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Blue lights and siren: it's a Tube engineer on a 2012 emergency
Peter Dominiczak, City Hall Correspondent25 Nov 2011
Tube engineers will be rushed across London by police cars with their sirens blaring in a bid to keep trains moving during the Olympics.
Transport for London emergency responders will be given "blue-light status" to greatly decrease the time it takes to fix a failed train.
For the first time, Tube engineers carrying vital tools and components will be able to cut through heavy central London traffic as if they were an emergency service.
Tube bosses today said the move will transform the transport network and "dramatically improve reliability and response times".
Under the plans British Transport Police vehicles will either escort a Transport for London vehicle or pick up engineers to ferry them to the site of a failure.
London Underground managing director Mike Brown told the Standard: "Our ability to get the right person and component [to a failed Tube train] has occasionally been hampered by traffic. We are working with the BTP to trial blue-light response for our engineers.
"Traffic can cause very serious delays. It's about urgency and getting things moving as quickly as possible."
The project is being tested now and is expected to be rolled out in February next year. Mr Brown added: "I'm absolutely sure that we've got all the bits lined up to get us in the best possible place for the Olympics.
"This is a huge challenge but I have no doubt that London's transport system will be a part of the success of the Games."
He added: "This is about being properly linked to the emergency services. It is using commonsense thinking to deal with problems."
The London Assembly's transport committee chairman Caroline Pidgeon today welcomed the move.
She said: "We've got to keep the Tube going through the Games more than at any other time.
London's reputation depends on it. If doing that means giving engineers blue light status then I am all for it. Anything that gets the Tube working more quickly can only be a good thing."
Transport expert Tony Travers said: "This shows an admirable commitment to speeding up repairs but it shows that the system is still suffering from failures and breakdowns. It would be much better not to have the need for use of blue lights in the first place."
Mr Brown revealed the plans at TfL's Reliability Lab in Acton, where about 350 engineers are working around the clock to improve Tube performance before the Olympics.
Reader views (19)
shame that they couldn't provide such extensive assistance when the 7/7 bombs went off, isn't it.............
- jane rochester, london england, 26/11/2011 16:43
Actually several staff did go down the tunnels to assist, others were prepared to but were told by Police they would be arrested if they did so. But getting back to the subject of this article, the ERU were instrumental in recovering the bombed trains. Recovering broken trains is one of their specialities.
- Disgruntled Tube Worker, London, 27/11/2011 12:28
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shame that they couldn't provide such extensive assistance when the 7/7 bombs went off, isn't it.............
- jane rochester, london england, 26/11/2011 16:43
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ERU's should be equiped with lights and sirens anyway, it was looked into after 2005, but, yet again, nothing has been done to progress this.
London only has about 4 heavy ERU's and a few lighter vans, why can't they just train the drivers just as the LFB do in 2 weeks?
- GBC, London, 26/11/2011 12:11
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tom, london - quite right, mate! If only our prime minister had Bob Crow's gumption....
- ID, South Coast, UK, 26/11/2011 09:24
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I fear for the 'elf and safety of the downtrodden Tuber worker on this one. All these guys and the union leader and safety guru Robert Crow want is safety on the network. Sending personnel, tools and skills to help out would definitely be a risky step too far. I say we should ballot for action next Wednesday and if we all agree, we are all out onto the picket line (home on the sofa) for the day (if it is sunny). Think safety people.
- Bob Under the Hat, Gospel Oak, London, 26/11/2011 02:09
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Politicians and hangers-on: GOLD
Corporate trough-swillers: SILVER
Sport: BRONZE.
Welcome to the tackiest games ever. Even the souvenirs are made in China! Tacky? The whole junket wouldn't look out of place on Blue Peter.
- Gatedweller, The People's Republic of Newham, 25/11/2011 22:23
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hahaha, bob i only clicked on this story to see who would be the first to turn it some how into a "i hate bob crow" forum. well done mate, i knew there'd be at least one doughnut that wouldn't let me down and give me a chuckle. i feel so sorry for you bob, your so brain washed you can't even see it!!! enjoy your bitter and twisted bob crow hating evening won't you!!!
- tom, london, 25/11/2011 21:44
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They'll need a lot of police cars then...
- Baron von Richtofen, Biggin Hill, 25/11/2011 21:27
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Alternatively the selfish lot could stop trying to drive around central London for a few days. Would be nice to have a little less congestion and air pollution for once!
- Tom, London, 25/11/2011 18:11
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Presumably since TfL aren't Olympic VIPs, a police car with emergency lights is the only way for them to be allowed in the reserved lanes, and because of those lanes, the rest of the roads will be grid-locked.
- Nigel, London, 25/11/2011 16:56
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I'm not at all convinced that this would be legal. It might very well be "ultra vires". A broken down train is not the same as a life threatening event and therefore "twos and blues" would not be appropriate. If there were an accident the police driver could well be held responsible.
- John, Battersea, 25/11/2011 16:25
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Typical incorrect reporting - BTP officers trained to drive with "blues and twos" will be driving the ERU response vehicles (which look similar to fire engines but a different colour). They will only be using fast response when it warrants it, i.e when lives are in danger, persons trapped etc. They deal with a range of issues from signal failures, re-railing trains to persons trapped under trains.
- Disgruntled Tube Worker, London, 25/11/2011 15:04
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Must be expecting all the replacement parts to be small! Why can't they just use existing underground services?
- Lester, Newtownards,N Ireland, 25/11/2011 13:27
Hmm. Well, if the line is blocked by a broken down train, the trains behind it are stuck too, so they ain't goinna be going very far are they.
I know you don't have the Underground in Newtonards, but it's hardly rocket science.
- Craig, London, 25/11/2011 13:49
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Must be expecting all the replacement parts to be small! Why can't they just use existing underground services?
- Lester, Newtownards,N Ireland, 25/11/2011 13:27
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How is that going to help when the entire system is held to ransom by Crow and his cronies? Or will they be rushing to deliver large bags of unmarked cash to keep them working?
- Bob, Cheam, 25/11/2011 13:13
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Doubtless followed by a camera crew from the Beeb or C5 for some execrable reality TV programme later in 2012.
Spare us.
- Chris Rea, On the beach, 25/11/2011 13:09
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To have untrained drivers running on blue lights is a recipe for disaster. Police Drivers have an extensive course that they must pass before they are allowed to drive in this manner and they still have accidents. To have someone injured or tragically killed by someone en route to a broken down train is a tragedy that must not be allowed to happen. As an ex-response trained driver, I would refuse to do a 'blue light run' for something that was not a life or death situation.
- Paul Bradford, Monflanquin, France, 25/11/2011 12:49
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Should you really ask Londoners to stay in doors for a few weeks while this Pandemonium ensues,can you really keep thinking up stupid ideas to inconvenience the London population.
- Davey_Buoy, Chertsey, 25/11/2011 12:45
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Could we not have this all year to.
- The prophet of doom, UK Dustbin of Europe, 25/11/2011 12:38
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