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Post by Deleted on Sept 25, 2008 10:35:06 GMT
Hi, I'm not sure if I'm posting this in the right part of this forum or even if this is appropriate for the forum as a whole but I thought this would be my best bet. I'm sure someone will be along to move or delete this if necessary. Anyway, I recently applied online for a trainee bus driver position with East Thames Buses and had a phonecall this morning so they could book me in for a telephone interview. Now, I know East Thames is Transport for London and they seem to do them for LUL vacancies but I wasn't expecting a telephone interview for this. I've never had a telephone interview before so I was wondering if anyone had any sort of general information they could share to help me out in preparing for it. I don't want to go into it completely blind as it were with no idea what to expect. Basically I guess I'd like to know: - What sort of questions they'll be asking, similar to those for CSA or different?
- How long it's likely to last?
- When am I likely to know if I passed or not?
Any help anyone could offer would be great and gratefully received, even if it is just a pointer as to a better place to ask! Thanks in advance.
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Colin
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Post by Colin on Sept 26, 2008 0:33:09 GMT
I have moved this thread into recruitment - seems more appropriate! Whilst I can't really offer you much help, it really does show how well T fL go about their business when they telephone you to arrange a telephone interview. You couldn't make it up could you .......
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Post by Chris M on Sept 26, 2008 1:05:51 GMT
Phoning to arrange a telephone interview is actually very sensible - it means that the candidate can be prepared, and can arrange the interview for a convenient time. You wouldn't want a phone interview to occur unexpectedly just as you wouldn't want a face-to-face interview to be. If they called you to do it without arrangement, sods law would say that they rang when you were out or on the loo! I know I wouldn't give my best performance in those circumstances!
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SE13
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Post by SE13 on Sept 26, 2008 4:50:35 GMT
When I applied for a bus position (albeit not with TfL), the keywords thay wanted to hear throughout the interview were "passenger safety" and "customer service" and I would imagine that most bus companies would want to hear the same thing.
My interview was at the depot, and lasted about 45 minutes, though I can't imagine a telephone interview lasting quite that long. Part of my interview was a written test which was basic highway code stuff and a multichoice answer sheet.
For reference, I first applied back in early July. I actually begin training on October 6th, so it's certainly not an overnight thing!
Good luck with it, let us know how you got along.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 26, 2008 8:07:37 GMT
Telephone interviews are normally fairly short since they're usually only preliminary - the CSA one consisted of only three questions, which covered communication, safety, customer service and common sense in various combinations, and I was told pretty much straight away that I'd passed. I doubt a bus one would be much more complicated than that. Good luck. :)
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Post by Deleted on Sept 26, 2008 8:17:34 GMT
Thanks and thanks for all the responses thus far. I did wonder whether to put this into recruitment but it all seemed to be about LUL jobs in there so I didn't! Well I actually applied at the end of July so I know these things aren't going to be all that quick but it's good to know that I should hopefully find out more or less straight away if I did pass. I'm also glad they didn't just phone up and do the interview right away as I'd just got out of bed. They did offer to do it the same day but I wanted some time to find out about it and prepare for it so they're going to do it on the 1st.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 1, 2008 13:44:54 GMT
Just thought I'd let you all know that I passed the interview this afternoon. I thought I had messed it up when the last question was to give him an example of working as part of a team to achieve a common goal given that I mostly work on my own.
Now I have to go and have the assessment (maths, highway code, driving etc.) in a weeks time. I could have had it as soon as Friday but I'm working then so it had to wait until next week.
Now all I have to do is find the place.
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SE13
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Post by SE13 on Oct 1, 2008 17:07:43 GMT
If you get through the assessment fine, the next stage will be a medical, without which you can't apply for your provisional group D (or any PCV) license. Mine involved drink and drug screening, which (despite how it looks) I don't hammer down, and I certainly don't and haven't ever taken drugs. The Doctor in charge of examining me actually said to me before the drug test that if I had used any cannabis in the last six weeks, I might as well walk out the door there and then.
