The Working Time Directive limits rail crew to specific rostered and total working hour thresholds. The union agreement specifies overtime rates and the conditions under which they apply. The operator's performance data system tracks delay attribution. All three systems need the same data — sign-on time, trip number, sign-off time, actual versus scheduled — and all three need it to be accurate. The driver's own log, kept contemporaneously for each shift, is the record that reconciles all three.
The Signed On to Signed Off Timeline
Signed On, @ (location of sign-on), Departure, From, Arrived, At, Signed Off, AT (location of sign-off) document the complete shift geography and timing. The gap between Signed On time and Departure time is the preparation time — the minutes spent taking over the locomotive, completing the pre-departure checks, receiving briefings, walking to the platform. That gap is part of the paid working day. Without a precise sign-on time separate from the departure time, preparation time disappears from the pay calculation.
Wkg Hrs calculates the total working hours for the shift. Prev Wkg Hrs carries the cumulative working hours against the Week 7 Fatigue rules that limit consecutive day working and total weekly hours for safety. Roster Hrs is the scheduled hours for the shift as per the train crew management system. The difference between Wkg Hrs and Roster Hrs is either a short booking (under the rostered time, which affects how the next sign-on is calculated) or the basis for Over Time calculation.
Over Time is the field that most train crews consider the most important one. An operator may pay overtime at different rates depending on the reason for the extended shift — delay, service disruption, a missed rostering connection. Having the overtime hours in the individual trip log, alongside the Train No and Trip No that can be cross-referenced against the performance management system, is the documentation that supports an overtime claim when the pay advice doesn't match the hours worked.
Performance Against Schedule
Sch Done (schedule done — the scheduled completion time) with On (whether done on time) and Sch Due with ON are the punctuality fields. TOC (Time On Course?) and HOC may capture regulation and code compliance fields specific to this operator. These fields feed the delay attribution data that operators submit to Network Rail — minutes of delay attributed to TOC (Train Operating Company) vs. infrastructure vs. other causes. A driver whose log shows consistent on-time performance has data to push back against incorrectly attributed delay minutes that would otherwise go unchallenged.
Fuel and Consumption Efficiency
Consumption and REG/COAST are the fuel management fields. REG/COAST distinguishes between regulated (powered) running and coasting — the technique of shutting off power and allowing momentum to carry the train, which is the primary fuel-saving technique available to drivers on non-emergency braking approaches to stations and signals. A driver who logs their REG/COAST balance over multiple trips can track their efficiency improvement as they learn a route's gradient profile and the optimal coasting points.
Loco No is the asset identifier. Fuel consumption varies between locomotive classes and between individual locomotives of the same class — an engine with a known fuel system issue, or one that's been derating power output due to a fault, will show higher consumption for the same work. Tracking consumption by Loco No surfaces individual locomotive performance issues that the maintenance team needs to investigate.
Guard, Mobile, Cms Id, and LP complete the operational record with the crew details and communications identifiers for the shift.