Media centre

Wednesday 15 Jun 2005

REDHILL SIGNALS THE WAY FORWARD

Region & Route:

| Southern

Rail passengers using the Sussex route between Victoria, East Croydon, Gatwick Airport and Brighton are to benefit from a new training centre for Network Rail staff which opens this week.  The Redhill training school will provide signallers with a dedicated facility which will enable them to learn the job away from the pressures of front line duty and improve the service for passengers. Andrew Munden, Network Rail Route Director said:  “Signallers are the air traffic controllers of the railway.  They play a crucial role in ensuring that the thousands of passengers who use the railways every day reach their destinations safely without delay.  A signaller will typically have to make hundreds of decisions on every shift about how and where trains run.  Passengers may not always be aware of their role, but our signaller’s play a crucial part in ensuring the trains run on time.”  The school includes a simulator and full scale model railway which will be used to train signallers and other railway staff on the best way to approach a range of scenario’s and handle incidents while on duty.  Mr Munden continued: “This new training school is a great example of the investment the Company is making in its people and signals our determination to further improve performance on this busy line.  The opportunity for signallers to learn ‘on the job’ is often restricted as their priority will always be the safe and efficient running of the railway.  This new facility will help our staff be better prepared to deal with the complexities of running a safe and reliable train service for passengers.” The opening of Redhill training school marks the first stage of a £12 million investment by Network Rail to introduce 12 similar facilities across the country.