My driving assessment was on very quiet roads, although it did involve a right turn onto one of the busiest routes into The City. Half way through, I was given a score out of 30 for various aspects of driving (I scored 25 of the 30, the pass was 18) He then gave me instructions as to what I was doing that would fail a test (Using the palm of my hand to steer was one I had a right rocket on!) after which there was a drive back to the depot for another points score. I did listen to what he had told me, and scored 29 out of 30, the point dropped for cruising to a stop (Clutch in)
If the maths test I had was anything to go by, it'll be a doddle! There were questions about working out how many passengers were aboard, and how many more would be allowed to board, a bit on converting the 12 and 24 hour clock, and a bit on calculating fares (Three times a £1.50 ticket and the like) In other words, mine was VERY basic, but I am rather good with arithmetic, so perhaps it was difficult, but I never noticed.
As for the highway code bit, it'll be worth having a quick read of it, in particular rules regarding PCV drivers, because there are certain rules that as a standard car driver you possibly wouldn't be aware of. However, they do take into account that you are on a standard car licence, and wouldn't be aware of these extra rules. But there is nothing like a high score is there?
Good luck, keep us updated.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 1, 2008 22:48:22 GMT
Thanks for the heads up on what to expect.
I already have a provisional group D license from when I was seriously considering getting the full one privately but I expect they'll send me for a medical anyway. I should pass that without any problem unless there's something lurking there I don't know about. Like yourself I've never taken drugs and I don't drink (bit boring really!) so that aspect won't be an issue.
I'll have to make sure I don't coast to a stop on the driving assessment then as it's a habit I seem to have developed over the past few years. I'm not too worried about the highway code test as I was always good on the theory side of things when learning to drive but I'll definitely have a read over the highway code before I go just in case. The maths test sounds about what I was expecting so that should hopefully also be fine.
I think if there are any problems it's likely to be on the driving assessment as there are probably lots of bad habits I've developed without even realising. Incidentally, what type of vehicle did you drive on your assessment? I've heard something like a Transit is quite common.
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SE13
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Post by SE13 on Oct 2, 2008 7:42:25 GMT
The driving assessment was in something similar to a Transit, but it was an extremely old vehicle, and a heap of junk to drive!
Just a reminder.... Keep your foot well away from the clutch when driving. How mine wasn't spotted hovering over I shall never know. Feed the wheel. Select the gear before making the move (you are not allowed to do both at the same time.) And remember about the coasting!
Good luck!
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Post by Deleted on Oct 2, 2008 9:23:52 GMT
Thanks! I'll let you know how it goes.
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Phil
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Post by Phil on Oct 5, 2008 18:46:15 GMT
(Using the palm of my hand to steer was one I had a right rocket on!) Remember this is an assessment and later, test, not the real thing! Down here (also Stagecoach as SE13 is), once you have passed the test your mentors actually show you the "correct" (i.e. safe) way to palm the wheel!!! Personally I ALWAYS think it's unsafe but again I was brought up on manual steering and the system was far too heavy to do anything else BUT feed the wheel.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 9, 2008 9:23:57 GMT
Thanks! I'll let you know how it goes. Your positioning in the road is likely to be looked at ...don't be too close to parked cars !
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Post by Deleted on Oct 9, 2008 13:32:17 GMT
Well, I'm yet to get the official result but I don't think it went very well at all. For a start the vehicle they used was a Mercedes minibus with brakes which were, frankly, shocking and I was quite nervous to start with. I wasn't expecting to be nervous, it's just driving after all.
Not having driven anything larger than one of those little Transit vans it took a bit of getting used to, in fact to be honest I don't think I ever did get used to those breaks. It was automatic as well which I found a little surprising although I suppose thinking about it, it does make sense. Never driven an automatic before either and it was in an area of London I don't know at all.
There was no maths test which was surprising. In fact all that happened was they took copies of my driving licence and then gave me the keys. When we got back to the garage they just asked me the meaning of three road signs from the highway code and if we had encountered them, and if so where. That was it.
Ah well, never mind. If I did well enough then great but if not then it's not the end of the world. Getting to and from there from where I live every day would probably have been a bit of a nightmare anyway.
Thanks for all the help and advice though and best of luck in your training, SE13.
