How on earth do you remember so many 'pushes'? How long is the training? Do you have many breaks during the day?
Its not so much how many, as most are the same each hour of course, the number covers the whole signalbox, at that time with 3 NX panels and 4 Signalmen and an SSM per shift. (3 on panels and 1 x Meal Break Signalman). but the button pushes were the total over the day on all panels, but still only takes 1 wrong button in all of that !
The shifts are 12 hours, and have a break in the morning and one in the afternoon, so the MB man does 2 hours on each panel during the shift, he also helps out when there is an incident and the panel needs two people on there.
As Watershed said, it goes off memory 1Pxx goes that way a 1Nxx goes this way etc,
The box concerned is now a Sub-Roc and is bigger, has 2 x NX Panels, and 6 MCS workstations, of which 4 are Track Circuit Block and 2 are Axle Counter, but those two are a seperate link, and a bit lower grade.
The box now has 8 Signallers on shift and 2 x Meal Break Signallers, there is a 2 hour gap mid day in breaks to allow Managers to speak to a Signaller for whatever reason if needed, There is also a Shift Signaller Manager on duty to oversee the box, and deal with Control / Paperwork etc
The MCS workstations have ARS, well SARS which is a slightly different name for the same thing, but SARS & ARS is hit a miss too, as many will testify I am sure
As for headcodes Freights are the most that are at risk of wrong routes, they will change which way a certain freight will go (via GEML or via Ely) but keep the same headcode, unless it's spotted it may be pointed the wrong way, some FOC's deal with a change of route better than others