Train Operator Exam # 8098

[Yoshi809]

A division training is 4 months and B division is 6 months also for now they are having train operators do 3 months in the yard halfway thru training in addition to the regular training. As far as the signals quiz dont worry about it you will have time to prepare for it I belive they give it to you before they sent you to the yard for 3 months. Dont get to far ahead of yourself, as long as you study and pay attention you will be fine.

Actually, A Division training is 7 months and the B Division is 9 months

[RTOMan]

Thank you brother.

 

Welcome!

[mediccjh]

You will get a signals booklet. Study that. Over and over and over..

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

30 mins a day, every day, and that Signal Exam will be cake.

 

Congratulations, and welcome to RTO.

[Tommy John]

A division training is 4 months and B division is 6 months also for now they are having train operators do 3 months in the yard halfway thru training in addition to the regular training. As far as the signals quiz dont worry about it you will have time to prepare for it I belive they give it to you before they sent you to the yard for 3 months. Dont get to far ahead of yourself, as long as you study and pay attention you will be fine.

 

 

Actually, A Division training is 7 months and the B Division is 9 months

 

 

30 mins a day, every day, and that Signal Exam will be cake.

 

Congratulations, and welcome to RTO.

 

 

Thank you guys for the responses. Appreciate you helping a rookie out.  Seems like they increased the training right ? From what I read on here people said it was 3-5 1/2 months before or am I mistaken ?  Man I am excited for this new venture !

[SubwayGuy]

Thank you guys for the responses. Appreciate you helping a rookie out.  Seems like they increased the training right ? From what I read on here people said it was 3-5 1/2 months before or am I mistaken ?  Man I am excited for this new venture !

 

A Division:

-2 months schoolcar instruction

-2 weeks yard posting

-3 months in the yard (unless they've ended the YX program before your class, but this is just a rumor and no dates have been confirmed)

-1 month schoolcar instruction, which includes 2 weeks operating trains overnight, where that will be all you do

-3 weeks road posting

-2 weeks schoolcar instruction

Total: Approximately 7 months

 

B Division follows the same layout but is longer since you have more posting, and slightly longer instruction periods since there are more types of equipment, and will be 9 months.

 

-In both divisions, you will have quizzes (including the signal quiz). Except on the infamous signal quiz, 80% is passing. Quizzes are not averaged, they are pass/fail. If you fail any quiz, you will get a retest...except the signal quiz. The signal quiz you must get 100%, no retests. It's not bad if you've studied. Look at your rule book AND your signal study guide, and memorize those definitions as close to word for word as you can. If you write something your instructor/the superintendent doesn't agree with and wants to mark wrong, you'd better be able to point to something you were given by MTA that says why what you wrote is OK.

 

-You will have a midterm exam which will consist of questions covering all of the material in that course to the point. 80% is passing.

 

-You will have 2 yard practicals. The first focuses heavily on "cuts and adds" - first you will have to prepare a train for yard movement, demonstrate that you can read iron (seriously...learn this skill and master it early), perform brake tests, and safely couple and uncouple trains. The second focuses on troubleshooting. First you will have to prepare a train for service (more involved), and troubleshoot a brake pipe rupture somewhere on your train. The ins and outs of all of these procedures will be covered and practiced during your training, and if you feel they have not been covered adequately, you may address it at the appropriate time. All practicals are pass/fail.

 

-"Posting" refers to the act of placing you with an experienced employee to learn the ins and outs of "familiarization" with an area. Familiarization is one of the most important aspects of training, as you need to be aware of the unique circumstances of where you are at all times. Yard posting will familiarize you with the yard layouts (so when you sign in and a dispatcher tells you your put-in is on Track 54, you know where that is...you don't just look for Track 1 and start counting up...which doesn't always work!), give you time to fine tune your train control, practice cuts and adds, get used to OKing trains for service, operate in and out of the shop, and learn the dos and don'ts of each yard. Road posting will familiarize you with each line's signals, fast stations, time controlled areas, tight curves where you should operate slower than what is posted, and lineups (routes).

 

-You will have a final exam which consists of slightly more questions than the midterm, which covers everything you've learned up to THAT point in the course. It is necessarily more involved than the midterm. Again, 80% is passing. Also don't think because you've "already" passed the signals exam you won't see a few write-ins here.