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Oracle
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Post by Oracle on Oct 9, 2008 13:39:33 GMT
I now drive an auto and manual car at random: the trick with the former is to tuck your left foot away and forget that it exists! Use the right foor exclusively though you can use the left foot for braking in due course: I find it a knack that I cannot master. You can also use the auto box lever to give you engine braking if the footbrake is ineffective: just use it in anticipation when slowing down.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 9, 2008 16:19:54 GMT
Good advice except I was explicitly told to put the gearbox in drive and leave it there unless stationary for a period of time in which case it was to go in neutral. I didn't expect whatever it was I was asked to drive to be perfect by the very nature of the thing but I expected it to be a bit better than that. Something where you literally have to push the brake pedal to the floor before you start to slow down meant I was more concerned about being able to stop the thing more than anything else. I assume running into the back of stationary traffic is a no no on such things!
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Post by Tomcakes on Oct 9, 2008 19:27:44 GMT
If only a lot of bus drivers would remember that - nothing more irritating than sitting at a bus stop for 5 minutes waiting for time, whilst being rattled to bits!
Good luck, anyway! I gather that trainer buses are usually the lowest of the low - although strangely I've seen some that are low-floor these days!
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Post by Deleted on Oct 9, 2008 19:29:52 GMT
TEST buses now have to have ABS systems, in line with an EU regulation.
Trainer buses don't need to have ABS, but in London they are mostly low floor because of the Low Emission Zone, so the Metrobus had to leave London for good!
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Post by Tomcakes on Oct 10, 2008 8:58:15 GMT
Yeah, I remember hearing something like that as the reason. Still seems rather strange, though, that low floor buses get used as trainers when step entry buses still chug about on service.
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Post by suncloud on Oct 10, 2008 10:29:29 GMT
Got a bus in Hertfordshire and it had a nice big red LEZ non compliant sticker on the windscreen ... They should bring back early DMs as trainers.. they're exempt as historic vehicles
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Phil
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Post by Phil on Oct 10, 2008 21:38:25 GMT
If only a lot of bus drivers would remember that - nothing more irritating than sitting at a bus stop for 5 minutes waiting for time, whilst being rattled to bits! Tom, you are assuming that the box WILL go back into gear every time!! And should you forget and are on a hill............... One of the (very) few good things about the Tridents is that they put themselves out of gear after 6 seconds stationary. Start to release the handbrake or touch the accelerator and it's back in gear before you can blink!
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Post by Tomcakes on Oct 10, 2008 21:48:32 GMT
I suppose that's a point, especially if it's First maintenance.
The older tridents are pretty rubbish now; I say old in Edinburgh terminology, which means V/W/X reg. The 52/04 ones are pretty decent, IMO.
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Phil
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Post by Phil on Oct 11, 2008 9:33:38 GMT
The older tridents are pretty rubbish now; I say old in Edinburgh terminology, which means V/W/X reg. The 52/04 ones are pretty decent, IMO. We have 05 plate ones. Just don't try to go down a hill at a steady speed - the retarder's far too fierce to let you. Even the passengers are coming into the office and complaining.."driver xxx is normally so smooth: what's happened to him he was jerking the bus all over the place"? The only way you can get a smooth stop, especially downhill is to leave the braking very VERY late then hit it hard. Then you get a totally smooth but very rapid stop. Ideal for cities but absolutely useless for rural hilly areas. If you think we're all pigged off that's an understatement: bring back the Volvo Olympians!!!
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SE13
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Post by SE13 on Oct 12, 2008 8:31:21 GMT
Well, I'm yet to get the official result but I don't think it went very well at all. For a start the vehicle they used was a Mercedes minibus with brakes which were, frankly, shocking and I was quite nervous to start with. I wasn't expecting to be nervous, it's just driving after all. Not having driven anything larger than one of those little Transit vans it took a bit of getting used to, in fact to be honest I don't think I ever did get used to those breaks. It was automatic as well which I found a little surprising although I suppose thinking about it, it does make sense. Never driven an automatic before either and it was in an area of London I don't know at all. There was no maths test which was surprising. In fact all that happened was they took copies of my driving licence and then gave me the keys. When we got back to the garage they just asked me the meaning of three road signs from the highway code and if we had encountered them, and if so where. That was it. Ah well, never mind. If I did well enough then great but if not then it's not the end of the world. Getting to and from there from where I live every day would probably have been a bit of a nightmare anyway. Thanks for all the help and advice though and best of luck in your training, SE13. I find it odd that they didn't tell you there and then regarding your driving assessment. If it's any consolation, mine was in a clapped out LDV (or similar) where you needed brute force just to engage first gear! As for getting to and from work, I don't know about East Thames, but Stagecoach provide free bus passes for myself, wife and children. I catch a bus to and from work, as most of the people there do. It's only really the people living well outside Lincoln that bring their own cars. (This last week, that bus pass has saved me about £50 in bus fares!)
