Southern Rail STRIKE details

[virtual22]

They are making so much money from Network Rail they can probably just sustain things as they are:-

Rail companies paid out £45 million in compensation to delayed passengers in England and Wales during the past year while receiving £105 million from Network Rail for unplanned disruption, new figures show.

Govia paid compensation claims worth a total of £2 million during 2015/16, while Network Rail's bill in relation to the lines in South East England was £22 million.

£20,000,000 a year profit from delays!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/11/17/is-yours-the-rail-network-which-has-cancelled-the-most-trains-in/

 

[pearl]

It's so depressing. "Disgraceful and unwarranted action" - makes me want to vomit. The company are now pushing through DOO so hard and so quickly (new routes every week) that no one (drivers, guards, platform staff) has the foggiest idea what's happening. Already on services that should have had an OBS the company are breaking their own rules about "only in severe disruption can the train go without an OBS" (what a surprise!!), so, for example on trains that split there is often absolutely no one to help less frequent travellers/tourists etc and wheelchair passengers have been left behind. The changes are happening so fast that it is genuinely dangerous - the cameras in 377s are absolutely nowhere near good enough to be relied on for DOO working so trains are being cancelled or delayed as the driver cannot safely dispatch.
On board supervisors (when they are actually on trains) have now - believe it or not - been told that at every station stop they must get out on to the platform and check that there is no one who needs assistance so, if they are on the platform, why not just let them safely dispatch the train as they always have done? It's utter lunacy- the whole point in all these changes according to Southern was that they could walk through the train and assist passengers more but now that they have to get off at any stop even this can't happen.
I could go on and on - morale is at rock bottom amongst all railway workers and, make no mistake, if the guards lose this battle which seems likely, the entire railway network will be worse off in the future and infinitely less safe and it's soul destroying to see the abuse the guards receive on here for their WARRANTED action (but very nice to see the support some - who can see the bigger picture - are giving in spite of their own travelling woes). I can only hope that the latest drivers ballot goes through without any more legal blocks or the judicial review works and that may put a bit more pressure on GTR.

I thought this was happening. I haven’t seen the blue tabard platform staff lately, guess they’ve been dispensed with. I’ve noticed on some trains when the doors open/shut some sort of loud alarm goes off now. The ‘no one has the foggiest’ and the ‘morale at rock bottom’ is very obvious. The online running page isn’t reliable. The other morning when the train stopped at Falmer the announcement said ‘this is Lewes, the train terminates here blah blah blah ….’ I have never witnessed any abuse from passengers towards the guards (so far), infact the opposite tbh. On the strike day 5th Nov I was travelling back from Eastbourne to Lewes without a ticket. I asked the ‘guard’ if I could just have a single to Lewes (even though trains weren’t stopping there) as I have a ticket from Lewes to Brighton. After a while he said ‘the machine isn’t working properly, it’s coming up as £7 something, that can’t be right’. I replied ‘I’m afraid it is!’ I’ve since found out he is quite ‘high up’ in Southern management, but he seemed quite a reasonable bloke

 

[Easy 10]

I've decided to throw myself on the mercy of the useless b@stards tonight for the first time in months (too cold to cycle). I'm going to cop off early from work at 4, so lets see how this plays out.

 

[Deadly Danson]

I thought this was happening. I haven’t seen the blue tabard platform staff lately, guess they’ve been dispensed with. I’ve noticed on some trains when the doors open/shut some sort of loud alarm goes off now. The ‘no one has the foggiest’ and the ‘morale at rock bottom’ is very obvious. The online running page isn’t reliable. The other morning when the train stopped at Falmer the announcement said ‘this is Lewes, the train terminates here blah blah blah ….’ I have never witnessed any abuse from passengers towards the guards (so far), infact the opposite tbh. On the strike day 5th Nov I was travelling back from Eastbourne to Lewes without a ticket. I asked the ‘guard’ if I could just have a single to Lewes (even though trains weren’t stopping there) as I have a ticket from Lewes to Brighton. After a while he said ‘the machine isn’t working properly, it’s coming up as £7 something, that can’t be right’. I replied ‘I’m afraid it is!’ I’ve since found out he is quite ‘high up’ in Southern management, but he seemed quite a reasonable bloke

Yes that was probably one of the managers seconded into the guard's role to pretend they have enough staff. The announcement (terminates here etc) I'm guessing was on a 313 which has the cheapest most basic passenger information system possible and this sort of thing happens quite regularly. It's quite difficult to hear in the cab so the driver won't always know it's happening. The system is so poor that when the driver and guard need to communicate the conversation normally goes, "hello?" "hello", "hello?" "can't hear you" "oh I'll just come up and talk to you". Frequently I have made announcements to apologise for the latest clusterf**k and find no one has heard it. It's not particularly GTRs fault but it's a scandal that the 40 year old 313s are still allowed to run although ironically they are currently keeping the entire network from going DOO.

 

[Deadly Danson]

In addition to that I have noticed with more frequency that the DOO GE trains have become more faulty with cameras not working that mean stops get missed out and whatever the train position locator thingy (as I believe it is known) also being faulty resulting in the doors not opening and the driver apparently having to reboot the system to get it going again. These things have happened on trains that I have been travelling on.

The only problem with the staff in this whole mess is that there arenot enough of them. The free pass that minister continues to give the company is quite frankly an utter disgrace. Thankfully the select committee is finally appying pressure and the ongoing FOI requests and court actions are also increasing the pressure.

My hunch is that rather like the US Govt finally jailing Al Capone for tax evasion rather than his gangster activities, GTR will get done for not complying with the equalities act and the access provided for disabled passengers.

