How do i get started in a career of Train Driving?

Question

Ive looked into this career and i'm just requesting any advice, usful tips, what it involes and anything like that to help me

Answer 1

There are several ways of going about this. I have undergone every assesment and medical for Northern Rail and am now ready to be employed. It started in 2006 when I saw an advertisement in the local paper. I applied as did about 1000 other applicants! In January 2007 I recieved a letter asking me to go for interview. The interview was straight forward "What can you tell us about Northern Rail" etc. After passing this, I recieved a letter about a month later asking me to go for an assessment. These involve apptitude tests, mechanical comprehension tests, memory tests, and the hardest, reactionary tests. This is a full day assessment and is very draining! You have several breaks during the day, during this break the assessors are marking your papers etc, if you have failed at any stage they come and get you from your break and you are sent home. So you don't have to sit the whole lot to be told "sorry you've failed" You are told at the end of the day that you have passed and to wait further instruction for the train operating company for which you have applied to (The test centre is run by EWS). You'll then recieve a letter asking you to attend a medical. This involves Hearing, sight, ECG (heart) tests. When / if you pass this, chances are you'll be waiting for a long time! It's now June and my medical was at the beginning of April! I know i've passed the medical as the doctor told me. Several phone calls and I'm still none the wiser!

Train Operating Companies very rarely take on "off the street" They usually poach already qualified drivers because the cost of the assessments is too expensive. If you find that there are no adverts for vacancies, it is possible to go to and pay for an assessment yourself. EWS charge between £150 - £250 for an assessment there. After passing, they issue you with a certificate which is valid for 2 years. You can then approach any TOC with this and they would be more interested because they don't have to pay for your assessment. Hope this helps.

Answer 2

Contac the major railroad companies, see if they have an internship program.  If not, they can atleast provide you with the necessary background information you'll need.

Answer 3

If you are in the United States, Google UP.  Union Pacific.  They are a freight hauler, and there is more to operating a train, you have switching, brakeman, and many other titles withen the scope of Railroading.

Answer 4

First find the main TOC for your area. Send a letter to them asking if they have any vacancies in the local depots (within 30mins drive / bike / walk of where you live). Fill in the application form if they send one and send it back. Wait, but pester them a little as to a result.

If succesful they will request you first to come to an assesment day. This will be a lot of tests which will take ALL day to complete and will cover, Maths, English, Logic, Concentration, Psycho Metrics, etc. Normally they whittle down the candidates as they mark groups of tests. Be smart and punctual as they will also be noting your behaviour, attitude and interaction skills with the others sitting the exams.

If you pass that, then you will be given an interview at another date with a couple of Managers who will assess you again, normal questions for any job.

Pass that and you will be sent for the Drugs and Alcohol Screening and General Medical Exam to ensure you have no problems (if you have ever taken any illegal drugs within the past few months or have a drink problem, weight issue, diabeties, heart, blood pressure problem, colour blindness, then give up now), they will also check vision and hearing.

Pass all that, great, job done.... NO.

You will then have to wait for a suitable position to come up before you start training, this can take anything up to a year (Yes I have known people pass all of the above and wait 10 months) before they call you to give a starting date at the training schools.

Finally you enter the company on probation. the first few weeks are taken up with Indoctrination, Safety and general boredom as your head is filled with railway general knowledge. Then you are put on the Drivers course, school takes about 3 months to complete even before you take the rules exam, then you have route training and are sent out to memorize stations, route, gradiants, speeds, tunnels, crossings, etc, etc, this normally takes a few weeks to get a part done, then you will be allowed to sit with a driver and go over the track watching. Another Exam and if you know it then they will allow you to drive under supervision over that track only. After a few hundred hours of day and night driving with a trainer or instructor will you finally become a qualified train driver (normally about a year to complete).

All fine...

Trouble is, during this whole time you are on probation! and the companies could decide that you are not a good driver and just get rid of you.

Even after your probation you are automatically given 3 points on your licence so you already start with a small black mark as a fresh driver.

Hope this has not put you off.....

Answer 5

Ched is on the right lines the other answers are the usual from ac cross the pond. Contact the operation companies and freight companies and get details and find out who is recruiting.

A reasonable standard of education will be expected and you will have to spend time at a training centre. It can be a long haul to qualify and then a lot of graft and working shifts which affects your social life. Once you make the grade you can earn good money and get some benefits like reduced or free travel.

Check out the following sites :-

http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/tocs_maps/...

https://careers.tfl.gov.u

https://careers.tfl.gov.u

www.freightliner.co.uk

www.eurostar.com

These are just a few of the companies you could try.

