Security awards for Arriva trains Wales stations

Four Arriva Trains Wales stations have won national awards forsecurity and safety as part of an ongoing programme to improvestation facilities.

Swansea, Bridgend, Cardiff Queen Street and Newport stationshave achieved Secure Station status to recognise stringentstandards of station management, security and passenger safety.

Arriva Trains Wales has improved security measures at thestations by introducing ticket-gated entry, improving use of CCTVtechnology, ensuring a visible staff presence, and working withBritish Transport Police on high profile policing operations.

Cardiff Central and Hereford Stations have also retained theirSecure Station status awarded two years ago.

Gwilym Bowen, Security Manager for Arriva Trains Wales,said:

We are pleased to receive Secure Station awards inrecognition of our commitment to security at thestations.

Ensuring that our customers and employees feel securewhen using our stations is a key priority for the company and Ihope the award will reassure those using the stations. Althoughlevels of crime on the railway are actually very low, we arecontinually looking at ways to make our stations and trains safer.These awards help to address customers' perceptions and reduce thefear of crime.

Chief Inspector Paul Richards of British Transport Policesaid:

Secure Station status reinforces a proactive approachto challenging crime and anti-social behaviour on the railway. Welook forward to working with Arriva Trains Wales to ensure that thestations continue to retain their awards in the years tocome.

Ends

Notes to editors

• Photograph attached: ticket gates are being installed at ATWstations as part of a programme to increase station security forpassengers.
• The Secure Station Scheme is a joint initiative betweenDepartment for Transport and British Transport Police to encourageBritain's rail companies to improve security at stations and toreassure customers of their commitment to passenger safety.
• Working with the support and advice of a BTP Crime ReductionOfficer, each rail station must implement a package of securitymeasures, to set criteria, in order to achieve a two-year 'SecureStation' accreditation, which is monitored by a BTP IndependentAccreditor.

These include the following

Design of the station

The design of the station must conform to standards, which preventcrime and improve passenger perceptions of safety. For example,effective lighting, telephones, help points, alarms and clear linesof vision will all improve security and provide reassurance.

Management of thestation

The management of the station must enable employees to take stepsto prevent crime, to respond to incidents and communicateeffectively with passengers through, for example, the effectivedeployment of staff specially trained to deal with conflict andemergencies and public address systems.

Managing crime

Stations need to provide evidence that they are effectivelymanaging crime over the 12 months prior to their accreditationsubmission. Statistics have to be below a certain level inproportion to the number of passengers they serve.

Passenger security

A survey of station users must show that passengers feel, on thewhole, safe and secure when using the station.