Thursday, March 28, 2024
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Home Government Extra British Transport Police officers deployed at railway stations to ensure only...

Extra British Transport Police officers deployed at railway stations to ensure only essential journeys take place

Sir Peter Hendy has said extra staff have been deployed at railway stations to ensure that only essential journeys are taking place.

The comments comes as police are deployed to stop people from leaving Tier 4 areas in the days before Christmas in a bid to stop the spread of coronavirus.

Passengers faced packed trains out of London over the weekend following the Prime Minister’s announcement on Saturday that people in Tier 4 must stay at home.

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The Chair of Network Rail was appointed as Christmas Transport Tsar by the Government.

He said: “The message is clear – to combat this virus, you must follow the guidance and stay at home.

“At stations we will be deploying extra staff, announcements will make the law clear, and additional BTP officers are in place to ensure that only essential journeys take place.

“People considering driving should also stay at home or stay local. The new restrictions mean that people should not travel into or out of Tier 4 areas, and across the country you should stay local. You should play your part in tackling the spread of this virus.”

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps added: “It is incredibly important that people follow the guidance, stay at home and do not attempt to travel. Our focus must be stopping the spread of this virus, protecting lives and our NHS.

“If you are in Tier 4, the law means you must stay at home and you cannot stay overnight away from home. Across the rest of the country, you must stay local.

“Follow the guidance and please do not come to a station unless you are permitted to travel. Extra BTP officers are being deployed to ensure only those who need to take essential journeys can travel safely.”

Meanwhile the Government has announced it will provide cash refunds for domestic rail and coach tickets for the previous Christmas travel window between 23-27 December, bought before the change in regulations and guidance that were announced by the Prime Minister on Saturday.

This will apply to journeys in England booked on or after the 24th November, when the Christmas travel window was announced.

The Government says it recognises that many people will have booked their coach and rail tickets in advance based on previous government advice. This announcement ensures that people are not penalised for following the new rules, protecting themselves and others from the virus.

Operators will be able to issue refunds immediately and passengers should check the website of their operator for how to claim. We urge people to be patient as rail and coach operators will be processing high volumes of refunds over the coming weeks.

The Transport Secretary said: “It is imperative that we all follow the new measures and play our part in tackling this virus, protecting others and safeguarding our NHS.

“If you booked a coach or rail journey between 23 and 27 December, you are entitled to a cash refund. This ensures no one is left out of pocket for doing the right thing – staying home in tier 4, and elsewhere staying local and only meeting your Christmas bubble on Christmas day.”

Photo credit: Network Rail


For today’s rail news from railbusinessdaily.com click here.

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