Forum Rules

This forum has become a premier place for the discussion of not only London Underground, but also the other railways operated by Transport for London - the forum also enjoys a respected interest at the very highest level within London Underground and other areas of TfL. Membership of this forum has always been and will continue to be open to all, including any 'Protected Characteristic' or similar.

Because of this, Forum Staff undertake the running of the forum on a more formal level than other similar types of media; to that end, rules have been devised to ensure that all forum users know what is expected regarding their behaviour and general use of the forum.

Rule 1 (New Members)

• (1a) New members must have their account approved by a staff member before it becomes fully active.
  
• (1b) New member accounts will be approved as quickly as possible but the process may take a few days, depending on the verifications that may be deemed necessary by the staff member(s) dealing with new account sign-ups.
  
• (1c) Usernames and/or email addresses must not contain foul language - any accounts that do so will automatically be denied/removed as appropriate.

• (1d) New members are encouraged before or, at the latest, shortly after applying to read these forum rules, information about how we use your data and safeguarding information relating to the forum.
• (1e) As mentioned in the welcome email to new forum members, all newly accepted accounts can be deleted or permanently suspended without warning by an Administrator within the first three months if they feel that any unacceptable behaviour or postings have, or are likely to, take place.

Rule 2 (Accounts)

• (2a) All accounts are subject to ProBoards own terms and conditions.
  
• (2b) Members should only have one account.
  
• (2c) If a member wishes to change their user name, they must consult with a forum staff member first - usually, members should allow at least three months between user name changes.
  
• (2d) User name changes will attract the addition of red text to a members profile for a minimum period of at least 14 days.
  
• (2e) The Admin Team may permit a member to have additional accounts (eg. Forum Staff for testing purposes); these will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
  
• (2f) If a member is found to have more than one account which has not been previously authorised by the Forum Administrators, then all associated accounts may be removed/suspended by any member of Forum Staff (see Rule 11).
  
• (2g) Accounts are periodically reviewed using the following criteria which ensures our membership numbers are accurate in relation to active members:
  
  1) Account approved but no activity at all; account deleted after three months.
  2) Account approved, used then no activity; account deleted after six months.
  3) Account approved, used and posts made then no further activity; account deleted after one year.
  
  Forum Staff reserve the right not to delete any accounts pertinent to the running of the Forum or not to delete longstanding members after a prolonged period of inactivity.
  
  Rule 3 (Behaviour)

• (3a) Foul language, political opinions, extremist, or religious views, racism, and comments which may offend or are in any way derogatory to sexual/gender orientation are not allowed. Furthermore, obscene images, sexually-related jokes, personal attacks, aggressive posting, etc. are not acceptable here and may lead to suspension or a permanent ban. Forum members should be particularly careful that political opinions do not creep into posts ostensibly about other subjects.
  
• (3b) This forum operates a policy whereby if it is not suitable for a 13-year-old or younger to read, it is not suitable for this forum.
  
• (3c) The only exception to either rule 3a or 3b is that 'robust language' in the Rant Area may be tolerated providing it is totally within context - the use of asterisks (ie, **) would be advisable in this instance.
  
• (3d) Any Forum Member who gains (or attempts to gain) unauthorised access to Underground/TfL infrastructure (e.g. non-passenger areas such as train cabs, depots, closed stations, etc.) will have their membership permanently suspended without warning.
  

Rule 4 (Private Messages)

• (4a) The Private Message facility is available to all members when logged in.
• (4b) The Private Message facility cannot be accessed by the forum staff - all private messages are very much private between the sender and the recipient.
• (4c) The Private Message facility must not be used to advertise goods for sale, nor other forums or websites. These must only appear within the main forum boards where all members can see, subject to compliance with rules 6d & 6g below. We would encourage members to report other members doing this if it occurs.
  
• (4d) The Private Message facility must not be used to approach TfL employees to ask for cab rides, private tours of work places or anything else deemed as similar in nature by the forum staff.
  
• (4e) As with the rest of the forum, the Private Message facility must not be used to send foul language, obscene images, extremist political or religious views, racism, innuendo or sexually related jokes. You may not know the person you are contacting as well as you think, so if the forum staff are asked to act on any of the above because the person receiving such a PM has been offended, they will act in line with Rule 3a, above.
  
• (4f) Personal attacks will not be tolerated.
• (4g) As per 4b above, the forum staff do not have access to the Private Message system, however they will intervene where a member makes a complaint and they have supplied a copy of the Private Message forming the basis of the complaint - this is the only point at which a forum staff member may become involved.

Rule 5 (Language)

• (5a) No text speak (e.g., C U L8R M8).
  
• (5b) Chat speak is permitted (click here for meanings).
  
• (5c) Use of correct and precise grammar and punctuation is encouraged as it makes reading posts much easier.
  
