Just finished filming for BBC South News regarding assistance for Southen Rail.
We started at Crawley station around 11am, an agency member of platform staff (wearing either a blue or purple hi-vis) and another member of platform staff jointly put down the wheelchair ramp on to the train, but they failed to secure the ramp by putting the pins of the ramp into the holes of the train door, so I had a small bump at the of the ramp to get on to the train.
The OBS (On Board Superior) immediately came to see me as he saw me getting on, (I think he was new) he asked me where I was getting off. He was due to leave the train at Gatwick Airport, a new OBS was meant to join at Three Bridges, but didn't, I knew because the driver put a call out for the new OBS to contact him. The OBS who was mentioned to get off at Gatwick Airport didn't as apparently his next train was cancelled. But I didn't know this as the driver was still asking the new OBS to contact him.
Our route was Crawley, Three Bridges, Gatwick Airport them Horley.
We got into Crawley, no platform staff we there to meet me. So I asked the cameraman/reporter to get out of the train to see if the OBS was on the platform, then the OBS who should have got off at Gatwick Airport came rushing up and got his ramp from the train and got me off fine.
We then went outside of the station for an interview. We then noted the ticket office was closed.
We went back down to the platform and waited for the next train back to Crawley, praying their would be an OBS on board.
Whilst we were waiting, the station staff member turned up, turned out that he was on his break, but then he checked out his phones and he said he received no communication from Crawley. We did discuss that now the station staff had been issued mobile phones, but appeared that numbers for other stations were lacking, he said that he had Crawley station number and would call them.
We got on the train at Horley without a problem, but then the driver asked the OBS if I had got on as he couldn't see me because of her sun glare on his cameras, we sat there for a while as I think he still had glare issues so couldn't self dispatch. The OBS was a former guard, so wasn't sure if he asked the OBS could dispatch him.
Only former guards who were made into OBS staff are able to dispatch trains apon driver request.
He then came to see me to ask where I was getting off, he stayed on all the way to Horsham.
We then got to Crawley, but neither of the two platform staff were their to meet me. So the OBS got me off with the train ramp.
Conclusions are that station to station communication is still to poor and that EVERY OBS should be required and trained to be able to dispatch the train if the driver has equipment problems or weather related issues with the cameras.
We desperately need an OBS on EVERY train GUARANTEED!