North Wales MS calls for more support to make it safer for people to travel by rail
North Wales MS Sam Rowlands has called for more support to make rail travel safer following a rise in violence against women and railway staff.
Speaking in the Senedd this week, the Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Transport highlighted the latest British Transport Police (BTP) figures showing more than 11,000 offences against women and girls on the rail network last year.
In Wales, sexual offences on trains and at stations rose by 29 per cent.
Mr Rowlands said: “Too many stations across Wales still don’t have the lighting or CCTV or onsite presence needed to make people, and women in particular, feel safe and to deter any harmful behaviour.
“The latest British Transport Police report also highlights another serious issue of ongoing levels of violence and anti-social behaviour faced by rail staff. Verbal abuse, physical assaults and harassment have sadly become part of the job for far too many, especially on late-night services and at busy stations.
“This isn’t just a workplace safety problem; it creates a wider atmosphere of fear and disorder that affects everyone using the network.”
He asked what support the Welsh Government was giving to operators and BTP to address assaults on staff, and whether ministers would commit to improving reporting and outcomes for violent crimes on the railways.
In response, Cabinet Secretary for Transport Ken Skates said: “It’s a hugely important issue. It’s something that we’re taking very seriously — so too British Transport Police and Network Rail.
“What we found is that, particularly for women and people who face disabling barriers, the lack of safe, convenient and well-maintained infrastructure is a major factor when deciding whether or not to move around. That means improving pavements, installing seating and, crucially, making sure that we have well-lit, safe bus stops and safe routes to and from public transport.”
Mr Skates said the government would convene a safety in public transport summit this autumn in Pontypridd, bringing together unions, operators and BTP. He confirmed opposition transport spokespeople would be invited.
He added: “Bodycams, obviously, are part of the solution, but a lot of staff choose not to wear them for various reasons. Violence is often associated with certain events as well. We know that domestic abuse, for example, increases when there are rugby internationals, and the same applies with violence towards workers on public transport — that it’s around major events often that we see frustrations boiling over. But it is there, day in, day out, and this is an issue that’s been raised by the unions.”
On reporting and enforcement, Mr Skates said: “We regularly hear, on trains and on metro services across the UK, the plea ‘to see it and to sort it’ if anybody sees a crime happening or an offence, and it is vitally important that we all play our parts in reducing crime and anti-social behaviour on the transport network. British Transport Police do an outstanding job. I know that they are under incredible pressure… and that’s why, in part, we are hosting that safety in public transport summit.”
Mr Rowlands said later he had met BTP officers in the Senedd and encouraged rail users to report incidents by dialling 999 in emergencies or texting 61016.
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