Safer and Secure Rail Stations in Great
Britain
A number of partnerships, commonly known as Safer Stations
schemes, have been set up to reduce crime and fear of crime at rail
stations in Great Britain. These partnerships have been operating
since 1992, and bring together private, voluntary and statutory
agencies including the local authorities, local transport operators,
and local police. A review of these schemes found a number of
benefits including reductions in crime and fear, increased revenues,
and increased opportunities for employment in the local area (Hart,
1997).
The Lambeth Safer Stations partnership is an example of these
schemes. It was established in 1995 as a result of a crime audit,
which identified the stations and their surrounds as hot spots for
crime. Partnership members included Lambeth Safer Cities, Network
South Central, London Borough of Lambeth, the British Transport
Police, the Metropolitan Police, Railtrack (now Network Rail), the
Lambeth Public Transport Group and the Inner London Probation
Service (ILPS) Community Service Offenders. Different work plans
were developed for each station and the measures introduced
included:
- the installation of CCTV;
- refurbishment and redecoration of facilities;
- improved lighting and signage at stations;
- landscaping works by ILPS Community Service Offenders;
- removal of graffiti;
- introduction of customer service offices;
- the improvement of lighting around stations;
- the closing of redundant areas;
- and the installation of security mirrors.
In the first year of the initiative, the scheme reportedly
reduced robbery and car crime around stations by 23% to 36% and by
53% and 58% at the stations themselves. Passenger surveys
revealed that following the initiative 12% fewer men and 22% fewer
women would be put off from using the stations. In addition, annual
revenues at three of the stations in the scheme increase by
£300,000.
The Secure Stations Scheme was set up in 1998 as a national
accreditation scheme for rail stations. The scheme allows Train
Operating Companies to achieve accreditation for stations that meet
certain design and management criteria; that demonstrate acceptable
levels of perceived safety; and that demonstrate they are managing
crime problems effectively. The Scheme also encourages rail
operators to work in partnership with local agencies to enhance
passengers’ perceptions of safety around stations.
Accreditation lasts for two years and stations must then apply
for further accreditation. Crime Concern is the accrediting agency
and the scheme is directed by the Department for Transport (DfT),
the British Transport Police and Crime Concern. In practice, this
scheme requires management to work with their local British
Transport Police Crime Reduction Officer to achieve recognised
standards set by the scheme. See
the Scheme website
Research by Crime Concern and Transport & Travel Research
(1997) suggests that the introduction of additional safety measures
can lead to a significant increase in patronage. In their study,
researchers asked respondents to estimate the number of additional
trips they would make if further safety measures were introduced on
their public transport systems. Using the estimates provided by
those reporting a potential increased use of public transport, the
researchers calculated a possible maximum increase in trips of
10.5%. The researchers also noted that a significant proportion of
these additional trips were to be taken in off-peak hours.
