Article: More staff for QR

[ozbob]

From mX via C-M click here!

More staff for QR

More staff for QR
Article from: MX

Anna Edwards

December 18, 2007 02:35pm

A SHAKE-UP of Queensland Rail that includes 96 new staff and a new roster system is set to provide relief to commuters consistently stung by train cancellations.

Transport Minister John Mickel says 24 new guards and 24 new drivers are due to start work on Monday in a bid to curb train cancellations caused by chronic staff shortages.

As mX reported in July, the 48 new guards and drivers were due to begin work in March, but a spokesman for Mickel said today that training had been fast-tracked.

Another 48 guards would start work in March, but were hoping they can (also) be fasttracked, the spokesman said.

Mickel said yesterday that he had instructed Queensland Rail to make urgent changes to the way it looked after passengers.

"QR will begin shifting guards from low-patronage services to peak services, which I am assured will have an immediate impact on reliability of train services," he said.

Mickels office had also worked with the Rail, Tram and Bus Union and QR to change QRs eight-week roster system to a staggered four-week system, which would prevent groups of staff taking leave days at the same time, Mickels spokesman said.

"They have already started that and there will be more roster changes in early July," he said.

It was decided the new staff were needed after it was discovered QR hadn't been regularly recruiting drivers or guards, the spokesman said.

"There seems to have been a breakdown somewhere and this is still being explained to us, but there was a couple of months where no recruitment was done."

mX is free at outlets in the CBD, Fortitude Valley and South Brisbane.

[ozbob]

Hope the momentum is now maintained for future service expansions, wider peaks with 5 to 10 minute frequency (M F 5.30am to 9.30am, 3.30pm to 7.30pm) and 20 minute off peak frequency where there is presently 30 minute.

[Derwan]

Oh wow!  What a surprise.  Minister announces he's told QR to do something - and surprise surprise... it's happening within a week.  They must've trained those drivers and guards mighty quickly!!

They might have been fast-tracked, but the fast-tracking certainly didn't start when the minister made his recent statement.  It's been happening for some time and now that they're almost ready, the minister makes his statement to make it look like he's doing something about it.

Gotta love politics!  :-P

[ozbob]

This thread might be of interest too --> http://backontrack.org/mbs/index.php?topic=149.msg313#msg313

Details the cancellations on and off from July 2007  ...