NO MESSIN' AT EUROPE'S LARGEST YOUTH FESTIVAL

Tuesday 27 May 2008

NO MESSIN' AT EUROPE'S LARGEST YOUTH FESTIVAL

Region & Route:: | Wales & Western: Wales & Borders; | Southern: Wessex; | Wales & Western; | Southern

Network Rail will be urging the 10,000 visitors at this week’s Urdd Eisteddfod to stay safe this summer and not risk their lives by playing around on the railway. It joins the Welsh Assembly at the event with its No Messin’ safety education campaign which aims to raise awareness of the dangers of mucking about on the tracks whilst encouraging young people to get involved in more fun and exciting activities.

School holidays are critical periods for Network Rail’s Rail Crime Education team to raise awareness on the railway safety as records show that rail crime tends to peak during these time. There were nearly 1000 recorded incidents of trespass and vandalism last year in Wales alone and the most number of incidents occur between March and August. As many incidents go unreported it is estimated that this is in fact much higher.

Invited by the Welsh Assembly to share the same platform at the youth festival, No Messin’ will bring an array of free fun activities for young people to try out. Visitors will be able to try their hands on the surfing machine, take a turn up the climbing wall or test their fitness on the bungee run.

Alan Milne, Rail Crime Education Manager for Network Rail in Wales, says: "We are grateful for the support from the Welsh Assembly on our campaign. A train can travel at up to 125 miles an hour and takes the length of up to 20 football pitches for it to stop. There is a very real risk to people mucking around of the tracks, and we are committed to raising awareness of these risks to prevent pointless tragedies."

Network Rail’s Railway Crime Education team will continue to work closely with other parts of the railway industry, organising Railway Safety Days and visiting schools, young offending teams, youth clubs and local authorities throughout Wales.

Network Rail will be at Urdd Eisteddfod on 27 May.

Notes to editors

- A railway crime is committed every 90 seconds in peak periods and each year there are an estimated 27 million cases of trespass; 640,000 objects placed on the line and four million objects thrown at trains - Examples of railway crime include trespassing by running across the tracks or taking short cuts, throwing objects, placing debris on the line, interfering with level crossing barriers and equipment, breaking telephones and of course, graffiti, which is the fastest growing type of offence. - Railway crime costs the industry £264 million every year - Dozens of people are killed or seriously injured on the railway every year by mucking about on the tracks. In the last five years: - One in four accidental fatalities was of someone aged eight to 18 - Half of all near misses involved children. With the majority of trespass incidents involving adults, this is quite worrying. It seems as if whilst adults are taking short cuts, children are taking chances - Railway crime patterns: both trespass and vandalism trends show a strong seasonal cycle with a peak between March and September – when the evenings get lighter and children are not in school.

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