• (5d) Most browsers incorporate a spell check facility and its use is encouraged.
  
• (5e) Use English when posting though short blocks of quoted text in a non-English language is allowed should it be relevant to the thread and its meaning explained.
  
• (5f) Typing full words in capital letters is considered shouting, so please only use capital letters to spell out full words when in context.
• (5g) Gender-neutral wording (alternatively known as gender-inclusive language) should be used when talking about people or roles in general, particularly so when the gender of the person is not known. Common examples would be using the term chair in preference to chairman and using neutral gender pronouns such as they in preference to assuming a he, e.g. the driver was approaching the terminal station and they came to a gradual halt.
  

Rule 6 (Posting)

• (6a) Spam posting, that is, irrelevant posting to the thread, often advertising a service, is not allowed.
  
• (6b) Flooding (that is repeated, consecutive, overly frequent and/or inconsequential posts) is also not tolerated.
  
• (6c) Quotes must not be edited to change the context of what the original poster posted. If a quote(s) originates from elsewhere, the source should be credited and, if applicable, a hyperlink inserted.
  
• (6d) Blatant advertisements of other transport forums is not good etiquette, although relevant links are fine.
  
• (6e) Posting on behalf of someone else is not acceptable - all posts must be made by signed-up members only. You should join the forum and speak for yourself.
  
• (6f) Do not 'bump' threads (add something to a thread a long time after the last post) unless you are adding something of value.
  
• (6g) Advertising an item for sale, or seeking to directly solicit specific item(s) from the forum membership is not permitted on this forum. The posting of links to item (s) already listed with a website designed for the purpose (such as eBay) is fine providing you consult with an Administrator first. This is considered acceptable as a one-off, rather than a regular occurrence.
  
• (6h) It is unacceptable to post in a manner that celebrates or publicises any illegal activity (e.g. graffiti, violence, trespass etc). Any posts with any reference to illegal activity will be removed immediately and appropriate sanctions put in place.

Rule 7 (What not to Post)

Some TfL information is considered sensitive and should not be posted here. Whilst there is no definitive list, examples include:

• (7a) Locations of line control rooms - we don't mind if you mention the general area such as 'Cobourg Street' or 'Wood Lane' - but please do not post pictures or maps or any other further detailed information.
  
• (7b) Security precautions.
  
• (7c) Internal phone numbers.
  
• (7d) Full names or personal details of employees.
  
• (7e) Details of an employee's whereabouts when on duty.
  
• (7f) Reproduction of documents or portions of documents marked 'internal use only', unless these have previously been published by TfL under their Freedom of Information scheme or similar.

7.1 (Unusual Train Movements)

This forum does not actively encourage the posting of the timings for unusual train movements for the following reasons:

• (7.1a) The information is usually available only within documents marked 'for internal use only'
  
• (7.1b) The timings can never be guaranteed - in fact these sort of movements often don't happen at the times published, if at all
  
• (7.1c) Making the details of such movements public could cause issues with unplanned overcrowding at stations or other locations

7.2 (Person Under Train incidents - also referred to as 'one unders')

Person under train incidents are a particularly difficult subject, so the following applies on this forum:

• (7.2a) Members are not permitted to enquire about the status of a person under train incident. Such posts or threads will be removed by the forum staff.
  
• (7.2b) LU staff that are directly involved in an incident may post a brief outline if they feel it is appropriate - however details of a fatal incident are not allowed in case of any prejudice at a future inquest.
  
• (7.2c) Discussion following such a post will be at the discretion of the forum staff.

In the past, members have posted items of sensitive information they've found within websites elsewhere on the internet - just because it's on another website, it doesn't mean we can allow it here; the forum staff cannot 'police' other websites, but we are responsible for what appears on this forum.

7.3 (Serious Incidents and/or Major Events)

Serious incidents or other major events such as derailments, crashes, fires, weather, terrorist, etc (to give a few examples - this list is not exhaustive) can also prove to be a particularly difficult subject, especially in the early stages. These type of events will always lead to speculation and internal investigations. As a result the following applies on this forum:

• (7.3a) Forum staff members will confirm the facts when they have them to hand, though it may be some time time before this is possible.
  
• (7.3b) LU staff that are directly involved in an incident may post a brief outline if they feel it is appropriate - however as with our one under rule above, details of a fatal incident are not allowed in case of any prejudice at a future inquest.
  
• (7.3c) Discussion will be at the discretion of the forum staff, however in most cases once the facts have been confirmed, a given thread will most likely be locked to prevent non-factual speculation.
  
• (7.3d) Should an official report be released, a request can be made to a member of forum staff to have a link added to the original locked thread. For further discussion after an official report has been released, a new thread should be started.

