Media centre

Monday 22 Feb 2010

END OF THE LINE FOR FAVERSHAM GRAFFITI VANDALS

Region & Route:

| Southern

Network Rail is embarking on a joint project with Swale borough council to tackle unsightly graffiti on Faversham long bridge.  

The £50k scheme will include replacing 31 of the solid panels on the footbridge with a steel mesh, making it more difficult to spray paint and appear less enclosed helping people feel safer when using it.  It will also see the remaining solid panels immediately above the tracks repainted with anti-graffiti paint.

Work to install the mesh panels begins on Monday 8 March and will take around three weeks.  The bridge will remain open to pedestrians for the duration of the work.

Dave Ward, Network Rail’s route director for Kent, said: “Graffiti and so-called ‘tagging’ is a blight for communities across the whole country and is very difficult to control. Each year, we spend millions of pounds removing graffiti from our property, money which should be spent on improving the railway.

“Graffiti is a social issue and needs to be tackled on a number of fronts.  However, we hope that this investment at Faversham will make it more difficult for those who are intent on causing criminal damage to succeed and create a safer and more pleasant environment for local people.”

Once Network Rail has completed the installation of the mesh, work will begin to strip the paint from the remaining solid panels before re-painting them with special anti-graffiti paint.  It is intended that a group of local youth offenders will carry out this part of the work to make amends for their behaviour by giving something back to the community.

Councillor Cindy Davis, Swale Borough Council’s executive portfolio holder for the environment, added: “I have been involved in this project since the bridge was refurbished over ten years ago and am very pleased to have been part of the process with Network Rail and Kent police in finding a solution that should greatly improve the bridge for people who use it daily.

“I was very pleased to have been contacted by local youngsters from the Queen Elizabeth’s grammar school who have taken considerable interest in this project and have also spoken about the damage that graffiti does to the environment and the sense of local pride. We are very pleased that local young offenders will be helping in the restorative work, and hope that this good news story will be welcomed locally.”