I moved to London from Warrington, Cheshire, when I was 18 with no job and no real plan except for hanging out with friends and being with a girl I’d met. I had to find something to keep myself afloat, so I applied to do whatever was available: telesales, telemarketing, railways – anything.
I then became a shunter, which involves helping to move trains in and out of depots, and becoming a train driver after that just seemed like a natural progression. As a freight train manager, I now make just over £70,000 a year. Passenger train drivers generally earn closer to £80,000, and cheaper train travel is one of the perks.
Many of Helen Gander’s 12-hour shifts begin at 3am
I learned about routes, how trains work and move and how to fix them, and spent around 250 hours of driving with an instructor, essentially holding my hand.
One thing I love about my job is that I see amazing sunrises and sunsets. I’ve been on holidays to places like Thailand and watched the sun go down, but some of the best sunsets I’ve ever seen have been at work on the railway. I see the changes of the seasons, wildlife, birds – it’s like working outdoors indoors. I’m not exposed to the elements, but I witness them all through the window.
I do a lot of work on engineering sites, so it can be physically demanding. When they’re digging up the railway, I turn up with a freight train with the stone that’s going to go onto the track that they’re relaying.
You really need to have an understanding family. My wife, Claire, who works on the railway as a dispatcher, must be the most understanding person I know. It’s not the sort of job where you can burn the candle at both ends and go to work tired the next day. I have missed family events because I had to be up for work in the middle of the night.
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Helen Gander has been advocating for more neurodivergent people to join the railway since her autism diagnosis three years ago
After that post, I was approached to write something for ASLEF, the train drivers’ union, and it just exploded. I had so many messages from people saying that it had resonated with them. There was a young girl with autism who messaged saying she didn’t think she could drive trains, but is now training to be a driver for Transport for Wales after seeing my article. I was blown away.
Being a woman on the railway is great – but there’s still room for progress. On the passenger trains and train operator side, more and more women are being recruited – but freight can be a little behind. Sometimes the facilities aren’t the best, and uniforms in the past have been ill-fitting, with no pockets. Things are changing, though. Our uniform coordinator is a hero. I have the best jacket I’ve ever worn, it fits well, the arms aren’t too long, it takes my shape into account – I’d wear it outside if it wasn’t bright orange.
Ticket to ride: train drivers in numbers
Britain has a shortage of train drivers. The Government is reducing the minimum age at which you can obtain a licence from 20 to 18, and hopes to boost recruitment among women and people from a minority ethinic background. Qualified freight train managers working 34.5 hours a week over four days (with options for overtime) earn £70,889. Pensions for railway workers are based on final salary, depending on the number of years worked. Most train drivers enjoy reduced train travel as a perk, typically 75 per cent off the normal cost, including on international services Read More Details
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