 

-You will have a road practical which consists of you operating an empty train down one of the lines in your division, with no supervision and only a superintendent present grading you. Some superintendents prefer to not be in the cab at all, and simply watch your operation from inside the passenger compartment. They will not give you any "tips" or reminders while operating. You must make proper station stops at all stops along the route, follow all posted speed restrictions, demonstrate good train control, and operate safely AND comfortably in accordance with the signal aspects being displayed (including timers). Hitting a signal, overrunning a station, repeatedly underrunning stations, coming close to hitting a red signal, poor train control, and erratic/uncomfortable braking are all causes for the superintendent to either fail you outright or recommend additional instruction. Again, as a practical this is pass/fail.

 

-Once you complete all these steps, you will be released to the road, and the crew office in your division will typically assign you an additional week of posting as "skill enhancement" where you will post on the same job for a week. Following that, you will work your assigned runs alone, but expect a TSS (supervisor) to ride with you for your first round trip each time you work a line for the first time on your own.

 

There is plenty of time and attention given to new T/O's...just speak up if you don't know something (don't operate blind), stay alert and thinking at all times, and learn to respect the yellow signals. Again, I say this to everyone - use the familiarization time in schoolcar to ACTUALLY get familiar with your division. It will help a lot, and use the schoolcar instruction periods (when it's just you and your class on an empty train) to mess around entering stations and learn what the train can actually do, and can't. Just don't ever hit a signal. DON'T BE SCARED TO RUN A STATION WHEN IT'S JUST YOU AND YOUR CLASS ON AN EMPTY TRAIN (unless the leaving signal is red). If you don't understand the limits of the train's braking, you won't master train control until you do. And you don't want passengers on your train when you finally do run that first one. Likewise, you won't learn anything braking really early and creeping up to the stop marker either. Be a sponge, learn everything you can...good AND bad. You want to know what TO do as much as you want to know what NOT to.

[RTOMan]

^^What Subway Guy Said...

 

Just be humble and ask ask ask..

 

Most Folks out here (unlike when some of us started back in 2001) are more than glad to help...

[Yoshi809]

This monday I'll be on my final week of posting. The following week consists of the final exam and road practical. Lord willing I'll be out of school car 12/22. My advice to all the recent inductees is as follows. Study Signals, read your induction book through and thoroughly. Study signals, don't be nervous or get intimidated, YOU are the train operator, you control the train don't let it control you! Study signals, study rule book and memorize the rules that pertains to your title, study signals, and most importantly, pay attention! Get enough rest. It sucks when you're tired and locked in that cab with nothing but clanking steel to listen to and no one to talk to. Good luck everyone!

[Tommy John]

Thanks again guys for the advice ! Really means a lot ! Subway guy thanks for the in depth detail of this.  Man this is a lot to absorb !!

[cybeatsul]

The yard program for 3 months continues after the upcoming pick. Yard movement and safety are paramount along reading the switches and getting permission to proceed when a lineup is established. Yard is a dangerous place because many things could go wrong. Under no circumstances, never back up a train to compound more damage, unhooking a stop arm without permission, inspect the train 360 to look for open covers, obstructions in the track before moving out in the barn or on the track, and watch the speed and safety stops. Apply sufficient amount of handbrakes on the SMEE equipment when laying up.

[RTOPRO]

The yard program for 3 months continues after the upcoming pick. Yard movement and safety are paramount along reading the switches and getting permission to proceed when a lineup is established. Yard is a dangerous place because many things could go wrong. Under no circumstances, never back up a train to compound more damage, unhooking a stop arm without permission, inspect the train 360 to look for open covers, obstructions in the track before moving out in the barn or on the track, and watch the speed and safety stops. Apply sufficient amount of handbrakes on the SMEE equipment when laying up.

It's continuation after this new pick ends is up in the air at this point. No one is willing to confirm anything in true NYCT fashion. We'll just have to wait and see when the 2014 summer work program gets released.

[RTOMan]

It's continuation after this new pick ends is up in the air at this point. No one is willing to confirm anything in true NYCT fashion. We'll just have to wait and see when the 2014 summer work program gets released.

 

Lotta drama over this,something that was supposed to help isn't helping as much as some thought.

Edited December 8, 2013 by RTOMan

[Juelz4309]

Do you get to get to pick ya own division? I want the A Division if I hadda pick...wud ahe to have to start and end my day in Far Rockway! lol

Do you get to get to pick ya own division? I want the A Division if I hadda pick...wud ahe to have to start and end my day in Far Rockway! lol

I meant hate to start in far rock 

[Tommy John]

Questions for all you T/O's. How long did it take you personally(after school car) to become used to the job ? Meaning you go to work and you are familiar with everything like the back of your hand and everything becomes routine or 2nd nature to you?  I know everyone will be different but just curious.  For example my brother in law is a yellow taxi driver and he told me it took him about 1 year on the job to feel comfortable at it meaning he knows how to go to 95% of destinations, knows the ins and outs of traffic signs, where cops hide(lol) to give you a summons and all the little nuances of the job itself etc stuff like that.. Thanks guys for your feedback.

