I wish...

[Beveridges]

I just wish we could get so many enthusiastic people who would want to join the railway but not in a 'Driver' capacity

If you saw the mainline drivers who come on depot to take Units on/off you would hardly call any of them enthusiastic!!
You'd reinforce this opinion even more if you ever stepped into one of their messrooms!
I think we actually need more enthusiastic people to join the Drivers grade if anything.

I realise that since everyone was a little boy they wanted to drive a train but the railway is a big old place and maybe working in a booking office isnt so glamourous as driving a train and working on pway can be terribly cold and miserable but surely with the amount of people who always do threads on here* about wanting to become train drivers 'at any cost' they could maybe jooin the rest of the ranks first and then apply in the meantime.

Firstly driving a train is not glamerous (whoever said it was?)! Secondly I think theres a lot of jobs on the railway that just don't appeal. A typical booking office job is not going to appeal to a railway enthusiast.

I agree with the post that said there is a lot of enjoyable duties on the railway outside of driving trains. I regularly perform Ground Shunting, DP Duties, fault rectifying, Train Preperation, Toilet Water tank refilling, engine oil & coolant refilling, its all enjoyable especially when lucky enough to have a role with that much variety. Even the much-dreaded Fuelling can be enjoyable in small doses.

 

[AlexS]

A booking office job might not appeal to a 'train' enthusiast, but I see no reason why it shouldn't appeal to a railway enthusiast!

You find enthusiasts all over the place. Train driving funnily enough is one grade I'd only really consider entering for the inflated wages - otherwise it doesn't really appeal. I quite enjoy any passenger facing roles really, they certainly make things a bit of a challenge.

 

[455driver]

I started as a trainee technician with S&T in the late '80s, but the outdoor manual work just didn't agree with me, so I left.

How can you use these 2 words in the same sentence?

S&T, work

Surely an oxymoron!

If you didnt like the S&T you must not like drinking tea!

 

[Clip]

Firstly driving a train is not glamerous (whoever said it was?)! Secondly I think theres a lot of jobs on the railway that just don't appeal. A typical booking office job is not going to appeal to a railway enthusiast.

Really? I think there is a forum member on here who was dying to get into the booking office yet started off as station assistant and announcer before they got to the booking office.

But I do see your point.

I know full well through my job that at out stations the booking office staff and cleaners and whoever are working in remote-ish places and not much interaction with others and for some thats fine, but for others they want more.

I know that if I got people who want more from working on the railway I would push them every step of the way,even if it meant they would get my job or one above me in time to come.

If there is one thing though, that I have learnt since I started off as a lowly station assistant on the railway, is that no one judges nor looks down at you and you can go as far as you want. It may not be a job for life anymore but it is a job that if you left after a few years experience and courses(they pay for them) then the world is your oyster.


I love the railway. I worked up from nothing. Im working higher.


Im kinda saying that if people want to drive, thats good, but give us at the other end of the scale your enthusiasm and we will get you to your goal.

 

[High Dyke]

A booking office job might not appeal to a 'train' enthusiast, but I see no reason why it shouldn't appeal to a railway enthusiast!

Equally there are people that work on the railway that see it as a job, but don't like it.

In context to my earlier post i always wanted to be an electrician. I obtained a placement on a YTS course (younger readers may need that explaining to them) with the promise of an apprenticeship at the end of the year. When an new apprentice was set on a few weeks before my course ended i wasn't impressed. I lost some interest in my chosen path. However as i had an interest in transport it seemed inevitable i would follow the path of my forefather - Father was a bus driver, his stepdad had been a mainline engine driver / train driver...

It took me a number of years, and countless applications / interviews / rejections before i got a job on the railway.

At the end of the day we may not always follow the career path we choose, but may find a role in a particular occupation that we like and suits us.

 

[youngboy]

I know that if I got people who want more from working on the railway I would push them every step of the way,even if it meant they would get my job or one above me in time to come.

That's a nice honest thing to do mate, I've always tried my best to help people on and yes I had people promoted over me that started off as trainees alongside me. Gives a good feeling that these days there are still people out there willing to push others on without jealousy and backstabbing. Well Done !!

 

[Greenback]

I never wanted to drive a train. I did want to work on the railway, though, and I was lucky to get a part time evening job in the booking office when I was in University. I then went full time when I left Uni but ultimately the cost of living in the south east forced me back to Wales.

I would agree with the original thoughts expressed by Clip in this thread. There is far more to the railways than driving, and I do think that some are attracted to the position by the renumeration.

