NEW TEXT NUMBER ALLOWS BUS AND METRO PASSENGERS TO HELP BEAT ANTI-SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR
A successful campaign which gives bus passengers the chance to help police and transport chiefs crack down on anti-social behaviour was today (Monday Aug 23) extended on to the Midland Metro tram system.
‘See Something, Say Something’, which enables passengers to anonymously send information about nuisance behaviour by text message, has also been given a new, shorter number - 83010.
All Metro trams and National Express buses across the Network West Midlands transport system will be advertising the new, easy to remember 83010 number on internal posters. In addition, the text messaging service will be promoted on bus shelters and tram platforms as well as timetable casings and travel card wallets.
Hundreds of bus passengers have used See Something Say Something since it was launched by the Safer Travel Partnership in October 2008. Their text messages have provided crucial information that has enabled the Partnership to pinpoint crime and anti-social behaviour hot spots and target its response accordingly.
The success of See Something Say Something has, in part, helped to see crime on the bus network fall to its lowest level for five years. Figures released last month (July) showed a fall of 21 per cent over the previous 12 months and a drop of 54 per cent over the previous three years.
Inspector Cate Webb-Jones, who leads the West Midlands Police Safer Travel Team, said: “When members of the travelling public text in their concerns they can be assured that something IS being done. Officers use this community intelligence to inform their patrol strategy.
“For example, as a direct response to community intelligence we recently carried out operations on Soho Hill and Garrison Lane and ‘Invariance’ operations using handheld CCTV on Hagley Road and Bristol Road.”
Since ‘See Something, Say Something’ was launched, more than 2,600 texts have been received. A third have generated specific police action and several arrests have been made as a result. The most persistent issues on buses are;
- smoking – which is dealt with by individual bus companies and local authority enforcement teams
- misuse of drugs
- general anti-social behaviour
On the Metro, British Transport Police and Travel Midland Metro staff have been working hard to reduce crime. Over the last five years the average number of recorded offences each month along the entire route has fallen from 19 to just 12. This has led to a reduction in crime levels of 39 per cent - down from 226 offences in 2005 to 138 in 2009.
See Something Say Something on the Metro was officially launched at the tram system’s control centre in Potters Lane, Wednesbury by Geoff Inskip, chief executive of Centro, the region’s transport authority.
Centro is a member of the Safer Travel Partnership along with West Midlands Police, National Express West Midlands, the Birmingham Community Safety Partnership, the region’s six other Community Safety Partnerships and the British Transport Police. The partnership works to make public transport even safer for passengers by deterring crime and anti-social behaviour on and around the network.
Geoff said: “Crime on the bus and Metro network is at a record low but when anti-social behaviour occurs we recognise that not only can it ruin someone’s journey but also lead to an unfounded fear of crime.
“Expanding See Something Say Something onto the Metro gives passengers the chance to play a key role in helping us tackle nuisance behaviour and help provide a quiet and relaxing environment for their journey.”
Centro chairman Cllr Angus Adams added: “The more people that use See Something Say Something, the more information the Safer Travel Partnership has to build a detailed picture of what’s happening out on the network, when it's happening and where . That’s why we are urging as many passengers as possible to use it.”
Tactics used by the Safer Travel Partnership include high visibility and covert patrols, the deployment of specially trained drugs sniffer dogs, ‘Gateway’ operations to blanket-check specific bus routes and the use of hi-tech ‘Invariance’ equipment which links in to on-board bus CCTV cameras to beam live images to hand-held screens in nearby police cars.
The Safer Travel Partnership also works with schools across the region to raise awareness among pupils about personal safety and the effects of nuisance behaviour and crime.
Acting Chief Inspector Chris Hodgkiss of British Transport Police said: “The See Something Say Something scheme will enable us to ensure we have our police officers and Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) at the right locations at the right times to prevent crimes being committed, helping to make the system even safer.
“Travelling members of the public are key to making the scheme a success and I would encourage everybody to use the service.”
Neil Barker, Managing Director, National Express bus added: “We cannot emphasise enough how important it is for passengers to text 83010 if they witness anti social behaviour while travelling with us. Buses are a safe and reliable form of transport, but this annoying behaviour ruins people's journeys and will not be tolerated. Every text message is logged by National Express and Safer Travel to identify hotspot routes for vandalism, loud music and smoking and target offenders through bus CCTV and police operations.”
Passengers who see any nuisance behaviour during their bus or Metro journey can say something by texting ‘bus’ or ‘metro’ followed by a space and then details of the incident including time, date, location and route number to 83010.
Alternatively they can give details by logging on the www.safertravel.info website or by telephoning West Midlands Police on 0345 113 5000.
In the case of an urgent crime or an emergency they should dial 999.
More information from Steve Swingler on 0121 214 7073 / 07887 794 241 / email; steveswingler@centro.org.uk
