Berth or assisted despatch?

Any time when a train is stopped within Station Limits and the Platform Train Interface (PTI) cannot be monitored then an assited despatch is required. For a Cat A platform, this cannot be monitored from the cab driving position at all without CCTV or OPO kit. Cat B platforms are given their category from the normal stopping position.

Not following the operational procedure to the letter nowadays could land you at a Company Disciplinary Interview!

I would attempt to react to the PEA (passenger Emergency Alarm) by releasing the emergency brake application before the train comes to a stand - if the train doesn't come to a stand, there's no issue.

Now this is my opinion only (rule book 7 covers PEA's - but not this instance ::

If the train comes to a stand part way into a platform, well then it depends on how far down the platform I've got, whether the platform is busy, etc, etc

Common sense would suggest that a PEA - which as the title suggests, is an emergency - really ought to be dealt with ASAP..........so do you really want to get in a position where you're faffing around waiting for station staff to assist you into the platform?

I think if I really needed to, I'd stick me head out of whichever door is appropriate, make sure it's clear (blow the whistle to scare people away if need be) then move the train and fully berth it.

Now I can see that's possibly going to invite trouble, but how will I, as the train operator, stand against LUL? Bear in mind, there's no written procedure for this - it's not in the rule book - and it's an emergency situation.........

And people think drivers earn too much!........

Nope!

Rule book 8 deals with things like dispatching the train when departing from platforms, orverruns, etc

This thread is about a PEA whilst entering a platform.

For non train staff - when a PEA is operated, the trains emergency brakes apply and the train operator is expected to asssist the train to stop using the emergency position on the CTBC. Now I know some lines do things differently (local instructions, etc), but that is the official way of doing things on the District - mainly as part of the defect handling process on C stocks.

Hency why I said " gives an example of pulling out of the station but not into the station[/u]"

Rule Book 8 - managing the PTI would surely be where any procedure would rest, as any request for an assisted dispatch would be a PTI matter?

I'd have thought that in the majority of situations it will be best to continue to the stopping mark - as it will enable it to be dealt with as easily as possible, particularly if the PEA was activated in the last car.

Even if it was in the first car then it will delay your attendance to it by only the time it takes to travel the remainder of the platform length and open the doors (less than 1 minute?) which is a lot quicker than if it was activated just after you've passed the 6-car marker exiting a station.

As a PEA will be activated for an emergency on the train, rather than on the platform, then the PTI issues will be exactly the same as any other entry into a station.

A train fully berthed in a platform will cause the minimum of hassle and disruption to get going again, particularly if it was a false alarm (deliberate or otherwise).

The one time I can remember being on a train where the PEA was activated between stations was on the Circle Line between Edgware Road and Baker Street. On that occasion the T/op stopped at the normal stopping mark at Baker Street before investigating.

Presumably there is something somewhere that allows somebody high up to authorise a train to move, on their responsibility, in whatever circumstances?

Other than that I could see station staff emptying/closing the station/platform to the public so that it is proved to the T/op there is no possibility of a PTI incident.

AND a Station Supervisor Big C. Although I do concede that if the SS wanted to keep their job then they would only do so after consulting with the signaller.

Indeed the signaller can't see the platform etc (depending on the location of course) - but what if a driver SPADed a draw up part way down a platform?

It would then have to be the signaller (via the SS or whoever) that authorises the movement of the train.

Point is, when it comes to the safe movement of trains, you can only have one person in overall authority. That said though, this scenario is about a PEA and not signalling..................so the plot thickens...... ;D ;D

The rule is simple: if departing a station and a PEA is operated, then stop (subject to station limit markers etc). OTHERWISE over-ride the PEA and carry on the the next station.

if the PEA is operated on the approach to a station and the train stops before the train op. can react, release the brake and draw up straight away. Sound the whistle if at all concerned. This is common sense. The people waiting on the platform don't generally lean on the train when it stops and PEAs coming into stations are rare; both together would be very very rare.

I had the naive view that the PEA alarm was very distinctive and different from all the others???

Agreed. But, generally speaking, the PEA alarm with the absence of any other indications indicates a PEA.

I got umpteen PEAs when I was a T/Op and I always went for the "mushroom" straight away and berthed in the next platform ASAP. Having said that, when you get an alarm out of the blue, it can sometimes take a couple of seconds to distinguish which alarm it is and react accordingly.

ttr

The same could be said when between stations (ie, outside platform limits) - but the official instruction is to carry on to the next station "where help can be more easily given".

In any case, anyone who defies the notice which clearly says "danger of death if used while train is in motion" (or words to that effect) attached at each doorway, ultimately only has themselves to blame - yes that is extremely harsh, but it's a fact none the less.

There is a general rule that when a PEA is activated the train must STOP. This is regardless of where it is at the time.

Once the train has stopped, a decision can be made on whether to over-ride and move the train, but the driver should not try to prevent the train from stopping initially.

When trains were crew operated, was it the guard, the driver or both who received the alarm?
Presumably the final decision to stop the train or not would rest with the driver, but presumably the guard would offer advice?