Who can travel on a staff train?

[Surreytraveller]

What counts as 'staff' in order to be eligible to travel on a staff train? Can a contractor working on behalf of Network Rail, for instance, legally travel on a staff train?

 

[Monty]

What counts as 'staff' in order to be eligible to travel on a staff train? Can a contractor working on behalf of Network Rail, for instance, legally travel on a staff train?

What do you mean by staff trains? I'm unaware of TOCs providing services purely for the conveyance of rail staff. I know of examples where an ECS movement maybe used to move train crew to various locations. But I would think no other staff would be permitted to pass on these movements.

 

[Tubeboy]

London Underground run staff trains. usually at the end of traffic and at the extremities of a line.

 

[Surreytraveller]

Southern run staff trains. They are obviously not in the public timetable, but are in the WTT as staff trains. Then you also have normal public trains that have staff stops on them - the public get wise to these and use them as well as staff, which there is no problem doing. But for the proper 'staff trains' - would you need a staff ticket to use one, or can any 'staff' use them?

I'm surprised South West Trains don't run staff trains too?

 

[yorkie]

I think you'd need to ask the operator concerned.

 

[Surreytraveller]

I think you'd need to ask the operator concerned.

These trains still exist from trains that ran in BR days, so I would assume that TOC / Network Rail staff can (and do) use them. But contractors? Trouble is, Head Office isn't open 24 hours, so no one to ask!

 

[A-driver]

A lot of staff trains have become passenger trains-such as the 0325 from peterbourgh into London. Most TOCs would rather be able to sell tickets for them. Other staff trains no longer exist and have been replaced by taxis. There is still a 0415 kings cross to Royston every morning which is staff only-it runs via welwyn but isn't booked to call anywhere except hitchin for a crew change and the ad line at letchworth to allow a few hitchin early shift drivers off to take trains out of the yard. It will, however, stop at any station on the route to pick up staff going into work if they pre book with control.

 

[GNER 91128]

A lot of staff trains have become passenger trains-such as the 0325 from peterbourgh into London. Most TOCs would rather be able to sell tickets for them. Other staff trains no longer exist and have been replaced by taxis. There is still a 0415 kings cross to Royston every morning which is staff only-it runs via welwyn but isn't booked to call anywhere except hitchin for a crew change and the ad line at letchworth to allow a few hitchin early shift drivers off to take trains out of the yard. It will, however, stop at any station on the route to pick up staff going into work if they pre book with control.

It's surprising how busy this one can get as I experienced in the summer.

I think my dad used to use this service when he was working early turns at Euston.

 

[pitdiver]

I use to catch the 0331 train off MKC. This is a public train but most passengers that were on it were Silverlink or LUL employees so I suppose it could be called a "Staff Train"

 

[radamfi]

Redhill suffers from having no early morning trains. However, some early trains that have passenger calls at Purley and Horley also stop at Redhill according to the WTT.

 

[Mintona]

I catch the 04.05 from Gillingham Kent each morning, runs as empties to Swanley and then forms the 04.33 stopper to Victoria from there.

 

[A-driver]

Redhill suffers from having no early morning trains. However, some early trains that have passenger calls at Purley and Horley also stop at Redhill according to the WTT.

They are staff stops but the reason they don't advertise them to the public is that the train can be diverted for engineering work or may be run through at short notice if they don't need it for staff-if they advertised it to the public they would have to provide busses etc for passengers. If its diverted for engineering works and its only due to pick up 1 driver for example then they only need 1 taxi to wherever that driver is off to.

It has been known for a staff train to be replaced by a staff minibus to get drivers to depots early morning.

 

[broadgage]

Long ago IIRC there was a train from London Waterloo at 12-55 that was for staff only and therefore not in the public timetable.
Then it became a public train, listed in the public timetable, but with the timetable footnote that "if this service is cancelled, delayed or diverted no alternative arrangments will be made" or some similar wording.

Cant remember the whole route but it went the long way round to New Malden, approaching that station via Norbiton and not via Raynes Park as would be the norm.
It allways seemed very odd to approach my then local station of New Malden from the "wrong" direction.

It was normally a then standard EPB multiple unit, but once or twice a class 73 electro diesel locomotive was attached and run in diesel mode, presumably if the traction current was off for repairs.

 

[Southern313]

We do run staff trains and these are marked as such on diagrams and (down our way) run with guards. Train crew also regularly pass on DOO empty moves to/from work

 

[Ploughman]

I used to catch ECS workings from Leeds Stn to get to Neville Hill and back when work required it.

 

[Matt Taylor]

There's a 17:31 from Strawberry Hill depot to Waterloo that about half the Strawberry Hill late turn guards use to get to Waterloo, any SWT train crew can use it but it only picks up at the depot!

SWT don't run any staff trains anymore, it's one of the reasons for the so called 'taxi' dispute at Waterloo not so long ago.

 

[Trog]

There used to be back in the old 310 slam door stock days a staff train early on Sunday mornings, running into Euston. It behaved quite normally until Wembley Central then ran through the yards at Wembley and Brent, stopping several times before regaining the mainline at Harlesden.

There were often families on it usually making an early start on their holiday journeys with loads of cases and children. The look on the children’s faces, and even some of the parents when the train stopped in the middle of no where and the people sitting opposite stood up opened the door and jumped out into the darkness.

 

[D2022]

The S&CR used to use a class 03 to run staff up to Hayes Knoll and back outside the timetabled public services. Was quite entertaining, on one of the war weekends we managed to get 21 people in the cab and a further half a dozen on each running board, plus one in each shutter hole. No horns on that trip...would have turned a few ears to putty had we sounded it surprisingly, we started using the 207 to do those runs lol

Must point out sed locomotive was 03022 aka D2022 hence where my name comes from.

 

[dk1]

04.43 Colchester to Liverpool St which is a reasonably busy train has the unusual calling pattern of Shenfield, Gidea Park, Seven Kings & Stratford at the southern end of the line. This is to assist traincrews heading to Gidea & Ilford depots.