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Airwave adds two train operating companies to its network
Airwave, the provider of Great Britain’s emergency service radio communications network, has announced that it has signed train operating companies Southeastern and South West Trains to its network.
The railway organisations will provide their security officers with access to Airwave’s public safety network, helping to benefit the train companies by improving direct radio contact between security staff on patrol as well as enabling inter-communication with the British Transport Police (BTP) in certain agreed and pre-defined circumstances.
Prior to the Airwave service, rail security officers relied on mobile phones to communicate with each other when out in the field. In some instances this proved to be inefficient, due to patchy coverage, and insecure due to the risk from eavesdroppers. The deployment of Airwave will enhance the safety of both staff and rail passengers whilst providing them peace of mind when travelling on the rail networks.
Airwave’s Client Manager for Fire & Civil Resilience, Mark Pearson said, “The ability to expand our offering to rail networks presents an exciting opportunity for us. With every project the primary aim is to use technology for the task of improving the safety of Britain’s citizens and we are confident that both deployments will meet this aim admirably, improving the travelling experience of commuters.”
South West Train’s Head of Security and Crime Prevention, Stuart Giddings, added: “South West Train’s community officers already have a close working relationship with the BTP so I am confident that this deployment will further solidify the relationship and dramatically enhance our integrated approach to joint operations.”
Instant Benefits
The deployment will enable the rail security officers to instigate an arrest on the rail networks much more quickly than was possible in the past. This functionality is already providing benefits as was seen when a 14-year old passenger was recently mugged on a Southeastern train during a trip to Essex. After disembarking from the train the passenger notified a rail security officer who was able to radio ahead to a local BTP officer further along the line. The officer was then able to apprehend the assailants before returning the passenger’s money. Prior to using Airwave’s network, this situation would have been very different as officers had to rely on reactive observation rather than proactive prevention of crime.
Southeastern has completed its implementation, supplying over 70 of its rail enforcement officers with Airwave terminals. South West Trains is due to finalise its deployment in September 2008.
