James Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 Last night we had a steam special - great sight, it absolutely flew passed me! Still put time into the following three trains, but c'est la vie... Anyway, from my position I can clearly see a station and as expected a good crowd had gathered to watch it go by. I don't think they were too happy when I dropped a stopper in the the platform they were on which would have blocked their view had he not been accepted when he was! All very good but what I noticed at least three/four 'enthusiast' on the platform in hi-vis vests. I'm not sure why they do this. Is it to 'feel part' of things, or is it to try and get closer for photos in the mistaken belief that it makes them safer? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blacque Jacque Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 I've seen people doing this on several occasions recently, where their intent was quite clearly to gain advantage over others for photographic purposes. It would be a shame if they got jostled or someone stood in front of them wouldn't it ? AFAIC Hi-Viz should only be worn when necessary & should carry some kind of official identification. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold beast66606 Posted September 20, 2012 RMweb Gold Share Posted September 20, 2012 [cynical] They might actually be staff trying to use their "status" to get a better shot, "I've got my vest on so I can stand in front of you" [/cynical] Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blacque Jacque Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 "I've got my vest on so I can stand in front of you" This is precisely the attitude being shown IME, regardless of whether they are staff or not. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold TheSignalEngineer Posted September 20, 2012 RMweb Gold Share Posted September 20, 2012 http://www.networkrail.co.uk/aspx/777.aspx See the section 'While you are on the platform' Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Stationmaster Posted September 20, 2012 RMweb Gold Share Posted September 20, 2012 http://www.networkra...k/aspx/777.aspx See the section 'While you are on the platform' Spot on SE - I'd have them off PDQ but there are probably few or no staff about to be able to do that. It wasn't much of a problem back in my day on the big railway but alas the whole idea of HV kit seems to have become vastly overworked nowadays and many folk do seem to associate it with the various ideas of being bomb/train/vehicle proof or passing themselves off as something they are not. If you know the correct stuff it is easy to recognise those who shouldn't be wearing it on & about the railway, but alas that doesn't solve anything in situations like this (and if you are trying to keep up to scratch with the latest NR standard it can get rather expensive as it seems to change quite frequently anyway). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Captain Kernow Posted September 20, 2012 RMweb Gold Share Posted September 20, 2012 Enthusiasts wearing HV clothing may then think that this entitles them to go 'on or near the line'. Anyone caught on my patch without correct PPE (ie. no one in NR and it's contractors can just wear a HV jacket to go trackside these days, you need 'full orange', hard hat, safety boots etc.) and just cause to be there, will be asked to return to a public area and, if necessary, reported for further action. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold The Stationmaster Posted September 20, 2012 RMweb Gold Share Posted September 20, 2012 AFAIC Hi-Viz should only be worn when necessary & should carry some kind of official identification. It is an NR requirement that - among other things - HV clothing should not only conform to certain standards but should also carry logos and/or wording which clearly identifies the employer of the person wearing it. I believe the only exception is for Inspectors from the ORR (who are not required to have certain parts of the standard fit). Many other large organisations have their own requirements for PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) and several which I have come across also specify that the employer's name should be clearly visible on the HV jacket or coveralls. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Captain Kernow Posted September 20, 2012 RMweb Gold Share Posted September 20, 2012 I've been known to wear an HV jacket under my fleece when it's colder out than I expected, does that count?!.... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Tony_S Posted September 20, 2012 RMweb Gold Share Posted September 20, 2012 I don't know how he came to think it but at one time my son thought all people wearing Hi Vis clothing were doing community service . Tony Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
coachmann Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 Britians railway is busier now than at any time since the 1920s Holy-shmoly, Ive seen some propeganda in my 70 years but this takes some beating! Who writes this crap, 30 somethings? Taking my local station, there are two DMU's per hour, sometimes one InterCity or a Cardiff, and maybe one frieght per day but often not. That same station even in the 1970s saw many more passenger trains and certainly 3-4 ballasts per day plus the local goods and around 6 Freightlners. And I havet even touched on what was working through in steam days. As for hi-vis vests, who knows what prompts folk to wear them today? Posers? The Hi-Vis vest I was given to wear in the 1970s was quite a small peice of clothing (it still lurks somewhere in the garage), but times were vastly different then. No railwayman in his right mind would encourage me to do what I was once allowed to do and so for folk not involved in official railway activities, a hi-vis vest is as much use as a pair of clogs. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blacque Jacque Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 I think it's more about the perception, people will avoid or "give way" to someone in HV as probably being official in some form, much as sheep will avoid a dog, regardless of whether it's a trained sheepdog or not. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talltim Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 Some people wear hi-vis on their way to or from non-railwork work. If your hi-vis is also your coat would you take it off to travel home if it was cold? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold PaulRhB Posted September 20, 2012 RMweb Gold Share Posted September 20, 2012 I've been known to wear an HV jacket under my fleece when it's colder out than I expected, does that count?!.... Trying to make them fashionable as waistcoats? If hi vi isn't branded then they definitely aren't rail staff and can be asked to leave or remove it by station staff ,(if it's manned ). If they are NR staff or contractors then they have to wear hi vi trousers too and should have a hard hat with them. Traincrew don't have to wear hi vi trousers but should only go lineside if dealing with an issue on their own train so also can't gazump photo lines. If they want a photo of a charter they aren't working and have to abide by the same rules as you on the platform, and should be in a place of safety clear of all running lines and well out of others shots even if that place of safety isn't on the platform. We do have staff who will go down and control photo scrums but they do it trying to make sure everyone is behind the lines so everyone gets an equal chance safely. Often asking staff might get you a polite suggestion of a good location if they know which platform it's coming through I only wear the vest on it's own to identify me to drivers on the platform when I have info I need to pass so they don't think it's just someone hanging around outside the cab. Plus it's good for wearing if you break down or are cycling in so cars can see you. Did you know that as part of the cars emergency kit we will all soon be required to be carrying yellow hi vi in our cars in the passenger compartment? Been the law in France for some time. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