It's also interesting to read about pushing others on. Several of the people that I trained in the booking office went on to greater things, including station manager! I was very happy for them and didn't feel any envy or jealousy - mind you that may have been because I had left the railway by then!

 

[Mattmatt]

If you want to drive a train; get yourself down to your local heritage railway; where you can pay to drive a train for the day! or volunteer & work your way through the ranks to become a driver. (that's what i've done - im a secondman & 08 driver on the ELR, and much more interesting) However; after being made redundant the other year; it took just under 12 months to get a job as a conductor with Northern, it's a great job and much more than 'just selling tickets' & pays well too! However; I had planned to do the job & apply for the internal drivers jobs as and when they come up. As once your in the company you'll have access to the internal jobs as well, plus access to the DTM's to ask & get advice from too! But once your in, there's other roles that could possibly interest you as well! from Trainer to Control & Depot Managers etc - my interest now lies with Training / minding etc of new conductors....

Id be keeping an eye on the websites; as with franchises coming up (Northern & TPE); Rail companies have to have a near full compliment of staff to fulfil their contractual agreements etc. Start with a modest & work your way through to get where you want.

 

[EM2]

How can you use these 2 words in the same sentence?

S&T, work

Surely an oxymoron!

If you didnt like the S&T you must not like drinking tea!

Cheeky beggar!
But as it happens, I don't like tea!

 

[ATW Alex 101]

I want to become an engineer in railway infrastructure.

 

[notadriver]

If you want to drive a train; get yourself down to your local heritage railway; where you can pay to drive a train for the day! or volunteer & work your way through the ranks to become a driver. (that's what i've done - im a secondman & 08 driver on the ELR, and much more interesting) However; after being made redundant the other year; it took just under 12 months to get a job as a conductor with Northern, it's a great job and much more than 'just selling tickets' & pays well too! However; I had planned to do the job & apply for the internal drivers jobs as and when they come up. As once your in the company you'll have access to the internal jobs as well, plus access to the DTM's to ask & get advice from too! But once your in, there's other roles that could possibly interest you as well! from Trainer to Control & Depot Managers etc - my interest now lies with Training / minding etc of new conductors....

Id be keeping an eye on the websites; as with franchises coming up (Northern & TPE); Rail companies have to have a near full compliment of staff to fulfil their contractual agreements etc. Start with a modest & work your way through to get where you want.

You can pay to drive a train but you'll always be supervised and you won't be allowed to go faster than 25 mph.

 

[DarloRich]

We have lots of highly enthusiastic and committed people working in our office, non of whom are drivers or would want to be drivers. They are however, keen to do a good job and make the railway a better place

I came to the railways from a different career and from, on the face of it, an unlikely educational background to be working for the railways.

Whilst i dont regret my previous life, as it gave me so many skills that others do not have, i do think i missed a trick in not applying as soon as i left university, rather than 10+ years later. Mind, i could just be one of those management types who dont have a clue about railway operation but have a decent degree

Finally, just remember that without us none of you drivers move an inch in your shiny trains. Without us they are just nice metal boxes.

 

[Beveridges]

You can pay to drive a train but you'll always be supervised

Exactly, driving a train under supervision is absolutely nothing like driving it on your own. In fact to me I wouldn't even class it as proper train driving experience. Your just doing exactly what the "minder" is saying. All your doing is following instructions.

The max speed of 25mph is irrelevant. I've said it before and I'll say it again, Speed isn't everything.

 

[driver9000]

If you saw the mainline drivers who come on depot to take Units on/off you would hardly call any of them enthusiastic!!
You'd reinforce this opinion even more if you ever stepped into one of their messrooms!
I think we actually need more enthusiastic people to join the Drivers grade if anything.

The same could be said when walking into a shunters cabin


In any grade on the railway you will find enthusiasts and enthusiastic people. You will see them every day doing their job keeping passengers and freight moving but you can't expect them to bounding around the place delirious with pleasure all day long. I am an enthusiast and I wanted to work in the rail industry from being small, I wanted to be a Driver but I would have been happy in any grade (I applied for anything and everything) and I am enthusiastic about my job....please forgive me if I don't appear that way at 3am or at the end of a 10 hour day

 

[talltim]

I never wanted to be a driver, as the thought of a one-under petrifies me.

similarly, I've considered becoming a driver as a career change, but reading about the amount of people hit by trains on various forums. (I never realised how frequent it was before) has definately put paid to that idea.

 

[Starmill]

A typical booking office job is not going to appeal to a railway enthusiast.

I don't know about that, I think I would like to work in a booking office when I retire - since I probably won't be able to do so properly and get a pension until I'm about 85!

