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Title: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: JayMac on March 12, 2010, 21:13:12 From the BBC (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/oxfordshire/8564357.stm):
Quote Rail operator First Great Western has apologised to passengers after a train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway on Wednesday night. Dozens of passengers were affected by the mistake which meant they had to wait 30 minutes at Swindon station before returning to Didcot. The company blamed "driver error" but added that the driver was checked after the incident and deemed fit for duty. An investigation into the matter is being carried out. Christopher Proctor, 37, from Abingdon, was one of the passengers on the 1815 Paddington to Swansea service. He said: "I was surprised when the train went shooting through Didcot Parkway because it's a scheduled stop on the service. It went through at full tilt and then slowed down when I guess the driver realised what they'd done. We heard a pre-recorded message over the Tannoy along the lines of 'could the train manager please contact the driver'. We then had a very sheepish train manager apologise over the Tannoy, citing 'unforeseen circumstances' as the reason for not making the scheduled stop." Mr Proctor estimated that up to 150 passengers were affected. A First Great Western spokesman said: "We apologise for any inconvenience caused to customers who wished to get off the train at Didcot. The incident was down to a driver error and the driver was met at Swindon, where he was checked and deemed fit for duty. We do take this sort of thing seriously and a full investigation will be carried out, which will take up to 28 days to complete." Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: Mookiemoo on March 12, 2010, 21:29:40 Yep - made the five live 2030 news bulletin as well!
As I posted elsewhere Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: Btline on March 13, 2010, 01:50:21 Whilst this is serious, and mustn't happen again, I hope the penalty for the driver isn't too harsh, as it seems like a genuine error. :-\
Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: devonian on March 13, 2010, 07:38:06 Been on a XC service that forgot to stop at Dawlish - ok, it wasn't a 30 minute wait at Teignmouth to get a train back but still, surely this sort of thing happens a bit more often than is worthy of headline news?
Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: Oxman on March 13, 2010, 10:51:05 It happens regularly. Sometimes because the driver has an incorrect diagram, sometime because the driver misreads the diagram or simply forgets. Usually, its a local stopper, so the inconvenience is minimal. In this case, an HST in the evening peak, the number of passengers affected made it newsworthy, I suppose.
Any driver that misses a stop is met at the next convenient station and his/her diagram and fitness for duty are checked. It doesn't usually directly result in any form of punishment. Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: ChrisB on March 13, 2010, 15:29:57 There was a Meet the Manager at Didcot that day - fortunately (or unfortunately for the passengers), it finished (at 7) before they got back to Didcot.....
Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: Super Guard on March 13, 2010, 21:37:56 There was a Meet the Manager at Didcot that day - fortunately (or unfortunately for the passengers), it finished (at 7) before they got back to Didcot..... Wonder if Amended Diagram was issued to driver.... ;D Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: readytostart on March 16, 2010, 01:57:47 Had a couple of fail to calls in my FSR days, taken less seriously than a SPAD or overshoot, schedule or train lists should detail calling points, or at FSR it was the driver who got a stop list and the guard who had to check the working timetable and jot down the stops. I would personally speak to the driver and mention anything out of the ordinary.
Problem solved now, same stops, every day, every shift, every week! Except my one echo on a Saturday and my half three starter! Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: 12hoursunday on March 16, 2010, 13:02:23 Whilst this is serious, and mustn't happen again, I hope the penalty for the driver isn't too harsh, as it seems like a genuine error. :-\ don't speak too soon. Didcot along with Slough are regular failed to call locations for FGW HST's. I am really surprised that this incident has made the news seeing as it wasn't the first and won't be the last. There are drivers that have missed statons Slough one of them more than once. Funny, a driver who approached Didcot on the up main slowly because the signal was on only to max it when it came off made the comment " I wonder why all the punters started moving forward to the edge of the platform!" Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: JayMac on March 16, 2010, 13:18:40 There has been many a comment on other fora about this 'non-story'. It is evident from those in the industry that 'failed to call' happens on more than a few occasions and that drivers aren't punished for doing it - just a check on their fitness for duty at the earliest opportunity. Many comments also express surprise that the story made the news at all.
Inattentiveness leading to a 'failed to call' could just as easily be inattentiveness leading to a SPAD - a far more serious matter. I believe a FTC should be investigated, at least internally by the drivers employer and a record made of the FTC and the reasons given, with possible disciplinary action should it happen again within a certain timeframe. And lets not forget the inconvenienced passengers...... Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: Toiletdriver on April 10, 2010, 10:23:07 And of course the minor fact that the train concerned was crossed over to 3 at Swindon, an up train was held a few minutes for the delight commuters to get back to Didcot in the quickest time possible.
Any praise for FGW control please? Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: JayMac on April 10, 2010, 10:46:12 Nope. Rectifying a situation caused by an innattentive driver doesn't deserve praise.
