Date:	2007-04-20 13:40
Subject:	The Sun Has Got His Hat On
Security:	Public
Mood:	cheerful

I managed to spend most of the past two weeks doing what is rapidly turning out to be my favourite duty ever - namely, Sunlight Duties.  A somewhat watered down version of SATS (that's when we stand on a busy platform with a demented ping pong bat and yell at you all to stand clear of the doors, there'll be another train along soon..), it involves relaxing on the platform in gorgeous weather and raising a hand to tell the driver that there's no one trapped in a door when sunlight is affecting his view of the platform.  The station I've been doing it at also gets quite a few "stablers" - trains that terminate before the end of the line and go into the adjacent depot - so I also have to do a handful of detrainments during the day.  Nowhere near as exciting as emergency detrainments, which is when you have to get passengers off a train stalled between platforms, it merely involves checking the rear few carriages of the train for anyone who has fallen asleep/passed out/doesn't understand the meaning of "this train terminates here".  So far I've not found anyone since, being near the end of the line, there's hardly anyone on the trains in the first place.

However, I'm now back to late shifts at a slightly busier station.  Yesterday I had my first VIP that actually needed assistance down the escalator and for us to call ahead to warn his interchange station.  We have three escalators at this station and outside peak hours, only two run, to save power and to make it easier for people with dogs.  (A dog trapped in a moving escalator generally requires limbs amputated or even to be put down - please carry them or use stairs/non-moving escalators!)  Since a load of people had just poured off another train I decided to leg it up the fixed escalator so we'd get the message to the interchange station in time - it's only a couple of stops away - and of course I completely squandered my time advantage by being unable to talk or breathe by the time I got to the Supervisor's office.  I really ought to exercise a bit more...

I had one rather amusing customer who was getting really worried since the barrier wouldn't open with her ticket.  I took it and had a look - it was a railway-style ticket rather than Underground, but that doesn't mean much since railway stations can issue tickets with Underground included.  This one, however, didn't, which I pointed out to her.  She was very insistent that it *did*, and that her partner's ticket, which they'd bought at the same time, was working fine.  I looked at it again.  "No, definitely no Underground, and - erm - do you have another ticket by any chance?  Because this one is dated April 7th..."  She looked at it again and realised I was right, and then managed to find her actual ticket, which *was* in date, and which *did* cover the Underground.  She was very good-natured about it all - and a bit embaressed since the two chaps with her were hooting with laughter. 

Another late turn tonight, yay.