[jordanb]

When Chicago got rid of the conductors, trains got slower and less reliable. If you've ever had to wait on the train while the operator has to come out of the cab to help a disabled person, respond to a door fault or call button, you've been delayed by one man train operation.

In fact every time the train stops and there's a noticable pause before the door opens, that is caused by the operator having to move from the driving controls to the door controls.

[Jensson]

Sounds like a bad train system. That has never happened in my experience where I live, and I used to take the subway everyday for over a decade.

[SllX]

Same. The only time the operator leaves the cabin where I live is when they're switching which end of the train they're driving from or they're taking the train out of service at the last stop. There's almost no other reason for them to ever do so.

[hdgvhicv]

When they have to lead an evacuation of the train, for example if there’s a derailment.

[SllX]

We haven't had a derailment here since 2009 where a train left the track by about a foot or so. It could happen, but in the course of normal business operations, evacuations are not a regular event here pulling operators out of their cabins. More likely is a door breaks (or rather someone breaks a door) and they have to seal it manually to keep the train moving, but I only see that happen on the older >20 years old stock and pretty much never on the newer stock.

[hdgvhicv]

The incident I was thinking of was about 2007 at Mile End.

Sure it’s rare. But what happens when it does happen, last thing you want is passengers self evaccing onto 3rd/4th rail energised tracks.

[hdgvhicv]

I’ve not had any of that on the London Underground which hasn’t had a second operator for 25 years. No delays in DOO above trains - at least not the kind that a separate guard would solve.

The major impact is at stations without level boarding where assistance which should be from the platform doesn’t arrive.

[johnisgood]

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/London_U...

Click on "Show step-free accessibility", quite useful.

[gok]

CTA stopped having conductors over 30 years ago. Peak ridership and performance was in 2012, decades after the move to OPTO.

[bobthepanda]

One could simply just buy trains that have door controls and driving controls in the same ergonomic layout. Other places have OPTO without these problems.

[dmix]

Does any of that have to do with the conductor?

[xcrunner529]

Nope. Seems more like symptoms of not automating things. As if I’m calling for immediate switch to no conductors with no work.