APPENDIX 17
Memorandum submitted by The Evening Standard
1. THE MURDER
OF TOM
AP RHYS
PRYCE
The Evening Standard launched a campaign calling
for a radical improvement in passenger safety at stations across
London following the murder of Tom ap Rhys Pryce.
The 31-year-old lawyer was stabbed to death
shortly after leaving unmanned Kensal Green station on his way
home on the evening of 12 January. The two men later arrested
and charged with Mr Pryce's murder had earlier been captured on
CCTV leaving the deserted station after they had robbed a man
on the platform.
Within half an hour they launched a ferocious
attack on Mr Pryce as he walked home from the station after a
night out. He was apparently selected by the muggers as "rich
pickings" because he was wearing a smart suit and overcoat.
2. LONDON'S
EMPTY STATIONS
Spurred by this horrific murder our Safer Stations
campaign highlighted how at least 229 stations across Greater
London are left unstaffed for all or part of the day. This amounts
to two-thirds of stations in the London region, the vast majority
of them small suburban stations used by hundreds of thousands
of commuters every weekday.
More than 30 stations are never manned, dozens
more have staff only during the morning peak or until lunchtime.
After dark even stations in some of the most
desirable part of London can seem forbidding for lone travellers,
especially women and the elderly. Further, those parts of London
where you are least likely to meet a train company employee in
the evening are often those most notorious for high levels of
crime. These include Silverlink stations such as Harlesden and
Kensal Green, parts of south London such as Streatham and Eltham
and east London crime hotspots including Hackney.
The paper discovered that one stretch of Silverlink's
network—through Tottenham, Walthamstow and Leytonstone—had
eight unmanned stations in a row.
This sorry state of affairs comes despite the £130
million a year profit made by the 10 London rail firms, who have
enjoyed a Government subsidy of £2.2 billion since rail privatisation
a decade ago.
3. "IT'S
NO WAY
TO TRAVEL
IN THE
21ST CENTURY"—SILVERLINK
PASSENGER
As part of our campaign the Standard called
for all of London's stations be manned until the last train has
left. The call won the enthusiastic support of thousands of readers,
many of whom experience the intimidating atmosphere of unmanned
and neglected stations ever day. We were deluged with e-mails
and letters from rail passengers highlighting the often dire condition
of their local station and demanding action from the rail companies.
Asif Begum, a postman from Walthamstow, said
of Walthamstow Queens Road: "Most of the stations around
this part of London are unmanned. It's ridiculous. You hear about
muggings all the time, both on the platforms and on the trains.
There needs to be more security to protect the passenger."
Sian Hickmott, of Bromley, said of Shortlands station: "Crime
in the area is rising. There's no way I would feel safe wandering
on to this platform alone at night. It's just too dangerous a
risk to take."
Birgit Moller, said of Silverlink's Gunnersbury
station: "Every week somebody is attacked round here. More
staff would make a difference."
4. THE POLITICAL
RESPONSE
Public backing for our campaign was echoed by
support from politicians at all levels.
More than fifty MPs backed the campaign, including
energy minister and Croydon North MP Malcolm Wicks, who said:
"In the evenings stations are often desolate and many of
my constituents, not just women, are fearful about travelling."
Vauxhall MP Kate Hoey said: "CCTV cameras will help, but
they will never replace a real person."
On February 14 London Mayor Ken Livingstone
announced that all 50 Silverlink stations would be manned from
November 2007, once he takes over responsibility for the company's
routes. He said his "first priority" will be station
safety and security.
Mr Livingstone's pledge meant that for the first
time in decades an entire line on the commuter network would have
a visible staff presence throughout the hours of the timetable.
The Mayor attacked as "obscene" the
failure of the rail companies to provide staff for all their London
stations while trains are running.
Mr Livingstone's attack was followed by a promise
from Transport Secretary Alistair Darling to improve security
on the railways and at stations. In an interview with the Evening
Standard he said: "I think there has to be a radical change
in gear towards improving safety and security at stations. There
are stations where people have tolerated things for too long."
Mr Darling said that passengers would begin
to feel more secure as measures come in to improve policing, increase
staffing levels and deter muggers and pickpockets. The measures,
designed to fall into pike over the next couple of years as the
various franchises come up for renewal or tender, include:
— A review of the British Transport
Police (BTP) to "refocus" on a perception of safety.
— Tough new security standards covering
staffing, policing and CCTV to be incorporated into contracts
every time a franchise is renewed or put out to tender.
— Staff to be encouraged to be more
visible at stations and the installation of more entrance barriers
at outlying stations to deter muggers from lurking inside.
However, Mr Darling refused to order that all
stations be manned while trains are running, saying there were
sometimes better ways to make passengers safer.
He said: "I support the Standard campaign
to make train travel safer but I think there's a variety of ways
you can do it. Staffing is important but it isn't the whole answer."
5. RAIL COMPANIES
SPLIT OVER
STAFFING
In a major victory for London's rail passengers
Chiltern Railways became the first of the capital's rail companies
to announce it would staff its stations until the last train leaves.
On February 17 it announced security guards
would immediately begin to patrol its four London stations: Sudbury
Hill in Harrow, Harrow Road, Wembley Stadium and Northolt Park.
In a statement Chiltern said: "We recognise
there is considerable public anxiety in London in relation to
unstaffed stations after dark.
"We will therefore be reviewing all security
features. While this process is ongoing we will ensure a security
presence patrolling at these stations during the hours of darkness
while trains are in service and we will examine options for permanent
staffing as part of this review."
Chiltern's move was followed by a warning from
the Department of Transport to South West Trains that it would
have to hire more staff or risk losing its franchise, which is
up for renewal next year.
In a further significant breakthrough Brent
council announced it had secured a ground-breaking agreement with
Silverlink over late-night staffing of stations. Following public
pressure Brent obtained a commitment from the rail company at
the heart of the Standard's campaign that it would work with Network
Rail, the Met police and the British Transport Police to ensure
a uniformed presence at its stations at night.
Silverlink agreed to train two security guards
at Kensal Green in how to use ticket barriers which it says will
stop vandals and muggers getting access to the station after ticket
office staff have finished their shifts.
The company has also pledged to provide security
guards at Queens Park station and as part of the agreement the
Met has offered to use Wembley Central-as a base for its Safer
Neighbourhood team of officers in the area.
However, despite the positive reaction of Chiltern
and Silverlink and the strong support of the public, London's
other rail companies have so-far refused to consider night-time
staffing. They are South West Trains, First Great Western Link,
Southern Railway, WAGN and Thameslink. This appeared to fly in
the face of evidence to your own committee from the head of British
Transport Police, Chief Constable Ian Johnston, who said the public
clearly wanted to see stations staffed and that evidence showed
crime falls where there are more uniformed staff present. As he
stated: "In places where there are no other people around,
people are quite frightened. Having other people around helps
people feel safer."
April 2006
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