GWR Qualified driver positions

[tommo1097]

Evening all.
Are there any qualified drivers going through the process for application for GWR positions at all?

Or is there any gwr drivers on here to answer a few questions ?

 

[id799862]

Any Body know the GWR Routes and Traction Paddington Drivers sign?

 

[DunfordBridge]

see the sticky thread, https://railforums.co.uk/threads/different-driver-depots-route-and-traction-cards.205085

 

[Class2ldn]

Yeah I am at the moment , applied in May and only been told I've passed the online test. I did send an email and they said they are sifting at the moment so I'm not expecting to hear for a while

 

[trolleyman]

Evening all.
Are there any qualified drivers going through the process for application for GWR positions at all?

Or is there any gwr drivers on here to answer a few questions ?

I’m a driver with GWR with I can be any help to you?

 

[London 10101]

What does the average diagram look like at paddington? Earliest start and latest finish? How long does it take to progress up the links? How good is the union? Is metro work really intense or okay compared to other metro tocs?

 

[DunfordBridge]

Yeah I am at the moment , applied in May and only been told I've passed the online test. I did send an email and they said they are sifting at the moment so I'm not expecting to hear for a while

Not sure about the waiting times for qualified drivers but I know that trainee driver recruitment is on hold with SWR until further notice due to a training backlog and I would not expect the situation to be any different with GWR for trainees. I know this thread is for qualifieds.

Is the position for GWR HSS? Seems to involve many miles of route knowledge.

 

[Horizon22]

What does the average diagram look like at paddington? Earliest start and latest finish? How long does it take to progress up the links? How good is the union? Is metro work really intense or okay compared to other metro tocs?

Depends whether you are in a HSS ("mainline") or LTV ("metro") driver. But there are very early starts (0300 etc.) and late finishes (0100). Paddington has very few night turn links.

 

[DunfordBridge]

What do these acronyms actually stand for? High Speed for HSS and Local Traffic for LTV perhaps?

 

[Horizon22]

What do these acronyms actually stand for? High Speed for HSS and Local Traffic for LTV perhaps?

High Speed Service / London Thames Valley. A lot of LTV diagrams have since moved to TfL Rail. But many LTV drivers now sign 800/802s and can run to North Pole / Bedwyn / Oxford.

 

[DunfordBridge]

Thanks for that explanation. I have applied for Paddington as a trainee so that is good to know.

 

[tommo1097]

I have applied to par as qualified, what traction and routes do par work?

 

[godfreycomplex]

I have applied to par as qualified, what traction and routes do par work?

Different Driver Depot, Route and Traction cards

One of the most common questions asked on this forum is what do train crew at a particular depot sign. Given we have an excellent thread listing every depot for every TOC in the country, and we have staff representing most if not all TOCs as well, I've been attempting to collate a list of every...

railforums.co.uk

 

[DunfordBridge]

From the excellent sticky thread as mentioned above by Godfreycomplex, that was compiled by Craigybagel:

Par
Traction:
2+4 HST, 158, 150
Routes
Par-Penzance
Par-Plymouth
Par-Newqauy
Plymouth-Gunnislake
Liskeard-Looe
Truro-Falmouth
St Erth-St Ives
Laira depot

 

[class ep-09]

What does the average diagram look like at paddington? Earliest start and latest finish? How long does it take to progress up the links? How good is the union? Is metro work really intense or okay compared to other metro tocs?

As ex-padd LTV driver, the Ex-LTV (now GWR ) earliest turns were around 2-3am , latest finished around 1-2 .
There were only few of these .
Not sure how it is now, likely similar but instead being taxied to Old Oak Common, you may be going to North Pole to pick up 8xx’s or West Ealing Sidings to pick up 387’s.

If you get to Paddington GWR that is where you will stay , you can’t move to HSS anymore ( since harmonisation ).
Essentially , with the time , the GWR drivers will be doing what HSS is doing now: Bristols, Exeter , Cardiff, Swansea etc ( + what will be left of ex- LTV).

I think there is already top GWR link , or shortly there will be or may be going to Bristol.


As for work content on GWR side - the worst will be West Ealing - Greenford shuttle and Slough to Windsor ( not sure if they do it , or it is left to Reading guys to do all of them).
Others will be Bedwyns, Oxfords , Didcot stoppers and perhaps Didcot -Oxford shuttle ( not sure about that).

 

[Horizon22]

As ex-padd LTV driver, the Ex-LTV (now GWR ) earliest turns were around 2-3am , latest finished around 1-2 .
There were only few of these .
Not sure how it is now, likely similar but instead being taxied to Old Oak Common, you may be going to North Pole to pick up 8xx’s or West Ealing Sidings to pick up 387’s.

If you get to Paddington GWR that is where you will stay , you can’t move to HSS anymore ( since harmonisation ).
Essentially , with the time , the GWR drivers will be doing what HSS is doing now: Bristols, Exeter , Cardiff, Swansea etc ( + what will be left of ex- LTV).

I think there is already top GWR link , or shortly there will be or may be going to Bristol.


As for work content on GWR side - the worst will be West Ealing - Greenford shuttle and Slough to Windsor ( not sure if they do it , or it is left to Reading guys to do all of them).
Others will be Bedwyns, Oxfords , Didcot stoppers and perhaps Didcot -Oxford shuttle ( not sure about that).

There's still plenty of branch line work in the LTV diagrams.

 

[WishIHadAName]

What do they look for in a qualified driver? Is it two years minimum as a qualified driver? Do many people actually get the job with less experience?

 

[Stigy]

What do they look for in a qualified driver? Is it two years minimum as a qualified driver? Do many people actually get the job with less experience?

I believe it’s three years minimum. I know SWR is the same, but they will consider drivers in their second qualified year in some circumstances.

 

[387star]

What do they look for in a qualified driver? Is it two years minimum as a qualified driver? Do many people actually get the job with less experience?

Yes I was still pqa year two when I sat and passed my interview. However by the time I started a few months later I was no longer pqa

 

[tlionhart]

There's still plenty of branch line work in the LTV diagrams.

It’s pretty much this. There’s still Windsor’s and Greenfords. At the moment there are 2 main links. The third link is known as ‘Dynamic link’. It’s not quite a top link as you volunteer to be in it. People opt not to due to shift swaps or they are happy with the current work. In dynamic they sign Bristol. So it’s common to do Bristol and Greenfords or Newbury, Swindon and a Bristol in one day. Also to add there is nights and that ranges in variation from 21:00 until 6am.

The PQA period is generally 3 yrs.