Didcot pax were 45 mins later getting home than they should've been. Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: devon_metro on April 10, 2010, 14:31:13 Nope. Rectifying a situation caused by an innattentive driver doesn't deserve praise. It does, maybe not to the driver, however control did not cause the driver to miss the stop, so they should be praised for what they did. Otherwise with an attitude like that they might as well let it into platform 4, with the next train to Didcot in Platform 1, meaning the longest walk for passengers... Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: JayMac on April 10, 2010, 14:47:35 "Oops.... missed Diddy. Not to worry, Control'll sort it out for me"
Praising Control for sorting out the balls-up only reinforces the attitude that a missed stop is an acceptable operational occurence. Inattentiveness can kill..... Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: IndustryInsider on April 10, 2010, 15:00:13 "Oops.... missed Diddy. Not to worry, Control'll sort it out for me" Praising Control for sorting out the balls-up only reinforces the attitude that a missed stop is an acceptable operational occurence. Inattentiveness can kill..... I think that's a little harsh. Nobody's suggesting that anything was sorted out, only that a potentially worse outcome was mitigated by the actions from Control. They should have done something like that, and they did, but I have known many similar situations when nothing has been done. If, in my driving days, I had missed a stop like that I would have felt a very guilty conscience (not least for putting my on-train colleagues in a very awkward situation), and certainly not that it was anything acceptable. However, I would have rested a little easier knowing that everything possible had been done to sort out my error. Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: John R on April 10, 2010, 15:58:50 "Oops.... missed Diddy. Not to worry, Control'll sort it out for me" Praising Control for sorting out the balls-up only reinforces the attitude that a missed stop is an acceptable operational occurence. Inattentiveness can kill..... I don't think it reinforces that attitude at all, and I'm sure the driver didn't feel the way you describe after realising he had made a mistake. Yes, inattentiveness can kill, and does every day on the roads. The fact that we have now gone more than three years without a passenger being killed on the railways demonstrates that the railways take safety very seriously. The fact is that Control did the best thing they could to mitigate the situation for passengers, and whilst you might argue that this is what they are paid to do, a little bit of praise does no harm in the circumstances. Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: inspector_blakey on April 10, 2010, 23:29:52 Come on bignosemac, we don't normally see that kind of Daily Mail-style hyperbole from you! ;)
Inattentiveness can kill, yes. However, it can also modestly inconvenience, which is what happened in this case. Once the driver has missed the station there's nothing anyone can do about the mistake (I'm assuming you wouldn't advocate an emergency brake application and setting back wrong-line to Didcot!) so it's up to Control to deal with the consequences. Which it sounds like they did very well in a difficult situation. I don't know why you seem to have got the impression that it's regarded as an acceptable operational incident. The driver will be checked for "fitness" at the earliest opportunity, and assuming s/he is fit to continue will do so. Would you rather that the onward working of the service were cancelled for want of a driver, thereby causing far more inconvenience than the original incident? Fact is, a "fail to call" done under clear signals endangers nobody and inconveniences some. We don't know the circumstances of the incident in question either - who's to say that there wasn't an error in the diagram the driver had on the desk? Whatever the case it's not a safety-related issue, although I have no doubt that if a particular driver made a habit of it then appropriate investigations would be made. Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: JayMac on April 11, 2010, 00:31:49 Okay.....time to admit to a personal connection to this incident. Not posted before because I was only indirectly affected.
I was waiting to meet a friend at Bristol Parkway travelling from Oxford who was waiting at Didcot when the 1856 to Swansea with the lead-booted driver sped through. By the time station staff had sorted what was going on and my mate had evaluated his options it was too late to get the next Swindon and change onto the 1845 ex PAD which legitimately skips Didcot! So he gets on the next Swansea at 1956 arriving at BPW 59 mins later than he should have. And guess what? FGW have played hard ball and offered diddly squat in compensation, for which my friend waited 4 weeks to be told. Yes, I know the rule is one hour, but perversely if he'd been travelling to Swindon or beyond Cardiff he'd've got the compo. Not even a goodwill gesture. Our evening plans were ruined, turning up an hour late for a meal. So forgive the 'Daily Mail' style hyperbole, but I ain't feeling particularly charitable toward FGW for this incident. Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: John R on April 11, 2010, 02:51:46 Our evening plans were ruined, turning up an hour late for a meal. That does sound like a real calamity, and clearly justifies the comments that the railway industry doesn't care about safety. Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: The Tall Controller on April 11, 2010, 17:53:30 I was on a Newquay train and wanted to get off at Luxulyan. Driver had to make a sharp stop as he almost forgot and left me to get off on the overgrown part of the station!
Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: unfarepayingpassenger on April 12, 2010, 20:22:01 I'm not surprised at the lack of compensation. You were lucky to get an apology. fgw have been quite bad at sharing information, although they have made a few announcements about delays recently, but it's not consistent.
One of my colleagues was on this train. He's a season ticket holder, so the chances of him getting compensation are about as high as getting an integrated railway run in the interests of the passengers. Title: Re: Train driver forgot to stop at Didcot Parkway. (BBC News 12/03/2010) Post by: ChrisB on April 12, 2010, 21:15:05 Indeed - their punctuality is such that it'll now take months of late trains to provide any season ticket compensation.
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