H
HR2
Guest
A nice pleasant sunny afternoon at Northfields depot. I am the afternoon spare DR Guard and haven't been on the job long. Having a cup of tea and a natter with the Piccadilly line spare men and commenting that the service overhead to Heathrow Airport is better than the service down here on the ground.
The Yardmaster appears looking for the Piccadilly spare men only find that there is no spare guard. So he has a word with a Piccadilly driver and myself. As I have had training around the depot the YM wants to know if the Picc driver is aggreeable to my accompaniying him to prepare a train and take in into the platform. As the preparation of a train for a Guard whatever the stock is virtually identical all round he agrees. Now this is all on the quiet you understand and all will be well if everyone keeps their trap shut.
So off to the depot we go and get said train ready. I thought this train was being re-instated after cancellation but it wasn't. It was a one round peak hour extra. Anyway we duly come out of the yard and into the eastbound platform at Northfields. The YM is on the platform and asks me if I will take the train to Acton Town with passengers on to help out and he will get me relieved at Acton. He ask the driver if he agrees and that is affirmed.
We depart to Acton as it's only a couple of stops and I know that route anyway. On reaching Acton I wait but no Guard appears so I call the driver who gets on the phone. When he comes back he asks me if I know the road. I tell him that as far as Earl's Court I'm OK but beyond that I'm buggered. He then says that if he helps me will I carry on? Well being as spares are bloody boring turns I agree providing I don't get dropped in it.
Now all this has taken about 6/7 minutes and phones are beginning to ring so the driver scuttles back to the front and I shut the doors and we shoot off. Well all goes well and after Earl's Court the driver is hollering over the train phone "on the right" or "on the left" as we leave each station to tell me which side the platform is at the next stop.
The journey carries on like that all the way to Cockfoster's and all the way back to Northfields too. For the whole way there and back I was kneeknocking at the thought I was going to get found out and lose my job but I saw no-one in big hats and never heard anything either. The YM was a good stick though and paid me overtime and let me go home early for getting him out of a hole.
I never told any body about this in the whole 40 years since it happened until today. All-in-all I've had some experiences in my time.
The Yardmaster appears looking for the Piccadilly spare men only find that there is no spare guard. So he has a word with a Piccadilly driver and myself. As I have had training around the depot the YM wants to know if the Picc driver is aggreeable to my accompaniying him to prepare a train and take in into the platform. As the preparation of a train for a Guard whatever the stock is virtually identical all round he agrees. Now this is all on the quiet you understand and all will be well if everyone keeps their trap shut.
So off to the depot we go and get said train ready. I thought this train was being re-instated after cancellation but it wasn't. It was a one round peak hour extra. Anyway we duly come out of the yard and into the eastbound platform at Northfields. The YM is on the platform and asks me if I will take the train to Acton Town with passengers on to help out and he will get me relieved at Acton. He ask the driver if he agrees and that is affirmed.
We depart to Acton as it's only a couple of stops and I know that route anyway. On reaching Acton I wait but no Guard appears so I call the driver who gets on the phone. When he comes back he asks me if I know the road. I tell him that as far as Earl's Court I'm OK but beyond that I'm buggered. He then says that if he helps me will I carry on? Well being as spares are bloody boring turns I agree providing I don't get dropped in it.
Now all this has taken about 6/7 minutes and phones are beginning to ring so the driver scuttles back to the front and I shut the doors and we shoot off. Well all goes well and after Earl's Court the driver is hollering over the train phone "on the right" or "on the left" as we leave each station to tell me which side the platform is at the next stop.
The journey carries on like that all the way to Cockfoster's and all the way back to Northfields too. For the whole way there and back I was kneeknocking at the thought I was going to get found out and lose my job but I saw no-one in big hats and never heard anything either. The YM was a good stick though and paid me overtime and let me go home early for getting him out of a hole.
I never told any body about this in the whole 40 years since it happened until today. All-in-all I've had some experiences in my time.