Media centre

Thursday 21 Dec 2006

PASSENGERS ARE STILL SAFE AND SECURE AT LIME STREET

Region & Route:

The 47,000 passengers using Liverpool Lime Street railway station every day can do so safe in the knowledge that it has just been successfully re-accredited as a ‘secure station’ by Crime Concern and the British Transport Police. Network Rail was awarded the honour in 2005 after taking over responsibility for the day-to-day management of the station. Since then making the station much more user friendly and improving security have been priorities. The station is also in line for further improvements as part of a million pound investment in the amenities, such as the short stay car park and south concourse developments. Route Director, Peter Strachan said: “We are extremely proud to have achieved ‘secure station’ status once again, which demonstrates Liverpool Lime Street is one of the safest stations in the country. When planned improvements are completed the people of Liverpool will have a world-class facility of which they can be justifiably proud.” Improvements at the station include a new CCTV system with 57 cameras covering entrances and platforms. Security patrols were also introduced and anti-social behaviour is no longer tolerated. New signage around the station is user-friendly, and staff are on hand to help with any queries. To become a secure station, Network Rail demonstrated it was effectively managing crime problems over the 12 months before applying for the award. The design of the station had to comply with standards that helped to prevent and reduce crime, such as lighting, help points and easy access to telephones and alarms. All of these provide reassurance to passengers and staff alike. British Transport Police worked closely with the station team to ensure it met the required standard before forwarding the application to Crime Concern for independent accreditation. The ‘secure station’ status lasts two years. The Secure Station scheme was launched in 1998 by the Department for Transport, British Transport Police and Crime Concern.