Edited December 8, 2013 by Tommy John

[SubwayGuy]

Questions for all you T/O's. How long did it take you personally(after school car) to become used to the job ? Meaning you go to work and you are familiar with everything like the back of your hand and everything becomes routine or 2nd nature to you?  I know everyone will be different but just curious.  For example my brother in law is a yellow taxi driver and he told me it took him about 1 year on the job to feel comfortable at it meaning he knows how to go to 95% of destinations, knows the ins and outs of traffic signs, where cops hide(lol) to give you a summons and all the little nuances of the job itself etc stuff like that.. Thanks guys for your feedback.

 

You never stop learning down here.

 

By the time you are released from schoolcar you should feel comfortable handling a train and operating in any environment. The rest is familiarization (there are literally thousands of obscure moves that you could be asked to make down here, and no one person knows them all). So you will continue learning for the rest of your career. If you don't, or you stop learning...you're doing it wrong.

 

By 3-4 months out of schoolcar you should have mastered operation of the lines in your division along the "regular" service patterns, but you'll still have much more to learn, and it will stay that way as long as you work here...even if you promote, or even if you just stay a T/O for the rest of your time.

[Tommy John]

You never stop learning down here.

 

By the time you are released from schoolcar you should feel comfortable handling a train and operating in any environment. The rest is familiarization (there are literally thousands of obscure moves that you could be asked to make down here, and no one person knows them all). So you will continue learning for the rest of your career. If you don't, or you stop learning...you're doing it wrong.

 

By 3-4 months out of schoolcar you should have mastered operation of the lines in your division along the "regular" service patterns, but you'll still have much more to learn, and it will stay that way as long as you work here...even if you promote, or even if you just stay a T/O for the rest of your time.

 

Thank you SubwayGuy for the response.  Yeah I figured the learning will never stop, ever, just wondered in terms of what you said 'mastered the operations in my division'. You put it better in words than what I tried to convey. Thanks again man, much respect.

[JMMercedes]

Hey guys, I have been reading this topic forum for a while and I must admit I have learn a lot...  I too have taken the TO 8098 exam and would love to be called... My question ( I already know the answer to this but it doesn't hurt to ask) is do I have a shot to be called with a list number at 70XX ...  

 

I am happy for the guys who have been called and wish them good luck... 

[BkBound]

Anyone on here with a list number from 1700-1999? If so, have you been called for a drug test yet?

[RonC621]

Afternoon guys, im actually in the 1660's and went for for final processing December 5th and got into the December 16th class. Im not sure if they are taking anyone else for the 16th class but im sure they will get to list numbers in the 1700 range for next class. Good Luck to everyone and whoever else is in the December 16th class I will see you then.

[Juelz4309]

Got called in for the DT On the 20th...list number in from 1990-2010... When should I expect to be called in for the medical?/? Thanx Fellas!!!!

[Yoshi809]

Hey guys, I have been reading this topic forum for a while and I must admit I have learn a lot... I too have taken the TO 8098 exam and would love to be called... My question ( I already know the answer to this but it doesn't hurt to ask) is do I have a shot to be called with a list number at 70XX ...

 

I am happy for the guys who have been called and wish them good luck...

Unfortunately, the list will expire before they call you. Sorry.

Got called in for the DT On the 20th...list number in from 1990-2010... When should I expect to be called in for the medical?/? Thanx Fellas!!!!

Usually within 2 weeks, but then again, this is transit.

Afternoon guys, im actually in the 1660's and went for for final processing December 5th and got into the December 16th class. Im not sure if they are taking anyone else for the 16th class but im sure they will get to list numbers in the 1700 range for next class. Good Luck to everyone and whoever else is in the December 16th class I will see you then.

Congrats!

[trainman]

Does anyone know the date in January for the NEXT School Car class?

[RTOPRO]

1/13/14

[trainman]

1/13/14

Thank u

[Brighton Local]

Good Luck to Everybody!

[Juelz4309]

How Long is the D/T Good For? Already took one and now waitin to be called back for the medical...Should I expect to be tested again? Or Am I in the clear...Thanx again...