I'm an ex Chiltern Driver with a 25 year rail career behind me. I always used to say that a Train Driver doesn't get paid for what he does, he gets paid for what he knows.

Hi Richard. I have just applied for the role of Trainee Train Driver for Southern. Thank you for the Vlogs. They are very informative.

I've passed everything and on a train driver course, your advice is invaluable.

Moving a train is easy. Driving a train is something different altogether. You've done a great job of explaining the challenges. It's a strange job to try and describe but its it's not for everyone. I've seen plenty of drivers who are great on paper but awful once on the rails. And vice versa for that matter. Only recently had your channel recommended to me and whilst I'm a qualified driver (passemger to freight like yourself) it's enjoyable to listen to you describing the job for those non train drivers out there.

This was highly impressive. The general public does not take in all these factors. I knew a guy that drove the New York City subways and he told me the job was highly stressful. Another factor is the pressure to keep the train on time which in a city like New York could be highly challenging with passengers holding doors etc. Great video. I'm a huge fan of train simulator games and find myself feeling fatigued at times doing that! Lol

Hearing and watching the into always makes me warm and happy! Enjoy the rest or Portugal 🇵🇹

I’ve just applied for a train drivers job , through the physco metric assessment stage . This was interesting . Very honest

13:05 as a motorcyclist this has happened to me once about a month ago, I was kind of sleepy, it was cold, all I could think of was going home, there was a very slow moped that I was ready to overtake, clutch in kick it down a gear ready to pin the throttle, just as I was doing that, 2 cars ahead from the moped hit the brakes suddenly because a child was crossing the road, now I was going to crash, but thanks to a wide centre median I just swerved out of the way to have enough stopping distance. It's a shameful mistake but a perfectly human one to make. And honestly, that scare has gotten me on track, I'm now much more used to looking three up to even 10 car lengths ahead before committing to something. I do ambition to become a train driver, and hopefully, I'll have the (demanding) skillset required. P.S.: Cheers from Portugal!

Spot on! Although we’re an ocean away from each other, the job is the same.

And there goes someone's childhood or dream.

Sounds just like flying. The actual flying is simple. The difficult bit is operating the aircraft. The big difference is that we don’t have to be so precise so often.

Excellent summary. There has been a RAIB report released recently following a collision between an IEP and HST approaching Leeds (Neville Hall) depot. The direct cause was due to distraction due to on-board systems. Another trap to avoid for a driver!

I enjoyed watching your video Richard thank you explaining the role of train drivers

Absolutely fantastic video Richard. It's a very similar thing I've had to deal with in the past driving coaches on long distance journeys and even now to some extent since I've switched to local bus work. It can be easy to have your mind wonder or to become distracted briefly during long periods when you are basically driving on autopilot and you miss a sign for a change in speed limit or miss a junction for a road that you should take. Personally I tend not to make many mistakes driving my bus but when I do realise I've done something wrong I will always try to go back and recall my actions to see where and what I did wrong and what action in the future I can do to mitigate the behaviour that instigated it. I do sometimes get comments about why I do go back over a mistake and not to worry about it but I think if I can understand what happened it decreases the chance of a repeat. It does get a few laughs directed my way but I do believe it makes me a better and safer driver. 😀

This is so useful for my interview prep! I have my final interview (the make or break for a job offer) tomorrow morning and this information is very helpful!

Really enjoyed this video, it's great the way you break it all down. Start my driver training with Irish Rail in two weeks and this video has really caught my attention.

It used to be said, in the 50s, that the safest way to travel was 3rd class on BR Southern Region. Aviation was less safe back then. I suspect that the safest place is now any Japanese Shinkansen which has never had a fatality. The Japanese use the ‘point and say’ focus/concentration system as a matter of course. Your videos are really interesting and enlightening for someone who is simply a passenger. Many thanks.

Watching your video makes me more confident to take on a new job as a locomotive engineer Thank you for sharing your thoughts and tips on how to operate a train …I think driving a bus is no different that’s what I do now … But definitely operating a train is a lot more responsibility …Again thank you so much for sharing✝️👍💪❤️

I like to watch the cab vids that go down the Dudding Hill line. Fascinating to see how the TOCs such as Chiltern Railways get their faulty locos to Willesden. Nearly got onto the Chiltern roster 19 years ago but....am mildly colourblind. Thank you for sharing your trade tips!

