Media centre

Saturday 31 May 2003

NETWORK RAIL CRACKS DOWN ON ILLEGAL FLY TIPPING

Region & Route:

| Southern

Network Rail is cracking down on fly tipping on the railway in xxx and is appealing for the public to help. Over the past few months xxxx has suffered from an increasing number of fly-tipping incidents. Waste materials such as household rubbish and tyres are most commonly dumped. Materials such as construction waste and soil are also common. Illegal dumping of rubbish on railway land, particularly embankments, is a major headache for Network Rail.  It poses a potential hazard to the safe running of the railway if any objects fall on to the tracks, encourages vermin such as rats and spoils the local environment.  Network Rail regularly has to deal with objects as large as beds, refrigerators and bicycles, any of which could have severe consequences to railway safety and can delay train services. The cost of fly tipping to the industry is immense with over xxx per year spent on clearing line side rubbish in the xxx area alone.  Time and funding is wasted clearing illegally dumped waste, vital money that could be spent improving the railway. If the public see an incident of fly tipping, they should report it direct to the British Transport Police on 0800 40 50 40 or to the Network Rail National Helpline on 08457 11 41 41. They should try to note the following details: ·        The date, time and the place where the tipping is taking place, or has occurred and descriptions of the individuals involved ·        What the waste is and approximately how much of it there is ·        A description of any vehicles involved and the registration number.  Xxx, General Manager, XX commented, “We appeal to local people to remain vigilant and to let us know when an area has been fly tipped by calling British Transport Police or the Network Rail hotline.  We are working hard to clear the line side but no sooner that an area is cleared then it is illegally littered again. By working together with the local community, Network Rail can tackle this problem and create a safer, cleaner, greener railway."