard anywhere between London and Southampton, but these days even on train leaving Waterloo after 00:00 more often than not they come down checking tickets, in fact I would say it is now at least 75% of the time they do.

On a certain FGW route on the other hand I rarely see them and have never done after aprox 20:00.

So IMO SWT are quite good on visability these days.

 

[34D]

It's always been suburban guards who hide in the cab. I sat deliberately next to the rear cab in order to monitor the guard and he didn't move down the train from Weybridge to Waterloo, so I know he didn't walk down the train.

When I've travelled on SWT class 455s the guard has always been located in the centre cabs. Possibly the reason you didn't see him was that he wasn't actually in the rear cab ready for your observations, but actually in the middle?

Is anyone able to say why SWT 455s never seem to have the gangway doors (between the units) properly opened up (like class 317s) so passengers can walk through? When I was a kid I used to love walking past cabs in order to see the speedometer etc.

 

[Urban Gateline]

Is anyone able to say why SWT 455s never seem to have the gangway doors (between the units) properly opened up (like class 317s) so passengers can walk through? When I was a kid I used to love walking past cabs in order to see the speedometer etc.

The 455 middle compartment is like one big Guards cab, if it were made accessible to the public as a gangway then they would have to completely change its current layout to be similar to the Desiro cabs.

Currently it's quite spacious and the door controls are accessible in the vestibule of the cab, so that would need a further door to block them off to the public, also the gangway doors would need to be changed to allow the public through, all costly and pointless for 455's I think!
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

In many cases on SWT there's a stop every few minutes so the guard has to do the doors, and I believe some SWT stock doesn't have local door controls so they can only be operated from the rear cab.

Only 458's don't have local door panels, 450/444/455/158/159 all do, so most SWT stock allows the Guard to walk through.

However some people don't take into consideration that during peak times it can be nigh on impossible (let alone unsafe) to walk through the carriages, and also the local dispatch methods for stations specify in which part of the train the Guard should be when opening and closing doors to get the best visibility, when this is added to the fact of some services having stops every minute then people may understand why the Guard can't always walk through.

Of course I'm not saying that all Guards are perfect!

 

[wintonian]

However some people don't take into consideration that during peak times it can be nigh on impossible (let alone unsafe) to walk through the carriages, and also the local dispatch methods for stations specify in which part of the train the Guard should be when opening and closing doors to get the best visibility, when this is added to the fact of some services having stops every minute then people may understand why the Guard can't always walk through.

Of course I'm not saying that all Guards are perfect!

This is something I myself do tend to forget.

 

[GadgetMan]

There seems to be a new guard bashing thread every other day. Perhaps we should have a separate section on the site for all such threads making them easier to find and more importantly avoid.

 

[CC 72100]

Non-commercial guards are based at Guildford, Woking, Staines, Waterloo, Wimbledon and Strawberry Hill and are concentrated on inner suburban work. We are not trained in retail matters (tickets) and do not sell tickets, primarily because our station stops are generally too close together to enable us to engage in ticketing matters. There isn't a great deal of interaction with the public, particularly within the travelcard area, but we are expected to patrol the train at regular intervals. Commercial guards get are based at all depots except Wimbledon and Strawberry Hill and work all trains (but predominantly mainline work), they are trained in retail matters and sell tickets on board, they have far more interaction with passengers and that is a large part of why I wanted to move to a commercial position.

Ah I see. Cheers for that mate

 

[wintonian]

Non-commercial guards are based at Guildford, Woking, Staines, Waterloo, Wimbledon and Strawberry Hill and are concentrated on inner suburban work. We are not trained in retail matters (tickets) and do not sell tickets, primarily because our station stops are generally too close together to enable us to engage in ticketing matters. There isn't a great deal of interaction with the public, particularly within the travelcard area, but we are expected to patrol the train at regular intervals. Commercial guards get are based at all depots except Wimbledon and Strawberry Hill and work all trains (but predominantly mainline work), they are trained in retail matters and sell tickets on board, they have far more interaction with passengers and that is a large part of why I wanted to move to a commercial position.

That does make it quite clear why you are much more likely to see a guard on the mainline.

Selling tickets on the suburban network would be a compleate disaster for the network as nothing would end up moving.

 

[Captain Chaos]

Before this thread gets locked,

Certainly on the SWML it is easier to find the guard than it used to be a few years ago when it was common in the evening not find the guard anywhere between London and Southampton, but these days even on train leaving Waterloo after 00:00 more often than not they come down checking tickets, in fact I would say it is now at least 75% of the time they do.

On a certain FGW route on the other hand I rarely see them and have never done after aprox 20:00.

So IMO SWT are quite good on visability these days.

Can't have been my train then, and yes I know which route you're reffering to...

 

[Flamingo]

It's always been suburban guards who hide in the cab. I sat deliberately next to the rear cab in order to monitor the guard and he didn't move down the train from Weybridge to Waterloo, so I know he didn't walk down the train.

Even if he did a walk through though, I still feel they should be out in the train in case someone needs assistance or wants to ask a question. Much more useful to the travelling public then sitting in the cab!

And do we follow you around telling you how to sweep up? :roll:

I was thinking it had been at least ten days since there was a guard-bashing thread.

 

[ANorthernGuard]

And do we follow you around telling you how to sweep up? :roll:

I was thinking it had been at least ten days since there was a guard-bashing thread.

Almost a record lol