Take a look inside the Nexus Learning Centre in South Shields, with the transport provider’s training base housing the ‘immersive’ Tyne and Wear Metro simulator. The virtual train has already been used by all of the current Metro drivers, becoming ‘integral’ to that process.
Each of the existing drivers was required to use the simulator for around four and a half hours, as well as spending six hours training on the new trains themselves, ensuring that they were fully prepared for the full introduction of the new fleet of trains last year.
Now, with Nexus predicting that all journeys will be made on new trains by the end of the summer, this state-of-the-art technology will only become more crucial to its staff. The Learning and Development team has been using the simulator for a full schedule of training sessions, beginning with its installation in July 2022.
A new cohort of future drivers is set to begin their training soon, and they will be the first group to train exclusively with the new fleet in mind, so the simulator will continue to be used all of the time. Michael Darling, a Learning and Development Specialist, who has been with Nexus for 12 years, knows just how important the simulator is.
He said: “I was a music teacher before, so I’ve always had a passion for educating, and it was interesting having to learn about the new trains so we can deliver that. Everything has been modernised on the trains, and the simulator means that we can have the trainees up to a high level before they even step foot into an actual train cabin.”
“There are definitely a lot of transferrable skills when it comes to people working in other roles and then joining us, as we have had people from the police, fire service, and many other walks of life. We look for mental attributes like determination to learn to begin with, and support people in returning to a classroom setting later in life.”
Continue below for a behind the scenes look at the Nexus Learning Centre in South Shields, and the Tyne and Wear Metro simulator.
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