Transport for Wales cleaner William Gwyn Thomas, or Gwyn as he prefers to be known, has recently reached the landmark age of 80 years old and is still hard at work and loving his job.
Gwyn and the team work hard through the night in order to get train carriages hygienically cleaned in order to be ready for service the next morning. For the team, a typical night will see approximately 18 to 26 carriages cleaned!
Talking about his work, Gwyn said:
“I love the job, it's the people I work with and knowing you are doing something important for the customers. Pride is everything and we are really proud to get the trains looking good for the people using them the next day.”
Before working on the railways, Gwyn worked as a dairy farmer near Lampeter until he reached the age of 55 and opted for a career change during the late 1990s which saw him work with a smaller team at Carmarthen.
Gwyn continued:
“I didn't think I'd get the job but I was delighted when I did and it means a lot to me to be part of the Carmarthen team because it's a really special station.
“I didn't expect I'd still be working at 80 but I really love it and I'll finish when I'm ready and when I feel I can't do it as well,”
Gwyn has three children, two of his own and a stepdaughter, three grandchildren and four great-grandchildren and credits his ability to have a long working life to “eating well, not drinking anything stronger than a shandy and cutting down on smoking”.
A typical shift will see the cleaning team work from 7:30pm to 2:30am, cleaning each of the carriages from top to bottom and making cabs, toilets, tables and floors spotless for customers and staff as services get underway the next day.
The team's hardest nights are often Saturdays, as toilets can become demanding and an increase in rubbish is noted. However, Gwyn says that they all take this in their stride and went on to say:
“It's annoying but there's no point moaning about it because that's the job and we just have to get on with it. Someone has to get it looking nice for customers again.”
TfW's Cleaning Operations Manager, Wendy Jones and Carmarthen Station Manager, James Nicholas, have paid tribute to Gwyn and have described him as “part of the fabric of Carmarthen”.
“The standard of work Gwyn puts in night after night is a true example to us all on how to show pride in your work,” they said.
“We'd like to thank Gwyn for everything and to wish him a very happy birthday.”