Given that this type of incident/event will be subject to official lines of enquiry and/or investigation, it is important that we do not allow this forum to become involved with speculation that would detract from the facts. Information may or may not be found within websites elsewhere on the internet - just because it's on another website, it doesn't mean it is factually correct or that we can or will allow it here; again the forum staff cannot 'police' other websites, but we are responsible for what appears on this forum.

If you are in any doubt at all as to whether your post may contravene rules 7, 7.1, 7.2 or 7.3, please seek the advice of a forum staff member first.



Rule 8 (Images)

• (8a) Proboards does not host photographs and all images posted are hosted on third-party sites chosen by the person posting the image, e.g Flickr. (click here to find out how to do this)
  

• (8b) Where you do not own the copyright to the image, a link to the webpage rather than hotlinking to the image should be posted, unless the section of the website that the photographs are hosted on has embed codes specifically designed for that purpose.
• (8c) Posts should not contain solely embedded content such as tweets or videos. If a comment is not appropriate/necessary please include a separate link to the content such as "If content not displaying click here". NB You will need to use the "insert hyperlink" button or {URL} tags.
• Scans or photocopies from books, official documents, etc would normally be considered an infringement of the original copyright unless permission was sought first.
  
• Images on the forum are no longer subject to size limits as Proboards automatically resizes any content.
  

Rule 9 (Simulations)

Railway simulator discussion should be limited to requests for help unless you are a developer releasing information on your work. BVE discussion in particular has caused problems on this forum in the past - so past experience has unfortunately dictated this policy on this forum.

Rule 10 (Polls)

• (10a) The creation of polls requires the consent of a member of a member of staff. (Note that all forum staff members will be able to see who has taken part in a poll, although they will not be able see who has voted for which option.)

Rule 11 (Staffing and Staff Powers)

This thread shows current staff members and the general roles of the different groups. For urgent matters or for those a member would not want to be in the public domain, Forum Staff, i.e. Moderators and Administrators, can best be contacted via PM (Private Message) to their individual accounts. You are advised to copy in several recently logged-in members of staff which can all be done in the same PM, in a similar way to email.

In general the roles of each group are as follows:



Moderator Job Description

Moderators are able to (where required):

• Edit any post
• Approve quarantined posts
• Move any post or thread
• Delete any post or thread
• Lock or unlock any thread
• Issue advice to members either within a public post or by PM (Private Message)
• Issue temporary suspensions
• 'Sticky' any thread
• 'Bump' any thread
• Make announcements
• Modify any member's profile within the limits of the rules
• Deal with new account approvals
• Lock threads at a point after they reach six months without any new posts
• Start or encourage discussion on the open forum
• Log in on a regular basis aiming for three to four times per week excepting holiday breaks (if required).
• Share the workload amongst all Moderators as fairly as possible, scan and contribute to the open forum and check the Moderators’ board for pertinent information
• Report to Admin anything that requires higher authority



Administrators Job Description

As well as encompassing all Moderator powers and roles as needed, Administrators are required to, where necessary:

• Access any profiles for the additional purpose of adding or removing access to specific member groups
• Access all information on members profiles
• Issue formal warnings to members
• Issue suspensions or permanent bans to any member
• Block IP & email addresses
• Remove some account privileges
• Set forum policies, rules, and decision making on any future changes to the forum layout in conjunction with the others on the current Administration team
• Log in on a minimum basis of five times or more per week excepting holiday breaks (if required), contribute to the open forum and scan everything on the Admin and Moderator boards

Details of any disciplinary action taken may or may not be made public knowledge. The decisions of the Administration staff will be always be final, after discussion amongst themselves, where a dispute exists.

Note that where either Administrators or Moderators use the 'like' button on a post, they are commenting on the post in a personal capacity and not from a staff perspective.


Advisor Job Description

• Log in on a regular basis of once or twice per week excepting holiday breaks (if required), contribute to the open forum and scan both Admin and Moderator boards for pertinent issues.
• Give constructive and insightful advice on pertinent matters that can then be considered by the Admin Team.
• Report to Admin anything that requires higher authority


Staff Emeritus Job Description

• Log in and contribute to the open forum regularly excepting holiday breaks (if required).
• Log-in and read the Moderator board regularly
• Contribute words of advice on major issues to both Administrators and Moderators by PM or email


Quiz Team

Members of the quiz team have the power to edit any post made by the quiz team within the quiz board only for the following purposes:

• To make changes to images
  
• To correct errors
  
• To edit the title of threads in order to show them as "solved"
  
  Quiz team members do not have the power to moderate the content of posts made by other members. Quiz Team members are proposed by the Forum Quizmaster and confirmed by Administrators.
  
  
  
  
  **Any amendments to these rules will include a new post below to
  draw members attention and explain the reasons for the change**