In a bid to improve safety for both passengers and staff, Transport for Wales (TfW) is introducing the use of body-worn cameras.
A trial will be conducted in partnership with the British Transport Police. Selected conductors and station staff wearing the new cameras which, it is hoped, will deter antisocial behaviour at stations and on trains.
There were over 350 reported accounts of physical or verbal abuse against staff on trains in Wales last year, and trends show that tis is increasing, so TfW is keen to reduce this number as any incident should not be tolerated.
The trial will feature four different type of cameras, and, once the results have been reviewed, one company will be selected to supply 300 across the network.
and Transport , Welsh Government.
Welsh Government Transport Minister Ken Skates said: “Everyone has the right to work or travel on our network without the fear of abuse or threats.
“The rail staff there to help us are no different to our family and friends. They are working hard to get us from A to B, often in difficult circumstances.
“We must stamp out anti-social behaviour and do everything we can to support staff to do their jobs and let passengers make their journeys in a safe and pleasant environment.”
Transport for Wales conductor Marc Clancy added: “We have to deal with a range of people daily and most of our customers are grateful and polite.
“We work extremely hard to give our customers the best possible experience when using our services, however at times staff and passengers do experience occasional antisocial behaviour and abuse.
“The introduction of these cameras should act as a deterrent to antisocial behaviour, support assault prosecutions and boost public confidence in safety. They will provide our front-line staff with more confidence when dealing with difficult situations and abusive customers.”
BTP superintendent Andrew Morgan concluded: “The safety of passengers and our rail industry colleagues is our absolute priority and we do everything we can to protect them.
“We fully support the introduction of body worn cameras for Transport for Wales’ frontline staff – we know from experience that body worn video is a fantastic piece of kit that helps us in securing convictions against those who target staff with unnecessary violence or abuse.
“We hope the introduction will deter anti-social behaviour and provide reassurance to rail staff as well as passengers.”
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