Have you sat a medical?Has anyone got a Start date yet or is it being delayed with Covid?
Hello I wonder if anyone could possibly try and help me, I am pretty new to trying to get in to the industry as a trainee driver.
In an idea word I would love to do HST however I am aware that it’s not always easy to get in to as a new driver. Can I ask did any of you have previous experience before joining CrossCountry and lastly are they likely to recruit again soon?
thanks .
Ohhh St Pancras my favourite station and hotel.Emr are recruiting for qualified , for talent pool at st pancras .
Thank you very much for your reply what is the new class that is coming to XC it’s not so much the class just HST would be the ultimate dream for me but I do appreciate how difficult the industry is to get in toif youd like to drive class 43s your time is extremely limited, the class will probably be withdrawn on XC once the new franchise (whenever or in whatever form that my take happens). GWR is a limited as well, but probably your best bet as depending on depot you’ll get to sign them fairly quickly - GWR will also recruit sooner than XC again.
Maybe even Scotrail, depending on depot and their links.
However, as I’m sure you already spent many hundreds of hours deeply researching the role you’ll know your not alone in your “dream” of becoming a driver. To open up the odds very slightly you’d be better If practicable applying to london based metro operation like Overground, Crossrail or one the south London operations.
Its not uncommon to have 5000 applicants for 10 jobs, even guards jobs now attract several thousand applicants.
I would keep quiet you went to drive a certain type of train throughout the process, the recruitment people progress don’t know one end of a train from the other let alone the difference between a Class 450 and Class 350.
If your really keen for XC, your very best bet is apply for a first class host or retail service manager job, even these are extremely popular usually going to former cabin crew from airlines.
best of luck.
Certain XC depots have all drivers doing HSTs I think Plymouth is one for example so depending on what depot u applied for you may get to learn HSTs straight away if you are successful.Thank you very much for your reply what is the new class that is coming to XC it’s not so much the class just HST would be the ultimate dream for me but I do appreciate how difficult the industry is to get in to
If you count December as around for a while.EMR still run a large quantity of HST’s also. EMR have just taken several HST’s from LNER so they will be around for a while at EMR due to the pandemic delaying the build / introduction of the new 800 series Hitachi trains due.
The poster you're quoting hasn't applied to XC.Certain XC depots have all drivers doing HSTs I think Plymouth is one for example so depending on what depot u applied for you may get to learn HSTs straight away if you are successful.
Id guess Leeds , Derby and Bristol probably all sign HSTs. Birmingham do not and there are lower links that you start in with no HSTs.
I would keep quiet you went to drive a certain type of train throughout the process, the recruitment people progress don’t know one end of a train from the other let alone the difference between a Class 450 and Class 350.
If you count December as around for a while.
The Hitachi units are not replacing the HSTs...The current pandemic will delay things considerably. The HST’s were supposed to disappear from EMR totally in December 2019! By the time the new Hitachi’s are built (Hitachi currently not building due to convo-19) and tested including the infrastructure changes, the HST’s will be around for a long while yet.
The Hitachi units are not replacing the HSTs...
Thank you so much all of you for your input. I’m still a bit lost in the best way of trying to get in to the industry as a driver some make it sound impossible, although difficult I’m sure it can be done . Does anyone know of any recruitment plans that will be coming once the pandemic is over or what companies are likely to recruit in the near future.
Thank you for your post I am not an enthusiast by any means I do not understand where that has come from I think someone has maybe picked me up wrong further up all I said was that driving High speed & long distance would be my ultimate goal
All Derby drivers sign HST's, but you're right about New St being link dependent.The poster you're quoting hasn't applied to XC.
Plymouth, Bristol, Leeds, Newcastle and Edinburgh all sign HSTs. Derby and New St only some links sign HSTs. Manchester, Reading and Bournemouth only sign Voyagers, with Cambridge and Leicester soley signing 170s.
Whilst I echo advice not to sound like a know-it-all in application/interview, equally, assuming the people doing the recruitment are thick is likely to hinder a candidate's chances too.