The Changing Place of Women on the Railways Although the first railways were built as far back as the 1820s, it was not until the outbreak of the First World War that women began to become employed on them and, from what has been written, it was not something that was, at least initially done from choice but, instead was a situation that was forced upon the railway companies as hundreds of thousands of men were taken into the armed forces and a new source of labour had to be found very quickly. Immediately the war ended, these women were thrown back out into civvie street as their men took back the jobs. The same situation occurred in 1939 and in this case, their stories have been written in a fascinating new book - Female Railway Workers in World War II by Susan Major (published by Pen & Sword). Susan is a railway historian, is retired and now lives in York. In her book, she says,
“With millions of men called up for service, it fell to women to keep many of Britain’s vital industries and services running, among them, the railways. There had of course been women already working in some areas of the railway, such as in clerical, cleaning, and catering jobs but, in wartime, many women were employed in the kind of work which was completely new to females, working as porters and guards, and in maintenance and workshop operations.” Obviously, things have moved on a lot since those unenlightened days and the occurrence of International Women’s Day on the 8th March provided an opportunity to see how things have changed and are continuing to change for the better. In this article, Great Western Star talks to one lady in South Wales and looks at how other ladies are enjoying life on the railways across the country.
Driver Training in South Wales The opportunity arose to talk to Beverley (Bev) Hannible who works for Transport for Wales in Cardiff as the company’s first female train driver and who has now been promoted to Driver & Operations Trainer for TfW. Great Western Star: Firstly, congratulations on your appointment, it’s quite a responsibility! Does train driving run through your family? Bev Hannible: I believe so. Certainly, my grandfather was a train driver in and around Manchester, although I don’t know a lot about his career. GWS: How long have you been working on the railway? BH: I joined as a Guard in 2005 before progressing to become a train driver in April 1025. At that time, I then felt confident enough to make this big step up to become a driver. In November 2020, I was promoted to my current position, having been working down here in Cardiff for three years. GWS: Which routes were you driving? BH: I was fortunate in that I have been driving up into the Valleys, so out to Merthyr, Aberdare, Treherbert and down to Barry Island. These are lovely routes and so it was a nice run up there. GWS: If you were so happy driving, what made you switch to training? BH: I loved my time as a driver, but I also love teaching. About 20 years ago, I taught street dancing and so this new job allows me to marry two skills – driving and teaching. I find that I 20
GREAT WESTERN STAR MAGAZINE
Spring 2021
thoroughly enjoy training as it gives me a great deal of satisfaction as each group passes out but, yes, I do still miss those rides up the valleys! As Transport for Wales – Driver and Operations Trainer, it carries a great deal of responsibility but there is another aspect to this. I believe, and this is something that is also important to TfW, we must show that we are not just employing women behind the scenes but that we are keen to have them in front line positions, namely driving. We are moving down this route and my position as trainer is a sign that being a woman is no barrier to progress. We already have women in the training team who are training platform staff, guards, and conductors and so this latest step reinforces that. GWS: What do you find so interesting about this job? BH: It is like any training or teaching job in that each group or class will be different. The mix of
