New Sussex rail operator South Central is ensuring all its drivers have been trained to cope with the slippery autumn rails.

The slippery foliage is no joke for the rail industry, especially drivers who apply the brakes and find themselves sliding through stations and unable to pick up speed because of wheel-spin.

It has even led to trains crashing into buffers.

New Sussex train operator South Central is addressing the problem by up-grading the training programme started by British Rail and Connex to ensure every driver on the network has undergone a skidpan training course.

A section of the line at Ockley, between Horsham and Dorking, is closed on Sundays and is the training course.

The rails are coated with a slippery chemical, similar to washing up liquid, which is sprayed on to the line by a train.

A few trips up and down the countryside line and the tracks are as slippery as an eel.

In a few weeks' time, on a leafy line after the autumn fall, conditions on tracks could easily resemble the simulated conditions.

The 286 miles of South Central track through Sussex, Surrey and Kent are some of the worst affected in the country during the autumn leaf fall.

Elwyn Roberts, operations manager of South Central, explained why leaves were such an enemy to the trains and their drivers.

He said: "When leaves and other foliage fall on the line and are squashed by the weight of the train, the juices create a slippery film which is like putting grease on the line.

"We have cut down many trees and bushes close to railway lines but you can't cut down every tree whose leaves may fall.

"Driving a train on a slippery line is like a car driven on an icy road. It is entirely different to normal road conditions.

"The travelling public may joke about leaves on the line but it is no joke for us."

Trains which put a sand-like solution on the track, called Sandite trains, are now running to coincide with the autumn fall, to try to ensure greater grip but this cannot stop a greasy section of track suddenly arising.

Nick Carter, 37, a trainee driver from East Grinstead, is currently undergoing the skidpan training.

He became a train driver after a career in the Royal Air Force and the motor trade.

As he took the controls of the train, he was told by his instructor to stop at the station, as if under normal conditions.

His approach was perfect but when he applied the brakes, the train slid past the stop with none of the four cars stopping alongside the platform.

He was surprised at the difference. He said: "You could feel the wheels were sliding despite using the usual amount of brake pressure. This training teaches us how to approach the platform in an entirely different way."

On the second run, he was told by his instructor, Steve Simmonds, how to avoid a repeat of the situation.

Nick was told to look out for discoloration on the rail, which indicated grease, and to take it easy on the brakes, letting the automatic breaking system cut in where necessary.

You could smell the sudden rubbing of the brakes on the wheels as the system cut in.

Steve Simmonds, the driver-standards manager at Redhill, who conducts the training said: "Autumn is a very frustrating time for us. If a train constantly has wheel-spin on its journey, it loses time, leading to knock-on delays.

"In extreme cases, where trains shoot through stations, the driver has to get permission from the signalman to reverse after walking through the train to the cab at the other end.

"Even if the driver overshoots by one carriage he has to make an announcement that passengers in the front carriages should walk through the train to get out on the platform. This also delays trains."

No driver will now be allowed to take out a train unless he or she has undergone the training. If a driver has not completed the course, he must to have a driver that has successfully completed the course with him in the cab.

The skidding may not stop but every driver will know how to deal with the conditions created by leaves on the line.