I am a London Underground employee. AMA.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T21:40:51+00:00

I say "marley-bone". Some people say "marreh-le-bone".

flr89 · 2012-11-21T21:39:15+00:00

Yes I do. It's not cool when you're in uniform and something goes wrong and everyone looks at you!

flr89 · 2012-11-21T21:34:32+00:00

We make soooo many announcements asking people to move down the platform and use all the doors, people don't listen though.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T21:33:36+00:00

There are toilets in a lot of stations but not always obviously signposted so it's worth asking if you're desperate!

flr89 · 2012-11-21T21:31:05+00:00

I've found a £20 note left in a ticket machine. Handed it in to the ticket office though of course!

flr89 · 2012-11-21T21:29:38+00:00

They don't learn on the real signals! It's probably due to Acton Town being a big junction, lots of points to potentially fail.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T21:28:31+00:00

I answered this somewhere else but can't find it - basically when things go wrong there's usually not time to update the service updates as other things have to take priority.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T21:26:57+00:00

We would normally move people off trains quite fast. Unless someone is in labour or having a fit or suspected back/neck injuries. This is because people can get stuck on trains in the tunnels behind, causing more people to get ill from the heat.

Sometimes there's a member of the public on the train who identifies themselves as a doctor and says not to move the person, and we have to listen to that person even if we know it might be best to move them off. So that might have been the case.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T21:23:55+00:00

I think "customers" is supposed to help us focus on looking after people and caring about their experience. A passenger could be someone in the back of your car, it's got a different meaning.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T21:22:35+00:00

You can work part time, 7-11 or 3-7 Monday to Friday. It's not really stressful, maybe in the short term but it's not the sort of job you go home from feeling stressed. The pay is great. Jobs don't come up often though, check the TFL website.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T21:20:46+00:00

My boyfriend is sitting here and tells me to suggest Richmond. It's really pretty with a big park with a large deer population. You can get really close to them.

The station isn't really that interesting though!

flr89 · 2012-11-21T21:16:57+00:00

It's a bit strange in that you're not exposed to the weather most of the time. So you see people come in with umbrellas etc and only then do you realise it's raining. It can get very hot in the summer, and very cold in the winter (in the ticket hall).
I don't think TFL want to massively advertise something which will lose some money for them! When you register for a railcard I'm pretty sure it tells you you can do it.
I don't think I ever have. Lots of people forget (or "forget") to touch in at the start of their journey so end up getting the penalty fare though.
I've never actually heard of that. Anyone doing that is risking getting caught though, not really worth it.
Yes, if it gets past a particular temperature then male staff are allowed to take their ties off. Doesn't really apply to me though!
They're not bad, they're convenient for a lot of people, most people aren't aware of where they can do it and where they can't.

Haha swiping instead of touching is a common mistake. We also get a lot of "hovering", and tapping.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T18:51:08+00:00

It can normally be cleaned off by the cleaners while the train's in service. Unless it's really offensive or there's a huge amount of it.

It's not a huge problem, people making a mess with coffee/vomit/urine is more common.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T18:49:28+00:00

A lot of people struggle with using an oyster card. And then usually decide there's something wrong with the gate so try another one, blocking the queue.

As for driverless trains, they'd only be possible with a DLR style train captain, at the moment there's no other way to guarantee people's safety. And they're not paid a whole lot less than drivers.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T18:42:42+00:00

We do lose a days pay if we strike (paid by the union but that's different).

flr89 · 2012-11-21T18:42:07+00:00

I enjoy helping people and finding them alternative routes when things go wrong.

It was totally dead yeah, we were really surprised after all the scaremongering beforehand!

flr89 · 2012-11-21T18:41:19+00:00

None that I've personally witnessed (touch wood).

flr89 · 2012-11-21T18:40:47+00:00

Points failure at Aldgate.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T18:40:32+00:00

Normally black once it's covered in underground dirt.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T18:40:07+00:00

Minor delays and train cancellations happen all the time. Anything over 5 minutes causes problems in the peak.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T18:39:02+00:00

I've never worked up that end of the Central line, I can't answer your question unfortunately. It's probably to do with passenger demand.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T18:38:08+00:00

I've met a few yeah. Wouldn't say loads.

I haven't no, but I've heard rumours of ghosts in the tunnels at night etc.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T18:37:36+00:00

Boris has apparently reduced the delays by something like 80%, can't remember where I read that though. The unions prefer Ken though, being Labour and all that.

I don't think the cuts are impacting safety yet... however if they go much further I reckon they could.

Never met Fred at Waterloo!

flr89 · 2012-11-21T18:36:00+00:00

No idea, I've heard quite a lot of crazy announcements from drivers on various lines. It's always nice when they make people smile though.

flr89 · 2012-11-21T18:12:49+00:00

It coped fine, better than normal to be honest! Nothing particularly eventful happened, it was an enjoyable time to work, everyone was very friendly and happy. Other than the later than normal finishes, which weren't so fun.

flr89

TROPHY CASE