It’s not so much an issue of training, what small issue there is is of their own making. If you have far more drivers and guards in the business than they need to run the service then the problem is clearly one of poor diagramming.
In the days of HSTs▸ , and I’ve said this before, a Paddington to Penzance service would generally utilise two drivers and two train managers with a change at Exeter or Plymouth. Today, there can be up to 6 drivers required for one service, crew changes regularly happening at Reading, Taunton, Exeter, Plymouth, Par and Truro. When a crew member is relieved they don’t just get off one and onto another train, they’ll sit around for 20 or 30 minutes plus for their next working, and that may also be a short hop. That’s extremely poor utilisation when a drivers maximum continuous driving is 4 hours. Most of their crew will now tell you they spend more time travelling around then actual driving.
They’ve also removed route knowledge from some crews reducing flexibility and they’ve also moved work around often giving work to other depots that don’t even sign the traction or routes! Thats where the training issue comes in. They’ve opened new depots and then struggled to find them work.
Since the arrival of the IETS, sadly, GWR▸ has lots its way and made a complete mess of diagramming.
As for Sundays. They’ve been here before. Raised the RDW rate and not increased Sunday rate. The same happened back then. Crew opted to work a RD during the week rather than a Sunday.
The issue with Sundays isn’t helped by the late startup of service, services start 08:00 which means if you work an 8 or 9 hour early turn you effectively lose a whole day. Pick up an early weekend turn and turns start at around 05:00 which means you’ll be finished around lunchtime.
Presuming that the above is accurate (and observing that the source is a long standing and well respected member, I see no reason to doubt the accuracy of the post) Then that suggests to me that First Group may be unfit to retain the franchise.
A-Driver is completely correct. The problem with the long term diagrams started with an University graduate who was taken on as a DSM, taken off that to do "Special Projects" and he convinced FG to use this amazing computer program that would give the best use of the train crew. This is where I laugh uncontrollably.
To use A-Driver's comment about Paddington to Penzance, that could be done with one change of crew at either Exeter or Plymouth. One enjoyable evening the Hind was Canton crew at the front throughout.
Now it's several changes and it only needs something to go wrong somewhere and platforms are blocked.
The first amusing bit of incompetence, the 1822 Hereford. For years and years the Bristol crew would book on, 1530 to Paddington arrive 1714. But that's poor utilisation. So the driver will now work up the 1600 arriving on platform 10, break, then travel on the 1822 as there wasn't enough time for a driver hand over but enough to travel. And the crew laughed. The first driver arrived late at Paddington and caught the 1830 to Reading. Tuesday was a similar cock up then the resourcing department decided to rewrite the diagram, the Bristol driver had the break at Reading, even if it meant a RDW for a Paddington driver. I reckon in my last 2 years of driving I spent more time hiding in any other cab rather than driving.
Also as well with all these depots now open certain other depots loose route and or traction knowledge. There is a legal minimum requirement for train crew to work over a route a certain number of times in a certain time frame depending on the number of crew involved. So in my last couple of years I watched west of Westbury and Weston disappear, then Newport Hereford Colwall tunnel. Next up at my former depot,
BTM▸ to WSM and at my previous depot Charfield and possibly Kemble.
Finally the big problem which I doubt the heirachy have realised.
As Paddington and Bristol
HSS▸ drivers finish the ability to do short notice diversions via the B+H is drastically reduced. Out of all the GWR depots only Exeter are capable of going Reading Newbury Westbury Bath. No other GWR depot signs between Bedwyn and Westbury.
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