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Wednesday 25 Aug 2010

LEEDS FESTIVAL-GOERS URGED TO STAY SAFE IN THE STATION

Region & Route:

As Leeds station staff brace themselves for one of the busiest, and muddiest weekends of the year, festival goers are being urged to stay safe around the tracks.

Leeds holds the unfortunate title of the station with the highest level of platform to platform trespass, a situation which is particularly bad on weekend evenings and gets worse as thousands of festival-goers flood into the city.

Vicki Smith, community safety manager for Network Rail, said: “Obviously there are going to be a lot of excited young people in the station this weekend and we want to make sure they don’t start – or end – their festival with a tragedy. 

“The foot bridges can get busy but they are there to keep you safe.  For the sake of a few extra minutes we’re just reminding people to stop and think and then to take the safe option.”

British Transport Police Inspector Glen Alderson added: “We are carrying out patrols at the Leeds station to make sure that people travelling to the festival via the railway get to the site in safety.

“Unfortunately, there can be a small minority of revelers that think it is acceptable to use the railway tracks as a pedestrian crossing or short cut to avoid the footbridges or concourses.  Not only is this highly dangerous but if you are caught, you could be issued with a hefty fine or even face criminal charges.”

Trespassing on the railway is a criminal offence which can see the offender end up in court and result in a £1,000 fine.