UK Train Firm Told: Put Guards on Stations or Lose Franchise

THE Government has ordered South West Trains to employ more staff at its stations as part of a major overhaul of security on its network.

The train company, which operates from Waterloo into Surrey, Hampshire, Berkshire, Wiltshire, Dorset, Devon and Cornwall, has been told it must meet "tough standards" on staffing and other aspects of security or it could lose the franchise.

It is the latest significant move towards full staffing of all stations while trains are running fol lowing the launch of the Evening Standard's Safer Stations campaign this month.

Tony Blair added his personal support to the campaign, saying he thought there was "a very strong case for having security guards at stations".

The 400,000 passenger-a-day South Western franchise is seen as a key test of the strength of government commitment to greater staffing.

It comes up for renewal next year and officials are drawing up the detailed performance and service specifications that bidders are expected to meet.

Today, a spokeswoman for the Department for Transport told the Standard that "more visible" staffing and greater use of barriers at little-used stations will be minimum requirements.

"The detail of the new contract is being worked on and will be sent to bidders at the end of March," she said.

"Security will play a key part as we develop the franchising specification, as we have done for Thameslink, the Integrated Kent franchise and Greater Western.

"It will contain tough standards on staffing, policing and CCTV. We are looking at encouraging more station staff to be visible and greater use of barriers at outlying stations."

The emphasis on security will also set a benchmark for other franchises as they come up for renewal. The huge South Western network, which includes at least 27 London stations unmanned at night, is run by Stagecoach through its subsidiary South West Trains.

In the past five years, Stagecoach has made GBP200million profit from South West Trains and its other rail operations.

As well as Stagecoach, four companies have said they are interested in taking over the franchise from next February.

They are Arriva, FirstGroup, National Express and Great South Western Railway, a joint venture between East Coast Main Line operator GNER and Hong Kong-based MTR.

Losing the flagship franchise would be a huge blow to Stagecoach and it will be making strenuous efforts to convince officials it can run the network safely and efficiently.

A spokeswoman for South West Trains said the company had spent GBP2.6 million on 50 Travelsafe officers to work with British Transport Police to patrol trains and stations.

It had installed 1,000 CCTV cameras at stations and 1,900 on its new fleet of Desiro trains and has started putting cameras on its refurbished inner suburban fleet.

It would cost GBP4million a year to employ a security guard at each London station for the part of the night they are still unstaffed - three per cent of the GBP130 million made last year by the capital's 10 mainline rail operators.

Yesterday, Capital Radio's Johnny Vaughan urged listeners to back our campaign.

MAKE OUR RAIL STATIONS SAFE

Key victories in our campaign so far: 10 February Commons transport select committee chairwoman Gwyneth Dunwoody says she will quiz the rail companies on station safety.

14 February Ken Livingstone announces that Silverlink Metro stations will have to be manned while trains are running when TfL takes over the franchise next year.

16 February Transport Secretary Alistair Darling promises "radical change" in station security late at night.

17 February Chiltern Railways says it will have guards at its London stations until the last trains.

23 February Tony Blair backs the campaign, saying there is a "very strong case" for guards at stations.

24 February Capital Radio gives its support, urging listeners to sign the Standard's online petition.