Not Sure If Anyone Is Affected By These Strikes

[emmie]

do you think they should retain guards on trains...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-50614066

[emmie]

going on for 27 days starting today. who would travel by train these days.....

[ummmm]

People who have no choice.

[emmie]

do you think they should retain the guards ummm

[ummmm]

As a non train user...I would say yes, retain them.

The last time I was on a train was in June.

[emmie]

i can't travel by train now due to mobility problems but i think they should retain the guard. what if someone falls ill, or disabled person needs aid

[ummmm]

Exactly. They are needed.

[retrocop]

I believe they should retain guards on trains purely for the safety,reassurance of their passengers. The arguments about who opens/closes the doors is ridiculous. The old slam shut doors were the responsibility of the passengers with a check by the station masters on the platform. DLR have automatic doors and so do London's Tram network.

[mushroom25]

although SWR say they're rostering a second safety critical person on every train (let's call them, for argument's sake, guards) the fact that the drivers will be opening and closing the doors means that if the "guard" is not available for any given train, it need not be cancelled and it can run without them. and thereby hangs the dispute.

[douglas9401]

I was on two trains on Saturday, travelling from Inverness to Edinburgh then a local service.

The main part of the journey took almost an hour longer (plus the two hour wait for the damned thing to arrive) than the same done by road. No traffic, no roadworks, no cyclists, no gawping tourists but still, an extra hour. Not a big fan.

I would have asked why

[douglas9401]

....but in the end didn't bother, I doubt there would have been an answer forthcoming.

[mushroom25]

Inverness to Edinburgh by train is 175 miles and takes 3hr36mn.
Inverness to Edinburgh by road is 156 miles; if you could average 60mph it would take you 2hr36mn, as you say an hour less; however you can't given the lengthy stretches of the A9 which are single track, the AA recommended time is 3hr15mn which compares favourably with the train.

I'm guessing then that you drive at warp factor 9?

[douglas9401]

I drive a speed-limited vehicle, maximum 56mph, the two-way parts of the A9 are posted at 50mph for larger vehicles, the dualled parts I can go that little bit quicker.
Depending on traffic and weather conditions the best time I've made is 3h 8m, more typically 3h 15m. I've been doing the journey twice a week for seven years now and will do my best to avoid the iron horse wherever possible.
Warp drive is no substitute for Mercedes Benz diesel power over such a short journey.

Your guesswork, mushroom25, much like your sniffy attitude, sucks.

[Quizmonster]

Over the years, when this topic has been raised, I will now have posted this contribution three times…
Re guards on trains and the belief that they are utterly unnecessary...here's what happened to my wife on an evening train out of Waterloo a couple of years ago.
She found herself in a carriage with only two other passengers. One of them suddenly slumped in his seat and - being a first-aider at her work-place - she approached him and did what she immediately could to assist him, also alerting the remaining passenger.
She then set off to find the guard, in the certain knowledge that there actually was one aboard.
When she did find him, he immediately came to her carriage, assessed the situation and phoned ahead to the next station to get personnel there to arrange for an ambulance to meet the train.
The last she saw of her "patient" was him being stretchered off, presumably to hospital. Whether he "made it" or not she never found out.

Maybe one day, if YOU are one of the people who imagine guards are a money-wasting frippery, you'll meet a similar situation – either as first-aider or invalid – and just see what you think then!

[EDDIE51]

In the present day it is virtually useless ! MANY trains are already 'Driver Only' !

[emmie]

eddie perhaps they shouldn't be...

[EDDIE51]

Most Rail regions have been 'Driver only' for years now ! So the arguement is a bit late !

[Quizmonster]

A good argument is never too late. As I indicated at 16.17, it can potentially be life-saving. I presume, Eddie, that you'd sooner die than have guards.

[emmie]

there have been numerous times when we needed someone on the tube platform, when a person had been taken ill, why is that so different.. I think we should retain the guards for the reasons i gave earlier