Seriously though, you get to sit down all day in a warm room behind a counter/glass screen and meet all sorts of different people. I've had so many bad experiences with staff now that when I meet someone who seems genuinely happy to help me, it makes a really big difference to my day!

Of course, I'm not naive to the dangers of customer facing roles, nor the problems you might encounter with certain passengers, but still.

I think, for the purposes of 'climbing the ladder' I would accept any job at all in the industry - except possibly a cleaner, but that's probably contracted out anyway.

 

[Beveridges]

Seriously though, you get to sit down all day in a warm room behind a counter/glass screen and meet all sorts of different people. I've had so many bad experiences with staff now that when I meet someone who seems genuinely happy to help me, it makes a really big difference to my day!

That depends on the person - some people would like the opposite - outdoor manual work - which is why I like working on a maintenance depot. I would not like to be sat down, indoors, all day every day. I know plenty who would not consider a job in an office, including everything from Booking Office to Control. Maybe they might change their mind when they are near retirement?

similarly, I've considered becoming a driver as a career change, but reading about the amount of people hit by trains on various forums. (I never realised how frequent it was before) has definately put paid to that idea

Also consider the amount of animals you'll kill as well. Especially birds. Thats upsetting to a certain extent and it happens on a daily basis in Summer. Ever considered Maintenance Depot Driving? You can still drive trains but you won't kill anyone or anything unless you make a mistake. Very hard job to get into though considering the much lower numbers of such jobs that exist!

 

[NI 271]

Also consider the amount of animals you'll kill as well. Especially birds. Thats upsetting to a certain extent and it happens on a daily basis in Summer

In consecutive weeks (Sunday nights), back when I was driving buses on permanent lates, I hit an OWL and a BADGER. The owl was like driving into a large pillow case, it hit the windscreen with a soft "boof" noise, and somersaulted over a hedge into a field (no idea if it lived or died).

The week after, both front and back nearside wheels went over a badger (narrow country lane only about ¼ mile from where I'd hit the owl the previous week), nearly turned the bus over (not an exaggeration). I went back in the opposite direction about 15 minutes later, expecting to see a big roadkill...the bloody thing had gone. This was round about 2340 hours on a Sunday, no traffic at all, I'm convinced the thing not only survived but cleared off as though nothing had happened. Ten tons, both axles. They're hard, hard units, badgers.

 

[TheEdge]

I've always been warned to drive around a dead badger on the road, apparently hit one and it can take your sump off. Don't know if that's true though.

 

[TDK]

Finally, just remember that without us none of you drivers move an inch in your shiny trains. Without us they are just nice metal boxes.

What is it you actually do?
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

similarly, I've considered becoming a driver as a career change, but reading about the amount of people hit by trains on various forums. (I never realised how frequent it was before) has definately put paid to that idea.

Statistically a driver will have a fatality once every 9 years, I am actually on borrowed time. Some drivers have had multiple fatalities in their first 5 years and some go 30 years without any however the figure of 9 years is the average.

 

[notadriver]

Exactly, driving a train under supervision is absolutely nothing like driving it on your own. In fact to me I wouldn't even class it as proper train driving experience. Your just doing exactly what the "minder" is saying. All your doing is following instructions.

The max speed of 25mph is irrelevant. I've said it before and I'll say it again, Speed isn't everything.

Well we agree on something at least. And I agree speed isn't everything. What is the fastest speed you achieve when doing shunt moves on the mainline ?

 

[driver9000]

When you consider how many train journeys there are a day vs how many fatalities there are I would say there is little to worry about and certainly wouldn't let it put you off applying. Yes, the risk is there but it really isn't worth throwing away a career avenue over. When I consider the miles I have travelled in my career so far incident free compared with the number of serious incidents I've been involved in, I'm winning so far. Animal strikes are so common that they're barely worth a second thought.

The choice you pursue is yours to make, I know some very enthusiastic controllers, guards, booking office staff a despatchers. For me it was driving but this isn't for everyone. Personally I find the idea of working in an office mind numbingly boring but other find the idea of driving a train equally boring, I suppose it comes down to how the job is 'sold'. Everyone us aware of the train crew grades but booking offices and depots are a world behind closed doors - no one on the outside really knows what it's like in them but everyone *thinks* they know what is involved in being a Driver or Guard.

 

[daddy_badger]

I've always been warned to drive around a dead badger on the road, apparently hit one and it can take your sump off. Don't know if that's true though.

It's true - speaking from experience here. Mind you it was a VW Bora which has notorious low ground clearance with the sump easily damaged.