I think you got your point across really well! I wish I wasn't too old to start driving trains!

Wanted to be a train driver but became a school teacher. Bumped into one of my boys years later who said he'd become a train driver! Now I drive trains professionally in Canada. Well OO gauge actually. To see our tourist attraction click on the logo - especially recommend the disco vid. Philip

Thanks for another great video. Very informative. I agree, the difficulty is that trains run on tracks, you don’t even have to steer it! In Australia we have a lot of very straight roads, keeping the concentration up can become a problem, especially if there is not much other traffic around.

Burnham was a pain in the arse. Not because the platform is on the right, but because in the peak, we stopped at the 3 board with a 5. They fixed that by moving the stop board.

Lovely video I'm researching this role so it's been really helpful

it is my dream job to drive a train. and i am sure i can get the job , by following my dreams. you guys should make your dreams come true, because its worth it

I play train sim 2021 and I have to say I’m actually really good at driving freight trains in scenarios, not so much passenger trains because I always brake too early and coast into the platform at 10mph 😂 I’m 14 and wanna be a driver for GBRF when I’m older, I hope I get the job!

Excellent video. Really enjoyed that. I’ve often thought about becoming a train driver. After managing to pass two advanced motorcycle tests over the last few years. I’ve thought about the challenge even more.

I guess that there's quite a lot of things that you need to remember when driving a train.

As a bus driver we have much the same issues. Takes a lot of concentration. Need to read the road ahead and deal with all the idiots on the road though. Operate doors safety, stop in the right place, know all the stops and passenger habits too. Accelerate and let the bus run with momentum. Will take off downhill! Plus we have traffic lights too

Signal telephone - wait [x] (in this case 5) mins before phoning the signalman that you are standing at the signal (though that's also obsolete since GSM-R also allows you to contact the signalman anyway?)

Having recently qualified as a mainline driver, I found risk triggered commentary to be so helpful in maintaining concentration.

I have watched a video on Japanese railways and the drivers always seem to point at signals and speed indicators and say them out loud.

Great video. Helped alot

A lot of a job is auto pilot, I was once asked to give a talk on setting up and running a business as a sole trader to three students who were being mentoured by a friend. I was very reluctant as I thought in 30 mins it would be all over and I would waste their time. Five and a half hours later I was still talking and they were still writing notes ! Yes most jobs can be discribed in basic terms but within them there are many facets that make it all work, one missed can make it fail completely. Great video thanks.

9:14 I check the mirrors all the time on a train. I check the pantographs or if there isn't any sparking or fire when dark for security and mostly for the sake of keeping myself concentrated on the driving. Great videos. I'm really enjoying them so far though i'm a train driver myself :D

Even though it’s not possible to introduce level 4 UTO on mainlines at the moment, but installation of driver assist systems (a bit like the gui of a train simulator game) would certainly be helpful

I think you expressed it very well. Excellent video, thank you.

wonderful and i can see that you love the job and are good at it like all the drivers thank you somuch cheers from trev

People think working in the IT is a hard job but we can in many situations roll back without losing data, recover a backup or dry-run any bigger changes in a testing environment before putting into production. If a train driver makes a bad decision, lives can be lost!

Very good informative video!

What do you make of the Japanese ‘point and call’ system for avoiding errors? Would British operators benefit from adopting it?

When you mentioned about forgetting to use the break. I wanna be a train driver once I am out of education. Right now I do a paper round and when I lose concentration, I might completely pass another house. But then I think straight away, oh crap. But I know I can't afford to do that if I'm a train driver. I do play Train Simulator all the time so I should be fine. 😂

I'm interested. I plan to visit Portugal in the future for touring Level Crossings. We've been on holiday there several times: and again, I plan to visit long-term in the future.

Well the sign is on an SPT (Signal Post Telephone) and it means if at red signal, wait 5 minutes before contacting the signaller :) Also, just to let you know, your driving in the real world is excellent and you always keep to time nicely! Thanks Richard :D

The sign means contact the signaller within 5 minutes if you find you're at a stand with the signal at danger. Typically with gsmr or via spt if necessary.

Does the sign mean: If stuck at a red signal, wait 5 minutes before contacting signaller

When I went to Prague both sets of doors unlocked when in a station, was very surprising!

