Trainee Driver’s Blog This is a blog written by a new recruit to ‘One’ railways in West Anglia (now National Express East Anglia) who joined the railway in March 2005 after several years in other jobs. In this Minecraft Mods video we will be becoming a train driver in our Trains Mod for Minecraft and seeing if we can survive the challenges that are put infront of us. Especially since its the. A few challenges bus drives might face include: Poor weather conditions; Disgruntled passengers; Road rage; Poor traffic conditions; Your first priority as a driver is the safety of your passengers. Being able to make rational decisions under pressure is a key quality in great bus drivers. They’re dedicated to their work. Eva B is a Train Driver for First ScotRail. It's not something she planned to be, in fact she went through university and into a job without having any plans at all.
Becoming a train driver was not a boyhood dream for Craig Puffett. His grandfather and uncles all worked in the industry, and he had plenty of fun on the local miniature railway as a child, but Puffett's ambition to join the railways developed later in life.
'At school, careers guidance was geared towards a professional career, and I started out as a trainee quantity surveyor,' Puffett, 42, says. 'But the recession meant I didn't get an enormous amount of experience. After a while I went to work for an internal auditing and accountancy firm, but I found working in an office environment too stuffy and political for me. It wasn't my cup of tea.'
He stuck out office life for several years before deciding he needed a change. He came across an advert for a train driving position and applied, but wasn't successful. He kept on searching and eventually took a job as a chauffeur. 'It was a long way from office work and I really enjoyed it. I did that for five years, but in the end the hours and pay were unpredictable, and as my wife and I were starting a family I decided I needed something more reliable.'
Train driving was still in the back of his mind and before long he saw an advert for what was then Silverlink Metro, now London Overground Rail Operations Ltd (Lorol), inviting applications for trainee train drivers working from London Euston and Watford, near the family's home. 'I thought: 'I've got another chance',' Puffett says. It was months before a reply came back, asking him to spend a day at an assessment centre to see if he was cut out for the job.
The company does not have any specific requirements when it comes to qualifications or work experience for applicants, but the recruitment process is very tough. Puffett underwent a number of assessments, including a psychometric test, listening and reading comprehension, mechanical comprehension, and a structured interview. 'There were six of us and they whittled it down during the day. If you didn't pass a test you were told as much and left. Two out of six of us made it through. It was nerve-racking.'
Puffett's preparation for the tests, which included weeks playing 'Bop It', a children's reflex game, and Tetris, to get his reaction speeds up, paid off. After another interview with the driver manager and HR manager he was finally offered a place on the training programme – which was every bit as rigorous as the selection process.
The programme is modular and trainees have to pass each stage before they can move on to the next. 'The first nine or 10 weeks were in the classroom, learning about trackside rules and regulations. There was four weeks' traction training on trains we would be driving, and training on how trains work and the sorts of faults that might occur.'
'You have to do 200 hours with an instructor, with a third taking place in the dark,' Puffett explains. 'Then there is a week-long assessment based on everything you have learned.' It should take nine months to complete, but for Puffett a shortage of instructors made it longer.
Only once enough hours have been clocked up can trainee drivers finally go solo. 'I was nervous on the day,' he says. 'You keep your fingers crossed that nothing will go wrong – even though you have had the training you still don't want it to happen. It was strange not to have anyone there, but it was fine.'
The prospect of potential problems keeps drivers on their toes, but Puffett says it is not normally a stressful job. 'It is usually incident-free, although I did have a run in with a dozy pigeon once. It fell on the train right where the electric cable is and blew the power out. I had to do the walk of shame down the station platform to explain the delay to the passengers.'
Puffett says that to do the job you need to be self-reliant, as a lot of the day is spent alone. 'And you have to be happy to follow procedures to the letter. You can't improvise,' he says.
The shift work would not suit everyone –he starts at 4.20am to drive the first train of the day, and late shifts finish at 1am, and a lot of weekends are spent at work. But his shift pattern means a four-day week, and a week off work at the end of each four-week roster.
According to Lorol, while some trainees are college leavers, many train drivers apply for the job having already followed a career in a different line of work, so Puffett's career change is not unusual.
