Newly elected London Mayor, Boris Johnson, announced the implementation of one of the key pledges of his election manifesto yesterday, for which London voted for by a majority of approximately 140,000 combined preference votes. It has, however, come under a sustained attack from unions fearing that their members will have to approach members of the public consuming alcohol to have to deal with it.
There will be no powers to deal with the incident until the Conditions of Carriage for London transport have been amended, a process which will take about a year according to The Times in a news article released this evening. There will, reportedly, not be regular patrols of carriages by Transport for London or British Transport Police officials but there will be the recruitment of 440 community support officers to assist with any disorder related incidents.
Bob Crow of the RMT reportedly singled out “Liverpool supporters” as being particular examples of people whom their staff would not want to face on the train whilst consuming alcohol. Having been to London many times at weekends, we at Transport Central wonder why Bob Crow has chosen this rather out-dated stereotype to attempt to bolster his rather shaky argument.
The response is of, however, no surprise and the union will be feeling particularly strike-happy at the moment with many planned Tube strikes in recent past – the majority of which having being called off. It is noticed that these Tube strikes are often planned at times, such as New Year, to affect the most possible numbers of leisure and business travelers.
However, Mr Johnson said, “I firmly believe that if we drive out so-called minor crime then we will be able to get a firm grip on more serious crime. That’s why from 1 June the drinking of alcohol will be banned from the tube, tram, bus, and Docklands Light Railway.” The mayor received support from the London transport commissioner who said, “I am sure that cutting out boozing on public transport will be welcomed by our passengers and staff.”
The response from unions seems all the more strange when set in the national context where the consumption of alcohol on buses and coaches is already frowned upon culturally and staff are expected to deal with such people by dealing with it personally or calling the police if they have any worries about handling such people. The union’s response does not seem to match the national picture at all – one policy for London and one policy for the rest.
Boris Johnson did however get a more rational response from the British Transport Police who said, “From June 1, when the new measures come into effect, officers will engage with people who drink alcohol on the tube and let them know that it is no longer permitted. Most of the time, just letting people know that their behaviour is no longer permitted will be enough to make them stop, but if they become antisocial or aggressive they will be dealt with under current legislation and bylaws.”
So true. In New York City, from which Boris is drawing some inspiration, alcohol consumption and the carrying of open drinks containers is already banned by their rules of conduct.