• Our booking engine at tickets.railforums.co.uk (powered by TrainSplit) helps support the running of the forum with every ticket purchase! Find out more and ask any questions/give us feedback in this thread!

Tram driver licensing

Status
Not open for further replies.

Tramwayman

New Member
Joined
25 Nov 2021
Messages
4
Location
Sheffield
upon passing tram driver exam what license do you receive. Is it provided by DVLA or does it come under ORR? Very interested to know so any help would be appreciated and thanked in advance.
 
Sponsor Post - registered members do not see these adverts; click here to register, or click here to log in
R

RailUK Forums

507 001

Established Member
Joined
3 Dec 2008
Messages
1,855
Location
Huyton
upon passing tram driver exam what license do you receive. Is it provided by DVLA or does it come under ORR? Very interested to know so any help would be appreciated and thanked in advance.

You don’t. It’s all internally managed by each company and their competency processes. There’s nothing on my driving license to say I can drive a tram.
 

Tramwayman

New Member
Joined
25 Nov 2021
Messages
4
Location
Sheffield
Interesting. What company do you work for? So unlike TOC’s I’m assuming their medical processes are done internally too or do they have strict guidelines to follow? The reason I’m asking is because looking online they seem to follow the rail train driver medical?
 

507 001

Established Member
Joined
3 Dec 2008
Messages
1,855
Location
Huyton
Interesting. What company do you work for? So unlike TOC’s I’m assuming their medical processes are done internally too or do they have strict guidelines to follow? The reason I’m asking is because looking online they seem to follow the rail train driver medical?

I work for Metrolink.

Now obviously Metrolink would have to be able to prove to the ORR that I’m competent to drive an M5000 (and in my case instruct on one for that matter) and the system as a whole, but it’s all handled internally. The difference between us and the big railway is that all of the systems in the country have different rules and procedures. I wouldn’t be competent on Nottingham’s rule book for example, but a Northern driver is competent on the same rule book a TPE driver is.


Our Medicals are done externally, but I couldn’t tell you what standard they’re done to, I’ve only ever had one!
 
Last edited:

Tramwayman

New Member
Joined
25 Nov 2021
Messages
4
Location
Sheffield
Wow that is very interesting. So I’m assuming that people could enter and medical with certain conditions and it would be judged on the severity of it, depending on the companies H&S policies and rule book
 

507 001

Established Member
Joined
3 Dec 2008
Messages
1,855
Location
Huyton
Wow that is very interesting. So I’m assuming that people could enter and medical with certain conditions and it would be judged on the severity of it, depending on the companies H&S policies and rule book

Yes, to an extent. There’s still certain things that are a no no.
 

507 001

Established Member
Joined
3 Dec 2008
Messages
1,855
Location
Huyton
Like what for example?

Colour blindness (or other vision issues), deafness, chronic high blood pressure, certain heart conditions etc.

There’s also a hell of a list of meds that you can’t take…
 

PupCuff

Member
Joined
27 Feb 2020
Messages
498
Location
Nottingham
Wow that is very interesting. So I’m assuming that people could enter and medical with certain conditions and it would be judged on the severity of it, depending on the companies H&S policies and rule book
Basically, the absolute requirement is that anyone doing safety critical work (like driving a tram) has to have suitable medical fitness for the role. Although the principles of tram driving will be the same, the nature of rulebooks and operating procedures may mean that some tram drivers need to meet different medical standards to others. Mainline train driving is different as there are specified legal standards of medical fitness a mainline train driver has to meet.

That of course doesn't stop a tram company insisting their drivers meet mainline driver medical fitness standards should they wish.
 

507 001

Established Member
Joined
3 Dec 2008
Messages
1,855
Location
Huyton
Basically, the absolute requirement is that anyone doing safety critical work (like driving a tram) has to have suitable medical fitness for the role. Although the principles of tram driving will be the same, the nature of rulebooks and operating procedures may mean that some tram drivers need to meet different medical standards to others. Mainline train driving is different as there are specified legal standards of medical fitness a mainline train driver has to meet.

That of course doesn't stop a tram company insisting their drivers meet mainline driver medical fitness standards should they wish.

There is also an ongoing RAIB investigation which apparently will make recommendations about standards for LRV drivers (to give us our proper title). Not sure which one it is though.
 

PupCuff

Member
Joined
27 Feb 2020
Messages
498
Location
Nottingham
There is also an ongoing RAIB investigation which apparently will make recommendations about standards for LRV drivers (to give us our proper title). Not sure which one it is though.
Seems sensible - light rail isn't really my area but the common standards adopted by the mainline rail industry help mitigate against some fragmentation and do encourage folks to be singing from the same hymn book, if not the same precise verse all the time.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Top