We try out Scotrail's simulator to experience 'leaves on the line'

As Scotrail spends millions of pounds to mitgate the effects of leaves falling onto the railway tracks this autumn Clyde News has been given access to the firm's simulator to see how drivers are trained to deal with the problems caused by nature every autumn.

Hundreds of trees line the railway in Scotland and tonnes of leaves fall on the tracks.

The leaves are gradually broken down by the trains which turned them into a thick, hard coating which sticks to both the tracks and the wheels of the train.

This leads to a lack of grip between the train and the track, similar to the way ice makes it difficult for car tyres to grip on the road in winter.

A train can skid when the brakes are applied in slipper conditions, just like a car, meaning it could go past its stopping point at stations, so the trains have to be driven more cautiously to try to ensure that doesn't happen.

It takes much longer than usual to get up to full speed

Leaves falling from trees also interferes with the signalling system.

From mid-October the autumn safety campaign will include:

• £2.6million invested in clearing the tracks.
• 11 leaf fall teams, totalling 30 staff based across Scotland.
• A fleet of seven specialist trains designed to clear leaf debris and spray lines with a glue-like coating to help train wheels grip the tracks.
• Up to 7,200 staff hours dedicated to clearing the line.
• Machines covering an average of 1,500 miles a day.
• A green/amber/red warning system on Twitter each day, advising customers of any expected disruptions because of weather

• scotrail
• Network Rail