Brilliant video

i play train simulator and i always zone out whilst flying to the next station i sometimes notice the station too late and overshoot it or i overspeed alot too and then fly past a red signal 🤣 sometimes i even end up falling asleep for a few seconds before remembering the train is breaking the speed limit and abruptly waking up

Certainly relate to this. Years ago I went for driving test at London Bridge. Breezed through all the tests ....except 1! Responding to pictures on screens in quick time. Failed miserably which basically showed I have a concentration span of nowt! Just the opposite of what's needed.

As an engineer iv also worked on the autumn rail head cleaning treatment project removing leaves with HP pump pulled by water wagons just doing the maintenance of the the rolling stock and the rhtt wheel exams etc etc

It would be great if you could do a vlog on helping others to understand the DMI and MMI interviews and what they are looking for and asking for.

Very informative video.

I’m interested to know is it a different set of skills required to Drive a freight train rather than a passenger train I am currently training to be a steam train driver on a preservation Railway and loving it

Just finished my first week of rules and regs for conductor and we've only spent what felt like 5 mins on technical skills. The rest of the week has been focused on NTS which has been an eye opener....best bit though was the training on GSMR radio as i got to drive the driver simulator into New street Sign is signal post phone. Not sure what the 5 means though, guessing its a local instruction as it certainly wasnt in my rules this week when we covered communications

Very good video. You didn't even cover out of course working! Sign means wait 5 mins before contacting signaller at SPT

Thanks for the video it was really interesting, I’m curious as to how you deal with yellow signals. How much do you slow between double yellow & yellow? Do you know why the signals are yellow I.E following a freight train and does that affect how much you slow? What happens if you slow too much and lose time/end up running late?

Video is very rich in knowledge I like

Really enjoy your videos. Two questions about driving... 1 When you're speed restricted for a junction, how do you know when the last carriage is clear? 2 Is there any aid for remembering the current speed limit? Thanks.

Very good video. Looking forward to more videos. Every job is hard to describe. Always a lot more to jobs than meets the eye.

Hi there. When I'm older I want to drive trains as well on merseyrail and I want to know what qualifications I would need to drive a train because it is my ambition. Also what is the salary like for been a driver.

Your comments re attention keeping are good but have you watched any of the videos that show the Japanese drivers. They have to respond physically to EVERY thing they see, whethet they are solo manned or have company in the cab. What happens is that the driver will raise their right index finger to their right eye /temple to indicate they have seen something then point to the thing they have seen then say the name of that thing whatever it may be, another passing train,working party,lineside signal etc etc. They say this keeps the driver awake and attentive because failure to respond once is a monitary penalty failure to respond twice within a given period (I think it is three months) is loss of job and NO REEMPLOYMENT EVER.

I've just applied to do work experience as a trainee train driver for Govia Thameslink Railway right before watching this, I hope this stuff is useful :D

I’ve understood the challenges drivers faced for years - now I find myself about to start as a trainee driver for an intercity TOC and this video has made it all very real. I know, well assume based on how safe our railways are, the training is incredibly structured and in-depth to get people to the high standards. Were you daunted when you got that job offer to start training as a driver? Once you started training were you put at ease because you knew you were in good hands?

I find myself in my simulator sometimes just day dreaming and forgetting a signal or something. It is interesting hearing about that happen in real life.

The mental challenge train drivers must go through on a regular basis is seriously obscurred from the public eye. I've recently gotten into Train Simulator on PC, and much of what you've described here rings true in my brief experience - controls are simple, but the difficulty comes in managing the terrain and environment, looking out for and responding to signals, speeding, keeping to timetables, maintaining concentration, etc. And yet, there is a nigh-indescribable sense of satisfaction when you meet those checkpoints, arrive at the platform safely and punctually, shunt rolling stock into the correct sidings. I imagine that must also be true for the real thing.

Its easy to drive a train. Its just very hard to pass the tests to get accepted onto driver training.

This video is really interesting and informative.

I had that exact oposite thing happen when in tsw2 ive driven all of the 53 miles perfectly , and then ypadded next to loverswalk depot

What is the track name of the intro music please? Another great video thanks for all you do! Really educational and interesting

Talking about speeding, I was ECS from Bedwyn to Reading one night, amongst many. It being the weekend, I had a few sleepers on board. I called the signaller to reclass as a 2 and ran fast with the lights on. When I arrived, some twit was on the phone to the Civi police reporting me for speeding. From then on, they all got off at Bedwyn. With a white mans promise of picking them up on the other platform. I did wave as I went by. I am not that heartless.