'The pay and benefits are pretty good and the shift work suits me,' Puffett says. Trainee drivers start with a salary of £24,024 rising to £39,372 after the training period, while experienced drivers earn £50,451. There is a final salary pension and rail travel for free or at a discount rate.
'This is the longest I have ever stuck with a career and I can see myself staying,' Puffett says. 'It's one of the few areas left where you can really have a job for life.'
Women make up just 16% of the rail industry: that’s a lower proportion than women on FTSE 100 boards (currently 23.5%). In 2012, Adeline Ginn founded Women in Rail, with the aim of providing ongoing support and networking opportunities, as well as promoting the industry as an attractive career choice for other women.
We spoke to Ginn, and some of her fellow women in rail about their career choices, opportunities in the industry and the advice they would offer to others hoping to follow in their footsteps.
Adeline Ginn, founder of Women in Rail and general counsel, Angel Trains
First it is essential that you take the time to identify what gives you energy and excites you – a role that gets you out of bed in the morning.
When I found myself that job, it was a dream come true but I became terrified of failure. When you start in your career it is tempting to look around at your colleagues and let your lack of self confidence take over. I was desperate to fit in with what I perceived would be expected of me, and it made me unhappy in my work. That is until a trusted colleague took me aside and told me to stop trying to be somebody else. To find true happiness in your work you should trust yourself; identify your own strengths and weaknesses and develop them because, ultimately, you are your best asset.
Then you must build your own self-confidence. Take little steps out of your comfort zone and do things that challenge and scare you. When I founded Women in Rail I had no idea how people in the industry would react. But I remained true to myself and put my fears aside. It was the right thing to do because the reaction was overwhelmingly positive; it is now a big part of my life that puts that special spring in my step.
Maggie Simpson, executive director, Rail Freight Group
Being a woman isn’t a barrier to working in the rail industry. Of course there are challenges, and there are areas where we need to keep working to overcome them, but you need to see beyond gender. Just be the best that you can and don’t hold yourself back.
In the past I have struggled with this. As a mother I have duties that often men don’t deal with, and I felt awkward working part time when others weren’t. I felt self-conscious pushing for meetings to suit my hours and so avoided it. But I’ve realised that I was the only one who felt this was a problem. The best contacts I have avoid scheduling things when I’m not around and brief me when I can’t be there. Don’t build barriers in your own head: they don’t exist in anyone else’s.
Collette Gibson, train driver
There are no limits to the career path you could pursue. I began my career as a nurse and had never dreamed of joining the railway. Now I’m a train driver and have been for a decade.
When I joined the rail industry, it never occurred to me that I could become a train driver until I read an article written by a female driver. I just assumed it wasn’t the done thing - and it wasn’t really: only 5% of train drivers are female. From that moment on, becoming a train driver became my goal.
My best advice would be to do what you want to do, be brave and push boundaries. It’s worked well for me.
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Chloe Cook, engineering apprentice at ESG Rail
The best advice I have received so far is to take every opportunity you are given. That might mean going on depot visits, attending exhibitions or any other learning opportunity. I have made sure I take every chance to grow and develop my skills.
Challenges Of Becoming A Train Driver
In particular I have found that attending networking events has really helped. If I hadn’t been introduced into networking I would never have known about Women in Rail and Young Rail Professionals, two organisations that have really supported me in the beginning of my journey.
Women have a huge part to play in the future of the industry and I am looking forward to making my impact.
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Amanda White, head of rail, Transport for Greater Manchester
Challenges Of Becoming A Train Driver Free
The rail industry is very diverse. There is a need for skills right across the spectrum, so don’t be rushed into labelling yourself too soon. Give yourself time to try different things and work out what you really want to do, and surround yourself with people that inspire you along the way. Sometimes in my career I really questioned why I had agreed to certain roles or activities, but now I can see that together they were giving me the skills that have made me qualified for my job today.
Challenges Of Being A Train Driver
You will naturally excel in the things that you enjoy so trust your gut feeling and follow a route that excites you. And when you get there stay true to yourself and take every opportunity you can.