Dave,
I'm sorry if I'm going to upset you (or anyone else), it's really not my intention. As someone who readily admits that I don't work in the industry, what surprises me is that you feel a guard makes so much difference. In other recent posts there seems to be a recognition (from most people at least) that the dispute is coming down to who controls the doors. To be honest, I'm struggling to see how that task is particularly onerous when it's already in operation in other parts of the country. What is it that I've probably missed ?
It's little things here and there really. Most people would probably be fairly surprised if they follow a guard around for a week as to the random stuff that they get involved in day to day, generally with little warning. The current psychometric selection and reasonable to high quality training and awareness of railway rules and regulations is essential to carrying out the job effectively and when you start whittling it down it's a fine line to take. I'd fight tooth and nail against any changes as it's the thin end of the wedge for job security - as London Midland recently demonstrated superbly when they decimated their revenue protection teams. As a guard required by the rule book for driver guard operation this can't happen to you as the train can't work without you. As soon as you make the guard effectively a bystander even with safety training it's vulnerable to future cuts.
I believe that the safety and quality the role adds is worth the fight. Someone on the platform for dispatch has situational awareness. I can see the drunk staggering over a bridge running late for the last train and decide to wait to make them safe. I can hear things happening and I can move around to deal with issues and check for hazards - things like children dropping down the gap that the driver might not be looking for until it's time to go. When I roll out I'm not looking at the gap - I can't stick my head out but what I do do quite competently is look at people's faces. A look of concern or horror is well worth stopping for further investigation. I can see people dumping bikes or cases in stupid places and deal with them effectively. I can tell people to move back when they're licking the windows at their mates on the train on a Saturday night, or see clearly when they've left the platform. All a driver working on cab VDUs can see is a narrow angle, small, view of a door that may or may not disappear immediately subject to safety review.
A driver working the doors on IEP services in particular has no advantages that I can tell other than it makes it easier to get rid of the train managers if this is deemed appropriate later. They don't stop overly frequently and they won't be losing much time on door duties. You can't check tickets while people are boarding and alighting anyway as you'll get right in the way especially on commuter trains. People just end up shoving you out of the way to get a seat.
How do you ensure the train manager isn't left behind if they're working on the station - I've had numerous platform staff carried away on my train either because they've not told me they were there or I've forgotten, as the opposite problem. How do you make sure they are happy for the train to leave?
Local trains are a bit more marginal but again the amount of stuff I get involved with every day I can't imagine them running without a guard. Everything from toilets backfiring and covering people in waste to people getting injured by doors or falling luggage, to drunks causing problems, to identifying broken fish plates on jointed track (if it doesn't go under the driver it's amazing how they can miss some fairly serious issues). The train dispatch issue gets even more acute out in the sticks - try dealing with runners for the last train out of Matlock on a Saturday night - I imagine it's just as bad out west. I stand at the door nearest the entrance so I can see people coming up the approach road. If they're close enough to possibly go under I wait, if we will be gone when they arrive, I go. The driver could never do that.
I just think the benefits are undefined apart from unexplained safety references and comments on the age of the rolling stock for such a big change in the role of the train crews.
I would hate to have to work on a train where I'm not in charge of when it can move off because so many problems can be nipped in the bud on a station that the driver doesn't ever find out about.
It would be lovely if there was some official comment from Stagecoach/Virgin about why their stance on guards is so different to other operators. Having spoken to some people from the EMT safety standards teams they couldn't imagine any of their trains operating without a safety critical guard because they deal with so many little issues that could become big ones all day long.