What happens if you miss a stop? You can’t really turn around and go back right?

I was wondering, how do drivers learn routes? Do you do go on a simulator and someone point out braking points and stuff or something else?

I have a question I’ve always wondered about. Here goes we’re do all the trains go at night? I mean I know a lot Probably run through the night but is there like a massive train depot that they get parked up at night?

Very interesting insight as ever! I’ve been on a train where the doors were opened on the wrong side! Oddly not a driver issue… a guard one (South West Trains as it was at the time) - I’m sure someone got a telling off that day! Other than that I don’t think I’ve ever been on a train where I’ve knowingly witnessed a driver error which emphasises the low error rates you mentioned 🙂

Do you get to go home every day or are there times when you have to spend the night in a hotel or other such accommodations?

Really interesting! Thanks. It strikes me that train drivers face similar issues to Airline pilots, long periods of inactivity, concentration etc. I suppose the difference is commercial aircraft have two people in the cockpit although there are still well documented incidents of course. Do you think there is technology that would help? For example, not being able to open doors on non platform side. I do realise tech isn't fool proof but even something that says "are you sure you want to perform that action? " and not just a single button press. I may well be showing my ignorance of trains but I am interested in what you think would help you in the future. Thanks!

Very good video, well explained :)

can you do ecw on tsw2 please no hud and by the way i use to be newmodelbus

PPS is particularly important especially regarding your doors. RTC etc

The pay if for the responsibility same as any pilot job imagine a aviation pilot

question if u did mess up and forgot to break on next station whats the next thing u do ? how do you by your mistake ?

When I play on TS, I drive both freight and passenger trains and I have gotten used to knowing when to break, I use step 1 or 2, higher if have to but I usually stop in the right place like at a stop marker and able to keep on time and I try to drive like how an actual driver would with all the safety systems on

I like this man. He loves to daydream the most ridiculous things like England winning the world cup. I didn't realize that opening doors on the wrong side is considered a severe incident. I mean, the train is stationary. And it is easily correctable mistake.

Hi Richard, I’m currently an aircraft engineer and I also trained to be an airline pilot, I’m waiting for my assessment day with southern. I’m looking for a new challenge, do you think I would be suited to the train driver role.

That's why guards doing doors for me seem the safest option. 👍

Really good video mate. Can you please make a video about psycometric test examples please?

This is the 2nd time I've watched this informative video. I think you have done an excellent job in giving a succinct overview in the time you had available. Your wry sense of humour comes across well. ...now that you've seen the English girls win their soccer,,,, their is hope yet :-)...After all,,, the NZ women turned round and won their bronze .

does it get boring during riding it all day ?

I would love to be a driver on the EMR network due to how it’s where I am from and as a 14 year old there’s a bit to go

I love your videos

Dad Rail, Im currently looking into becoming a train driver, I have past the first assessment and the online reflex test or whatever its called. Anyway my question is what Train simulator do you think is best for someone to learn the basics of driving a train?

Ah, that doors issue. On the lightrail in my city, not only can the platforms be either left or right, they also can be high or low - the low ones being relics from the time when the lightrail was just a plain old tram network. For those the trains have folding stairs on their doors which need to be enabled or disabled accordingly. So what I once saw was, the stations all were left-high, left-high, left-high, left-high, then the next one was right-low. The driver did open the doors on the right side, but sure enough forgot to engage the stairs. Shut happens I guess. :D

I'm a woman and just got called for in person assessment. Super video. Really informative 👏 Have always wanted to drive a train. Hope being a woman doesn't go against me.

Great video. I am a bus driver at the moment can being a bus driver help with becoming a train driver? Thanks

How fast do you normally drive your train? i.e: throttle setting, driving slightly under speed limit, etc.

Richard, coasting in train sim slows too quickly compared to what you described. Can you tell Dovetail?

Fatigue is also problems for Bus Drivers.

It's like anything, do it everyday and you can master anything

I’ve operated lighting for theatre shows before and it sounds like a similar thing - if you slip out of focus it gets very easy to miss a cue which not only buggers the show but it’s hard to recover quickly!