Re: Tubeguru gets a new depot (and house)
Posted: 06 Oct 2012, 09:19
Well, yesterday was an interesting day at work. I think they got their pound of flesh from me.
I had what most drivers say is the worst turn on the depot. You pick up the 07.41 Penzance to Paddington at 09.45, drive it all the way to London via Bristol, sit there for two and three-quarter hours, and then drive the 16.06 all the way back to Plymouth. That's a nine hour, fifty-seven minute shift, with seven hours, twenty minutes' driving!
Anyway, all week I have been followed around by a dodgy HST that is down on power. Maintenance are aware of it, and have travelling fitters on it when it is sent to Cornwall, which it has been most of this week. I'd been on it twice before yesterday and was fed up of driving it. So when I booked on and my train manager told me that our train was fifteen minutes late from Penzance, I wondered if we were going to get the rubbish set again. And we did! As it rolled, I got a thumbs-down from the driver, so I resigned myself to trying to get it over the Devon banks without losing much more time.
To be fair, it did hold time all the way to Taunton, where I was joined by a Westbury road-learner to Bristol. As we left Taunton, the train manager buzzed me up and told me that Control had decided to take the train out of service at Bristol and get the crew to work the 12.30 Bristol to Paddington. The passengers had another train laid on to take them on to London, but diverted via Filton and Hullavington to avoid getting in the way of other trains. So once I'd dumped the set on platform 5 and got across the platform 13, mobilised the 12.30 and departed, I was 30 minutes down on my booked departure time, but at least I had a train that could reach linespeed.
Now, the train manager was booked to be relieved at Reading, and despite us changing services she was still getting off there. However, Control had not thought of this during their earlier Bristol deliberations. As it turned out, as I was pulling into Reading my relieving train manager was on a train to London! So we sat there for 22 minutes before they decided to cancel the train. I called Control and reminded them politely that I would like to have my proper break if that was alright with them (slight sarcasm was used). They told me to take the train empty to Paddington, with the buffet crew on board. I was expecting to be put on the relief line and stuck behind slow services all the way in, but no - they had decided they needed the set at Paddington as quickly as possible, so I was sent main line and did it in 26 minutes. I arrived at Paddington at 14.50, one hour and 12 minutes after I was due in.
The journey back was much better - I had a speedy set which flew non-stop Reading to Taunton, except between Urchfont and Lavington, where I encountered a few single yellows as I followed what I assumed was an empty stone train going slowly into Westbury.
It wasn't all bad though - my wife had cooked dinner for me!
I had what most drivers say is the worst turn on the depot. You pick up the 07.41 Penzance to Paddington at 09.45, drive it all the way to London via Bristol, sit there for two and three-quarter hours, and then drive the 16.06 all the way back to Plymouth. That's a nine hour, fifty-seven minute shift, with seven hours, twenty minutes' driving!
Anyway, all week I have been followed around by a dodgy HST that is down on power. Maintenance are aware of it, and have travelling fitters on it when it is sent to Cornwall, which it has been most of this week. I'd been on it twice before yesterday and was fed up of driving it. So when I booked on and my train manager told me that our train was fifteen minutes late from Penzance, I wondered if we were going to get the rubbish set again. And we did! As it rolled, I got a thumbs-down from the driver, so I resigned myself to trying to get it over the Devon banks without losing much more time.
To be fair, it did hold time all the way to Taunton, where I was joined by a Westbury road-learner to Bristol. As we left Taunton, the train manager buzzed me up and told me that Control had decided to take the train out of service at Bristol and get the crew to work the 12.30 Bristol to Paddington. The passengers had another train laid on to take them on to London, but diverted via Filton and Hullavington to avoid getting in the way of other trains. So once I'd dumped the set on platform 5 and got across the platform 13, mobilised the 12.30 and departed, I was 30 minutes down on my booked departure time, but at least I had a train that could reach linespeed.
Now, the train manager was booked to be relieved at Reading, and despite us changing services she was still getting off there. However, Control had not thought of this during their earlier Bristol deliberations. As it turned out, as I was pulling into Reading my relieving train manager was on a train to London! So we sat there for 22 minutes before they decided to cancel the train. I called Control and reminded them politely that I would like to have my proper break if that was alright with them (slight sarcasm was used). They told me to take the train empty to Paddington, with the buffet crew on board. I was expecting to be put on the relief line and stuck behind slow services all the way in, but no - they had decided they needed the set at Paddington as quickly as possible, so I was sent main line and did it in 26 minutes. I arrived at Paddington at 14.50, one hour and 12 minutes after I was due in.
The journey back was much better - I had a speedy set which flew non-stop Reading to Taunton, except between Urchfont and Lavington, where I encountered a few single yellows as I followed what I assumed was an empty stone train going slowly into Westbury.
It wasn't all bad though - my wife had cooked dinner for me!