Answer 6

Go to The Union Pacific Railroad web site: Click on job opportunities: There you will find details about train engineer jobs and openings, but most importantly the training involved.

It is a course that requires a lot of common sense, not being color blind, and willing to learn. IF UP does not have training classes open at this time, try another railroad. UP operates from Chicago to most every state West through California.\

Good luck. Its an exciting career.

Answer 7

you don't need any schooling to become a switchman or conductor or most any other rr job. There are schools such as the Modoc Rail Acedemy in California where you can go to learn how to become an engineer or conductor, ect... Most railroads do on-the-job training for those jobs, but if you want to work for a Class 1, going to a place like Modoc might be a good idea (it is still optional).

On most railroads, like BNSF, you have to become a conductor before you can become an engineer. Some railroads, such as Montana Rail Link don't have conductors, instead they have 2 engineers share the duties of engineer & conductor. With MRL you have to become a switchman ( basically a yard engineer) before you become an engineer.

From what I've heard from the MRL employees I've talked to, doing seasonal track work is a great way to "get you foot in the door" for future rail jobs. If you have done seasonal track work & you apply to be a switchman, you application will carry lots more weight than an application from a person that hasn't.

you need to be able to lift a 70-80lb. knuckle coupler. You should also be able not only to lift a knuckle, but carry it the length of the train, also. General point: BE IN SHAPE!

If you want a job on the train, such as engineer, be prepared for long & odd hours. Regular hours? They don't exist on the railroad. They will call you up whenever they need a train crew, whether it's 11:00 AM or 1:00 AM. You will have to work alot of the night-shifts & holiday shifts & stuff at first when you're low on the seniority list. As you gain seniority, you will have more control over your hours & be able to choose them more. Sometimes you can be away for several days at a time. If you don't want go to work at 3:00 AM, then the railroad isn't for you.

Railroad pay is good. Here's what MRL pays: $40,000 per year as a switchman, then $60,000-$90,000 per year as an engineer.

Even as an Engineer, you will still need to be able to repair minor mechanical difficulties like broken knuckles (couplers) and air hoses, loose or dragging banding, tarps, cables, ect…

The more knowledge the better! Even if you're going to become a conductor or engineer, it still pays to know a bit about the engine & stuff, nothing in depth, just some basic knowledge can come in handy sometimes.

You can get tired working the night shifts. A railroad rule does say that if both crew members are tired that they can notify dispatch & pull the train into a siding so they can get a little shut-eye.

Check the railroads' websites for job listings & details specific to that railroad.

In addition to great pay, you also get great benifits. Sound pretty good, huh? But don't forget: in turn for that high pay & good benifits, you have to be on call pretty much 24/7 any time of the day or, any day of the week, holiday or no holiday, weekend or weekday. They give you about a 1-2 hours to get ready & get down to the station.

Being in charge of a 1 1/2 mile train is a HUGE responsibility. It demands your full & complete attention. It also means that you MUST be 100% DRUG FREE. Railroads can & are very strict when it comes to this. You also need to keep your eyes out for signals- green meens that the track is clear/ proceed at speed; yellow, or aproach means that you can keep going but the next signal is going to be red, or restricted, which means STOP & often time to pull into a siding. Other things to keep an eye out for: people or animals on or near the track, stalled vehicles on the tracks, & stupid people that try to beat the train across the tracks.

Here's a couple railroads' websites:

BNSF's website is www.BNSF.com

Montana Rail Link's website is www.montanarail.com

Answer 8

Go onto the national rail website and get a list of all the TOC's. Then look at the those that would have a depot near to where you live. Then see if they are advertising for train drivers. Most don't advertise as they encourage promotion from within so may have to start as a depot driver or even a guard.

Healthwise, you must be 100% healthy and reasonably fit (although some of the drivers at my depot are quite fat). Wearing glasses is fine but if you've had laser eye treatment you will not be accepted as long term effect of this treatment are not known.

If you do get past the initial selection process there are a number of tests, mechanical based, memory, reaction and ability to prioritise that you must pass. Also a structured interview which will be unlike any normal interview you've experienced.

Also your name will be registered on a database accessed by all TOC's. You only have 2 chances ever to pass so if you fail with one company you cannot apply to another.

The job itself as you can imagine is spending alot of time on your own, but if you have the right mindset it is a very good job. Oh and the pay isn't too bad either, but the responsibility is huge. And the driving cab is affectionately known as "The Crumple Zone".

Jokes aside i love it and I hope I keep my health so I can be doing it til I retire.

Answer 9

Ignore some of the comments every job has its pro's and con's.

The best way is to apply to Northern rail, however there is a large waiting list and a lot of applicants per position.