Spot on - let's hope so.
Obviously in the past, where there was a guard, it wasn't such an issue if the cameras weren't working well but now it's essential they are perfect (which is rare especially on older trains) so if they aren't the train will have to miss unmanned stations. Ironically the people on here who say guards aren't needed and it's much better to let the train go without them will no doubt be the same ones moaning when their train is cancelled or their station missed out due to faulty cameras, no dispatch staff etc

 

[pearl]

Yes that was probably one of the managers seconded into the guard's role to pretend they have enough staff. The announcement (terminates here etc) I'm guessing was on a 313 which has the cheapest most basic passenger information system possible and this sort of thing happens quite regularly. It's quite difficult to hear in the cab so the driver won't always know it's happening. The system is so poor that when the driver and guard need to communicate the conversation normally goes, "hello?" "hello", "hello?" "can't hear you" "oh I'll just come up and talk to you". Frequently I have made announcements to apologise for the latest clusterf**k and find no one has heard it. It's not particularly GTRs fault but it's a scandal that the 40 year old 313s are still allowed to run although ironically they are currently keeping the entire network from going DOO.

yes it was a 313, the train without a toilet that smells like a toilet

 

[Notters]

I've decided to throw myself on the mercy of the useless b@stards tonight for the first time in months (too cold to cycle). I'm going to cop off early from work at 4, so lets see how this plays out.

Same here. It's afterwards that I'm worried about :-O

(though this may be largely due to the fact that I will be walking from work in Woodingdean before the game)

 

[Ernest]

I've decided to throw myself on the mercy of the useless b@stards tonight for the first time in months (too cold to cycle). I'm going to cop off early from work at 4, so lets see how this plays out.

You got MORE chance of the 700 bus DRIVER letting YOU on than SASTA getting you there

 

[Brovion]

I thought this was happening. I haven’t seen the blue tabard platform staff lately, guess they’ve been dispensed with. I’ve noticed on some trains when the doors open/shut some sort of loud alarm goes off now. The ‘no one has the foggiest’ and the ‘morale at rock bottom’ is very obvious. The online running page isn’t reliable. The other morning when the train stopped at Falmer the announcement said ‘this is Lewes, the train terminates here blah blah blah …

That's nothing! I was at Brighton the other week and the voice said "Please stand clear on Platform 5. The next train is not scheduled to stop at this station!" Cue some nervous laughs, but deep down I think we were all thinking that it was an outside possibility!

 

[beorhthelm]

That's nothing! I was at Brighton the other week and the voice said "Please stand clear on Platform 5. The next train is not scheduled to stop at this station!" Cue some nervous laughs, but deep down I think we were all thinking that it was an outside possibility!

the platform notices at Victoria routinely show "Please stand back this train is not schedule to stop" or similar. and train often give wrong or late info, while some guards dont seem to do announcements of up coming stations or which carriage you need to be in. its a general theme across Southern, shit and providing information.

 

[elninobonito]

Train fun for me again tonight, was awful last night trying to get home from London Bridge!

tonight will be LBG to Falmer and then back to Crawley.

Just hoping the 17.22 to Eastbourne isnt cancelled, like it normally is, so I can get to Lewes and then to the stadium in good time!

I havent made the last few evening games due to the trains! Cant leave office earlier then 1700!

 

[pearl]

That's nothing! I was at Brighton the other week and the voice said "Please stand clear on Platform 5. The next train is not scheduled to stop at this station!" Cue some nervous laughs, but deep down I think we were all thinking that it was an outside possibility!

that made me laugh, but it's not funny when english isn't your first language, having said that a group of oriental students had hysterics on the train one evening, think it was when the announcement said we were going to Seaford as the train went over the viaduct into Brighton

 

[albionite]

http://brightonandhoveindependent.co.uk/emily-yates-true-cause-southern-rail-crisis/

 

[Tony Meolas Loan Spell]

Staff shortages? Sniffles and an unofficial strike like at the beginning of the year?

 

[Gazwag]

I would guess so, the club will assume with a sell out crowd that everybody to do with the railways will do their utmost to spoil another big public event. Just a shame all the new fans will get put off coming to evening games again.

Yep I was right anything to hurt the public and spoil their enjoyment. People will blame the company but how much of it was planned so the company gets the blame

 

[Sussex Nomad]

At least two trains I know of cancelled after the game tonight. Thanks Southern Rail/RMT you are both enjoying affecting thousands of people. I couldn't give a f*ck who is right or wrong, you both act like petulant schoolkids that need a f*cking good hiding.

 

[Hotchilidog]

Staff shortages? Sniffles and an unofficial strike like at the beginning of the year?

Permanent staff shortage due to not having enough staff.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[ROSM]

Staff shortages? Sniffles and an unofficial strike like at the beginning of the year?

I know you keep pedalling this. But the blunt answer is that southern have failed to employ enough people to do the job. To cover that gap they need to rely on voluntary overtime. However Given how badly they treat their staff it seems that people don't want to do it.

Any business that cannot function without staff goodwill really really shouldn't spend so much of their time pissing off their employees

As for tonight, people at the station got a very real clue of how southern operate. If they treat customers that badly, then those customers will believe that the staff are treated badly

 

[worthingseagull123]

Massive problems this morning between Worthing and Hove owing to someone being hit by a train.

Poor person.

 

[Sorrel]

There was a lively discussion - not ill natured, but fairly robust - between the guard and the passengers on my train back from London last night. I think the guard was well prepared for the arguments put against him and had had such discussions before. The advantage that the guards have is that they just have to mention the Godiva and no-one will be prepared to back up the railway company in public.

So, while we're all annoyed with the guards action they aren't going to get much direct stick from the travelling public while the train company continue to be such intransigent employers. I continue to think that the guards are trying to hurt the public with their strikes as much as possible (the Christmas strikes in particular, which will hurt a lot of families), but I still can't bring myself to have any sympathy with the train operators.