Question for Drivers: Concentration

[Spectroscopic]

I am interested in how people maintain concentration for long periods whilst driving in isolation, particularly during night driving. How do you approach the task as a professional driver?

- Do adhere to a specific diet (high protein meals, no caffeinated products)?

- Do you play concentration games?

Any insight you can offer would be appreciated

Thanks

 

[nom de guerre]

(no caffeinated products)?

Surely the opposite ...?!

 

[ComUtoR]

Surely the opposite ...?!

Weirdly, caffeinated products do worse for fatigue and concentration. On a recent course this was discussed. With caffeine etc you also get highs and lows. Again, bad for concentration and fatigue.

 

[theageofthetra]

Diet and the times you eat are very important. Some drivers eat at 'normal' times regardless what shift you are on.

 

[Johncleesefan]

I try to get my 8 hours a night, difficult with 2 young kids, generally eat when my booked break is unless it's really early/late in the day. Never skip brekkie whatever time it is I wake. Food is usually left overs from tea the night before so a good meal. Only decaf at work (nice strong black in morning )

 

[Jackson99]

I second the previous comments. Tiredness and hunger can make the mind wander....

 

[12guard4]

Eat well, sleep well, drink well (stay hydrated not booze ??????). Same as you would prepare yourself for a long car journey really.

 

[Islineclear3_1]

Food or drink that would maintain steady blood sugar for a long time, not something that would spike leading to a (blood sugar) crash afterward

 

[Latecomer]

So I'll be the first to admit to eating rubbish takeaway food any time up to 22.30, grab an americano with espresso shot when I can and sometimes a chocolate brownie (or pain-o-chocola in the morning) if I get a chance. Seriously though I do try to stay hydrated and I will open the windows to proper fresh air if needed. I don't know anyone who doesn't go through a very serious fatigue or tiredness threshold from time to time. You just have to know it's coming and take the measures you can to stay alert. It does pass but you have to drag your senses together for those 15 minutes or so.

 

[Islineclear3_1]

Weirdly, caffeinated products do worse for fatigue and concentration. On a recent course this was discussed. With caffeine etc you also get highs and lows. Again, bad for concentration and fatigue.

Caffeine also causes dehydration as it draws water out of your system

 

[MartinB1]

When on earlies I need my coffee as soon as possible in a shift. Other than that, I might have snacks like a banana, nut/seed bar, 2 squares of good quality dark chocolate. I ensure I have some fresh air coming into the cab, go through my routines of constantly checking schedule card/signal/train formation. I always have some water in my bag.

Sent from my SM-A510F using Tapatalk

 

[Lrd]

Water does help a lot, if i forget to top up my water bottle then I do notice a difference in my tiredness as the night goes on. But be sure not to drink too​ much so that you're fidgeting around desperate for the loo!

 

[cossie4i]

What was we talking about

 

[E&W Lucas]

The job is an exercise in concentration management. Recognition between when you need to concentrate utterly, and when it is a more relaxed monitoring exercise.
The odd coffee is ok, but it can also mess with your ability to sleep. I generally stick to decaf. I certainly wouldn't be impressed if a trainee turned up with a can of energy drink.

 

[axlecounter]

I just make sure to always have some water with me, nothing else is needed/works for me. I eat when I have a break or some spare time, I prefer to eat in a hurry but at "normal" eating times rather than do it at very unusual times. And always following the motto "better early than late". After 11pm some chocolate fuel is usually needed...

Good routines help a lot in avoiding errors when tiredness kicks in.

 

[dmncf]

Do train drivers find it more difficult to stay alert driving at night when the lights are off in the cab?

One could draw comparisons with driving a car at night, but my feeling is that driving a car requires more frequent interaction than driving a train, making it easier to stay alert.

 

[VWCampervanman]

This is very interesting , I was asked this exact question on my MMI interview. So am interested in how drivers respond.

 

[321446]

Plenty of sleep before work. Balanced diet. Hydration.

They're the aims anyway. Recognising when one of the above has been missed or messed and doing something about it at the appropriate time. If your not able to or in any case otherwise the trick is to recognise when your concentration levels are going to be or actually are being affected and taking steps to manage that. Stand up if you can, window open, AC on cold or if you drive a draughty collendar like I do, put yer coat/gloves on if cold as that can be distraction too. Emergency biskwits. Commentary driving helps me. I don't announce every sleeper but I do what I need to do to raise me concentration levels back up.

Routines and checklists help me too. I randomly talk to myself anyway so I'm not bothered by anyone giving me strange looks, I'm quite used to it. As mentioned above, knowing when you can monitor and when you need to actively drive. Night driving a train is actually easier for me, less distractions, signals are easier to see. Night driving a car is actually more difficult because you have to concentrate more for longer, if you see what I mean.

 

[axlecounter]

Commentary driving helps me. I don't announce every sleeper but I do what I need to do to raise me concentration levels back up.

To me this is like counting sheep.

Do train drivers find it more difficult to stay alert driving at night when the lights are off in the cab?

One could draw comparisons with driving a car at night, but my feeling is that driving a car requires more frequent interaction than driving a train, making it easier to stay alert.

If I have slept well and for the appropriate number of hours I find it much easier to drive in the night rather than in the daylight. Surely staying alert while driving a car can be as difficult as driving a train only in similar conditions: rare -if any- opposite direction traffic, a dark road, not much interactions needed (no gear shifts..,)

 

[Skoodle]

Do train drivers find it more difficult to stay alert driving at night when the lights are off in the cab?

One could draw comparisons with driving a car at night, but my feeling is that driving a car requires more frequent interaction than driving a train, making it easier to stay alert.