 

[northern156]

I'm coming up to being 16 and I've applied for an engineering apprenticeship on the Tyne & Wear Metro. If I do get this, brilliant as (from what I gather) it means an almost guaranteed job at the end of it. If not I will have to do another two years of school and get A-levels (are they really as unimportant as people think? I have always tried to convince my family and teachers that experience and skills are far better than grades and qualifications).

I've always wanted to be a train driver. However, becoming older I have realised that there are just as many other great jobs on the railway that really would interest me such as guard and dispatcher or station assistant - I would really really hate not to work around trains and be stuck in an office in one place all day.

I've heard all of the bad things about being a train driver, such as angry public, hitting things/people, unsociable shifts and all the rest of it. However this really doesn't put me off; for me doing what I would absolutely love to do tops everything. Additionally I really don't mind about the money - as good as it is! If there weren't bills to pay in the world I would probably want to do it for free!

Has anyone got any tips for me to get into the industry? As I say I am coming up to 16, and I have GCSE quals such as A in maths and B in English (and predicted As-Cs across all subjects).
It is just a shame that there aren't many different apprenticeships readily available in my area - up in the Tyne Valley.


Sean

 

[Beveridges]

If there weren't bills to pay in the world I would probably want to do it for free!

Until the novelty wears off... Theres plenty of people who would like to "have a go" for free, but when it comes to working the same few routes day after day, that is a different thing altogether.

 

[t o m]

Also consider the amount of animals you'll kill as well. Especially birds. Thats upsetting to a certain extent and it happens on a daily basis in Summer. Ever considered Maintenance Depot Driving? You can still drive trains but you won't kill anyone or anything unless you make a mistake. Very hard job to get into though considering the much lower numbers of such jobs that exist!

My Grandad was on the railway for 44 years, driving for the most of it and he never had a fatality. Very lucky I guess. I've seen plenty of dead animals on the tracks at work, not so nice seeing dogs and cats when you know they were someone's pet.

 

[Beveridges]

Hitting a bird must be especially upsetting and happens all the time in Summer. A very suprising proportion of my cab rides have resulted in one or more birds getting struck at some point during the ride. Seen countless trains arriving on Depot with dead birds on the front. Those birds probably got hit while they were nesting, so it means their feedlings in the nests will not have food. That thought alone makes it feel worse than a dog or a cat getting hit.

 

[t o m]

How can you use these 2 words in the same sentence?

S&T, work

Surely an oxymoron!

If you didnt like the S&T you must not like drinking tea!

That's what the T stands for isn't it? Signalling and Tea.

 

[GNER 373]

Great opening post!

I think the Railway is a fantastic place to earn your crust and most jobs are fantastically paid whilst being part of this weird and wonderful world.

I'd say if you want to be a driver go for it. However don't put all your eggs in one basket, try and join the railway in some form so you get to see what it's like, how it ticks plus you get to learn from the drivers themselves what it's actually like being what most people would consider 'railway elite'.

Look around, see what you could do, forge a career path, look at your own strengths and then and only then will you know if you still want to be a driver.

It becomes a more educated choice this way and hey who knows you might choose to become a ticket clerk, an inspector, a guard, a driver or even a manager in some capacity who knows! But whatever you choose good luck.

That's not to say don't keep knocking at that driver door and keep your applications coming in and your ear to the floor for upcoming vacancies!

 

[TDK]

for me doing what I would absolutely love to do tops everything. Additionally I really don't mind about the money - as good as it is! If there weren't bills to pay in the world I would probably want to do it for free!



Sean

If I won enough money I would give it up tomorrow, you will learn when you get older that the only reason for work is money. It isn't as rosy as you think Sean, the shifts are horrendous, you have to be on your toes whenever at work to keep your safety record intact, the jobs are long and sometimes boring. You get abused by passengers on a daily basis and all of this for nothing? I don't think so.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Hitting a bird must be especially upsetting and happens all the time in Summer. A very suprising proportion of my cab rides have resulted in one or more birds getting struck at some point during the ride. Seen countless trains arriving on Depot with dead birds on the front. Those birds probably got hit while they were nesting, so it means the baby birds will not have food. That thought alone makes it feel worse than a dog or a cat getting hit.

If you are worried about hitting birds and their fledglings in the nests it is not the job for you. On average I must hit one a day at least, I have hit sheep, cows, cats, dogs, swans, geese, badgers, red kites, buzzards, a horse and an owl. Only one magpie and one crow though, they are clever birds, the most common is wood pigeons and pheasants, stupid birds, why would an animal try to outrun a 100mph train when it actually has wings I can never work out.

It is a part of the job and if this is going to upset you I am afraid go for an MDD where you are most unlikely to kill anything as the speed is so low.