The Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner, Kim McGuiness, has visited the Tyne and Wear Metro to see how it is kept safe and secure for passengers while also pledging to get tough with anti-social behaviour on the network.
The Police and Crime Commissioner met senior management frontline Metro customer service staff and officers working for the Metro Neighbourhood Police Team to see how crime and disorder is being tackled on Metro before touring the control room in South Gosforth.
High visibility patrols have been stepped up to crackdown on disorder and fare evasion and there are now also record numbers of staff across the system.
Kim McGuiness said: “The Metro is a vital service keeping our region well connected. I’ve seen first-hand a lot of the work that’s involved, particularly around crime and antisocial behaviour, and how together we can fight it. The Metro is very safe but that’s partly because of the efforts of Nexus and Northumbria Police who are working hard to tackle issues that arise head on. I’ll continue to do all I can to support this work.”
Tobyn Hughes, Director General of Nexus, added: “It was great for us to welcome the Police and Crime Commissioner on to the Metro system to see the work that we do, and some of the challenges that our staff and police officers face. The safety and security of our customers and employees is our top priority. Crime on Metro remains low and it is fundamentally a safe system for the public to use, but we are not complacent about issues that can arise. Our staff are working closely with the police to target issues of anti-social behaviour and ticketless travel and joint patrols have been stepped up. There are now more front-line customer service staff on Metro than ever before. Anyone who commits a crime on Metro will end up getting caught and will face prosecution through the courts.”