coachmann Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 I'm suprised padestrains wishing to cross the road aren't required to wear bright yellow......... Afterall a motorist who breaks down at the roadside is going to feel a bit of a numpty if he is the only one in town the colour of a kentucky fried chicken... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium John M Upton Posted September 20, 2012 RMweb Premium Share Posted September 20, 2012 It is a County Council rule around here now that primary school children on outside activities now have to wear hi-vis vests!! Did rather take me by surprise a few months back pulling into Arundel to see forty orange hi-vis vests on the platform and then realise that the average age of the wearers was about seven!! My first thought was that Network Rail's apprentice scheme was recruiting them a tad early... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DerekEm8 Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 A little different from the late 80's when a well known North Western (retired driver, much published), photographer would regularly walk along the track, (in HV vest) and climb signals in full view of waiting 'normal' photographers. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Joseph_Pestell Posted September 20, 2012 RMweb Gold Share Posted September 20, 2012 Last night we had a steam special - great sight, it absolutely flew passed me! Still put time into the following three trains, but c'est la vie... Anyway, from my position I can clearly see a station and as expected a good crowd had gathered to watch it go by. I don't think they were too happy when I dropped a stopper in the the platform they were on which would have blocked their view had he not been accepted when he was! All very good but what I noticed at least three/four 'enthusiast' on the platform in hi-vis vests. I'm not sure why they do this. Is it to 'feel part' of things, or is it to try and get closer for photos in the mistaken belief that it makes them safer? Perhaps because not many places sell anoraks these days? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Captain Kernow Posted September 20, 2012 RMweb Gold Share Posted September 20, 2012 A little different from the late 80's when a well known North Western (retired driver, much published), photographer would regularly walk along the track, (in HV vest) and climb signals in full view of waiting 'normal' photographers. Yes, interesting to compare even 20+ years ago with the present day, but even as recently as that no one batted an eyelid (or if they did, it was done in the privacy of their own signalbox) if families and photographers stood lineside to get a photo of a steam charter. There's a particular example of a 1980s charter passing Moreton-in-Marsh that I have in mind (no HV in sight), which would never be allowed today (and with good reason, in my view). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Captain Kernow Posted September 20, 2012 RMweb Gold Share Posted September 20, 2012 After all a motorist who breaks down at the roadside is going to feel a bit of a numpty if he is the only one in town the colour of a kentucky fried chicken... I suspect he'd feel less of a numpty if the HV vest saved him from being bowled over by a dozing lorry driver who had just driven too many hours on the trot from somewhere in Europe.... Plenty of cyclists wear HV these days, even if it's not lycra! (btw, are you sure your local chicken joint is a KFC, sounds like a cheapo competitor by your description of the colour! ) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest stuartp Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 It is a County Council rule around here now that primary school children on outside activities now have to wear hi-vis vests!! Having once been (partly) responsible for having to herd forty or so eight year olds on a school trip, anything which helps you spot one wandering off or straggling can only be a good thing, even if you're nowhere near a road or railway line. (Gaffer taping their arms together also helps but I believe it is frowned upon). Brightly coloured baseball caps seem quite popular for the same reason, although I suspect vests are cheaper. I have no idea why enthusiasts do it either. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DerekEm8 Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 Yes, interesting to compare even 20+ years ago with the present day, but even as recently as that no one batted an eyelid (or if they did, it was done in the privacy of their own signalbox) if families and photographers stood lineside to get a photo of a steam charter. There's a particular example of a 1980s charter passing Moreton-in-Marsh that I have in mind (no HV in sight), which would never be allowed today (and with good reason, in my view). CK. Or even earlier (1980) an officially sanctioned photo stop on the 'Cumbrian Mountain Express' at Appleby 5690 Appleby 21 August 1980 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Captain Kernow Posted September 20, 2012 RMweb Gold Share Posted September 20, 2012 CK. Or even earlier (1980) an officially sanctioned photo stop on the 'Cumbrian Mountain Express' at Appleby 5690 Appleby 21 August 1980 Indeed, how times change! Nice photo btw! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
coachmann Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 I suspect he'd feel less of a numpty if the HV vest saved him from being bowled over by a dozing lorry driver who had just driven too many hours on the trot from somewhere in Europe.... In the full context of what I originally wrote, I was merely saying that other people in town would not be obliged to wear yellow, only the motorist who had broken down and was obeying a blanket law. Plenty of cyclists wear HV these days, even if it's not lycra! I would be happier if they donned an awareness of other pavement and cycle path users plus a BELL! (btw, are you sure your local chicken joint is a KFC, sounds like a cheapo competitor by your description of the colour! ) Got it wrong....I meant a Cleidopus gloriamaris fish. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Lurker Posted September 20, 2012 Share Posted September 20, 2012 Mind, clogs are very useful, especially when working on steam engines And farms, and windmills (old style!), and luring in tourists, and .... and ... ....and going to New Model Army gigs.... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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