British Transport Police (BTP) has launched a publicity campaign on the Sunderland Metro to raise awareness and promote public reassurance by emphasising they are a ‘dedicated force’ specially trained to provide a police presence to the railway network.
The campaign, which is being run in partnership with Metro and being funded by the Safer Sunderland Partnership, aims to help tackle passengers’ perceptions of safety on the Sunderland Metro.
Posters will be displayed at stations across the Sunderland extension of Tyne & Wear Metro and BTP officers will conduct high visible patrols on services in the area, handing out leaflets and travel passes to passengers while talking to them about any issues they may have, and providing crime reduction advice.
The campaign - which is officially launched on Monday, 11 April and outlines BTP’s unique and specialist nature - will run throughout April and uses the strap line: “Sunderland Metro has a dedicated police force. Very dedicated, in fact.”
Chief Superintendent Terry Nicholson of British Transport Police, said:
“Crime on the Sunderland Metro has nearly halved in the past five years which is great news for passengers and rail staff, however through research we know that sometimes incidents of low level anti-social behaviour can make members of the public and rail staff feel unsafe.
“Being safe and feeling safe are equally important – which is why we are focusing our efforts on high visibility police presence on the Metro to reinforce the message and address some of the anxieties that people may have.
“We want to boost passengers’ confidence and reassure all passengers and staff that the Metro is really a very safe environment, safer than ever before.
Chair of the Safer Sunderland Partnership Councillor Tom Foster added: “This is an important campaign because we want to make sure everyone, whether they use it regularly or not, regards the Metro system in Sunderland as a safe place to be.
“We need to remind and reassure people that everyone is working together to make sure that both trains and stations remain comfortable and secure environments for passengers and staff alike.”
“The purpose of the campaign is to demonstrate to Metro travellers that Metro is one of the safest ways to travel in the region,” said Richard McClean, Managing Director of DB Regio Tyne and Wear, which operates stations and trains on behalf of Nexus.
“Passenger safety is paramount on Metro. Through our partnership with British Transport Police we want to assure our passengers and staff that Metro is very safe and crime levels are low on the network.”
“As well as the support we receive from British Transport Police, effective CCTV is in operation on the Metro system 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and we are increasing levels of staff at all Metro stations to give passengers visible reassurance that a member of Metro staff is never far away should they need their help. There are also help points on every platform where passengers can directly call for assistance if required."