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SE13
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Post by SE13 on Oct 12, 2008 8:44:45 GMT
The older tridents are pretty rubbish now; I say old in Edinburgh terminology, which means V/W/X reg. The 52/04 ones are pretty decent, IMO. We have 05 plate ones. Just don't try to go down a hill at a steady speed - the retarder's far too fierce to let you. Even the passengers are coming into the office and complaining.."driver xxx is normally so smooth: what's happened to him he was jerking the bus all over the place"? The only way you can get a smooth stop, especially downhill is to leave the braking very VERY late then hit it hard. Then you get a totally smooth but very rapid stop. Ideal for cities but absolutely useless for rural hilly areas. If you think we're all pigged off that's an understatement: bring back the Volvo Olympians!!! There is always something of a fight to get hold of the Enviro's here! They use them for the longer runs (Grantham and Skegness) but there are spares which run around the City. Apparently they are the best drive of the entire fleet! Most of ours are 52 and 56 plates, although there are a few 57's and the more dated single L reg, M reg (for Tesco free bus) a few S's, T's and V's. The training bus is a J reg, however the test is taken in an old coach with ABS (Think that's on a K plate) As for the retarder..... Far too fierce for the (lack of) hills we have here.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 12, 2008 11:09:02 GMT
I think they would provide free travel, whether it be just on their buses or otherwise, but I actually live at the non-London end of the M23 so I would have to drive there anyway. Had I got the job the plan would have been to move closer within the first year or so, I certainly can't afford to do so on what Tesco pay me.
Anyway, I received the official 'you did not pass' email yesterday as I expected to. I didn't bother to phone TfL HR the next day like they told me I could because I knew that I hadn't passed anyway.
For the record, the bus they use for training is an X reg Plaxton President bodied Volvo B7TL.
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SE13
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Post by SE13 on Oct 12, 2008 11:59:20 GMT
Damn shame that! I wonder whether or not it's worth reapplying as this time you would know what you are up against...?
This isn't to say that other bus companies won't be recruiting. I presume you are down Crawley way. A bit of travel, but I know the Kent depots are looking for trainees (Stagecoach) as well as Aldershot which wouldn't be a million miles.
It also might be worth trying other TFL regions, any of the South London depots for example. A great man on here once told me that companies such as Stagecoach are always looking for people as they are always short staffed. And let's face a basic fact, if I can get in, anyone can!
Most of all, don't give up hope! If at first you don't succeed, try, try, try again! Don't let a small setback put you down. I can only imagine (given what I know about TFL, it's damn hard to get into. Other companies may be easier, and once that PCV licence has been gained, you can fairly much throw yourself at any of the major players, certainly my intention is to move back South, although Mrs SE13 might have something to say about that!
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Post by Deleted on Oct 12, 2008 13:15:36 GMT
Yep, Crawley it is. I have a couple of other possibilities in the near future but if they don't work out I've noticed that Metrobus are looking for trainees here so I might just give them a go. I could definitely get there by bus, one of the routes I live near goes right past the depot, and at least I'd know the area I was driving around. I should imagine it would be possible to transfer to one of their London depots in the future.
The main attraction to East Thames (apart from the more money part) was that they were offering permanent earlies or lates rather than the usual shift work the job involves.
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Phil
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Post by Phil on Oct 13, 2008 11:53:28 GMT
SE13 is right - certainly some of the London bus companies take full PCV holders without ANY sort of test-drive. Opinion there is that if you're driving buses every day and haven't had a bump you must be OK.
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Post by Tomcakes on Oct 13, 2008 13:03:48 GMT
I know of some companies who will take a PCV license holder, hire them on the spot, chuck them a timeboard and a map and tell them their bus is waiting outside!
Good luck, anyhow!
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