I drive on a metro route with frequent stops and in and out of tunnels and short signal sections. I was finding that at night driving in dark then coming straight in to bright platforms was causing me to squint a lot more, then back to normal when you pull away. This made the feeling of sleepiness appear more profound than it actually was. I quickly learned that having the blind down even at night helped a lot and felt more alert driving at night since.

Another thing is I try to avoid eating carbs whilst on break. Depending on your metabolism, the resulting carb-crash can hit you when you least expect it.

Staying hydrated, iced water if possible, can keep you alert. Also never underestimate the power of the messroom! It's all good being tempted to have a quick snooze on your break but it'll just make you feel worse. Stay awake and alert, chat with colleagues etc. Probably not the most popular opinion, but I'm of the mindset that if you're that tired you need to have a nap on your break, then there are factors in home/work life balance that need to be addressed.

The best thing to do to help with fatigue is to be able to identify and take action against it's onset. "I'll be fine" and ignoring it is the worst thing to do.

 

[BTU]

I drive on a metro route with frequent stops and in and out of tunnels and short signal sections. I was finding that at night driving in dark then coming straight in to bright platforms was causing me to squint a lot more, then back to normal when you pull away. This made the feeling of sleepiness appear more profound than it actually was. I quickly learned that having the blind down even at night helped a lot and felt more alert driving at night since.

Another thing is I try to avoid eating carbs whilst on break. Depending on your metabolism, the resulting carb-crash can hit you when you least expect it.

Staying hydrated, iced water if possible, can keep you alert. Also never underestimate the power of the messroom! It's all good being tempted to have a quick snooze on your break but it'll just make you feel worse. Stay awake and alert, chat with colleagues etc. Probably not the most popular opinion, but I'm of the mindset that if you're that tired you need to have a nap on your break, then there are factors in home/work life balance that need to be addressed.

The best thing to do to help with fatigue is to be able to identify and take action against it's onset. "I'll be fine" and ignoring it is the worst thing to do.

How do you take action to being tired?when I'm tired I'm tired nothing I can do will stop it its just a part of the job and you try your best to manage it you can open the window drink water stick your AC on whatever but it doesn't stop you from feeling tired. Grab a quick snooze in the mess room if you can that helps a lot I don't feel more tired if I've had a snooze, if you need a p*ss then you go for a p*ss I don't feel worse after doing something my body needs.

 

[dk1]

I drink plenty of coffee (mainly AMT) but I eat what I like, why wouldn't I? Stations tend to attract non-healthy retail establishments & even messrooms offer us snack machines full of crisps & chocolate. I'm not too bad with concentration but it's only natural in such a boring repetitive job that I will drift off sometimes. As for sleep, don't make me laugh. The shifts are often all over the place & I was getting by on 5-6hrs last week for most days. The money is good though & that's what gets me through.

 

[Spectroscopic]

How do you take action to being tired?when I'm tired I'm tired nothing I can do will stop it its just a part of the job and you try your best to manage it you can open the window drink water stick your AC on whatever but it doesn't stop you from feeling tired. Grab a quick snooze in the mess room if you can that helps a lot I don't feel more tired if I've had a snooze, if you need a p*ss then you go for a p*ss I don't feel worse after doing something my body needs.

You mean you **** in the cab? Because I have always wondered about that....

 

[Johncleesefan]

Probably not, like me he may tell his guard he's bailing out at the next station for a tinkle and not to buzz before he's back in the seat

 

[Gemz91]

Always go to bed 8 hours before I need to be up, normally read a book for an hour if I'm in bed ridiculously early though as I know I won't be able to sleep. I avoid using laptops of my phone in bed though as apparently its bad for your eyes.

Always have plenty of water with me I drink through out the day, as others have said I really see the difference in my concentration if I'm thirsty. I don't tend to drink hot drinks at work, but thats not for any particular reason. Always have my pack up in my bag with me so just graze on my food during the day.

At certain stations where we have two or three minutes standing time I'll get out of my cab and take a little walk round the platform just to get some fresh and stretch my legs. I'll even do that if I'm not tired.

Often play games too, like reading our bridge numbers and signal numbers and calling out names of crossings and bridges. Not sure if that helps, but if not it at least helps me with my route knowledge.

 

[axlecounter]

How do you take action to being tired?when I'm tired I'm tired nothing I can do will stop it its just a part of the job and you try your best to manage it you can open the window drink water stick your AC on whatever but it doesn't stop you from feeling tired. Grab a quick snooze in the mess room if you can that helps a lot I don't feel more tired if I've had a snooze, if you need a p*ss then you go for a p*ss I don't feel worse after doing something my body needs.

Same here. Tiredness is not something you can fight, or at least I can't. You can just live with it. Having good routines that can avoid errors even with low concentration, have a snooze as soon as possible..

I could tell a few stories about drivers looking for toilets...and others too I guess...

 

[up1989]

Night tube driver here, Ive gotten into the habit of pointing out signals as I pass them, it helps keep my mind active. Water is the best thing to drink as i feel more awake than when I drank coffee cola and the like......

Some times I will close the doors from the bulk head and step out on to the platform. But most of our dwell times are 1 min max but usually 15-30 seconds.

 

[Bromley boy]

Weirdly, caffeinated products do worse for fatigue and concentration. On a recent course this was discussed. With caffeine etc you also get highs and lows. Again, bad for concentration and fatigue.

Yep.

I'm addicted to the stuff but trying to cut back. I find that it perks me up for an hour or so and then I slump.

Caffiene is also a diuretic, of course, which isn't ideal when you're driving about in a unit with no toilets.