London Northwestern Railway calls ‘Time after Nine’ at Northampton station

Monday, 16 July 2018

A scheme to reduce anti-social behaviour on late night train services through Northampton will be launched later this month. From Friday 27 July, there will be a ‘no alcohol’ policy on all trains passing through the station after 9pm on Friday and Saturday nights.

Under the ‘Time after 9’ initiative, any passengers carrying alcohol will need to surrender this before boarding services and those noticeably under the influence will be prevented from travelling.

Similar rules were put into place at Liverpool Lime Street in 2014.This followed ongoing issues with alcohol fuelled assaults on trains leaving the city centre later in the evening. Since the policy was introduced, the number of incidents has significantly reduced, and passengers using later evening trains are now well used to the restrictions.

Andrew Conroy, customer experience director for London Northwestern Railway said: “Alcohol and anti-social behaviour often go hand in hand and our number one priority is always passenger safety. This includes the safety of those using our trains and also those passing through our stations, whatever the time of day. Although it might be inconvenient for some customers initially, the benefit in the long run will be a safer railway for everyone.”

Posters have been displayed for the past few months to warn passengers of the upcoming changes.

Revenue Protection and Security Managers from West Midlands Trains will be supported by the British Transport Police to implement the new rules. If effective, the scheme will be extended to other key locations between Birmingham and London.

Notes to editors

For further information on West Midlands Trains, London Northwestern Railway or West Midlands Railway call our newsroom on 03300 955150.

About West Midlands Trains

West Midlands Trains Ltd. will be running the West Midlands rail franchise from 10 December 2017 until 2025/6. Abellio has a 70.1% share of the company, East Japan Railway Company (JRE) and Mitsui & Co., Ltd. (Mitsui) own the remaining 29.9% in a 50:50 split.

About Abellio
Abellio is the international passenger transport subsidiary of the Dutch national railway company, Nederlandse Spoorwegen. Every day our people provide rail, bus and tram services to 1.7m customers across the UK, Germany and in the Netherlands. In the UK we operate buses through Abellio London, as well as ScotRail and Greater Anglia train services, and Merseyrail in a joint venture with Serco. In Germany we operate Abellio Deutschland, serving communities in North Rhine Westfalia, Saxony, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Hesse and Thuringia. Our role in transport extends beyond the journey from a-to-b. With our international heritage and our policy of sharing best practice, not just amongst ourselves, but across the wider transport industry, we provide thought leadership and truly innovative ideas which make a positive contribution to the communities we serve. For more information on Abellio visit www.abellio.com

About Mitsui
Mitsui is one of the most diversified and comprehensive trading, investment and service enterprises in the world with 139 offices in 66 countries as of March, 2017. Utilising our global operating locations, network and information resources, we are multilaterally pursuing business that ranges from product sales, worldwide logistics and financing, through to the development of major international infrastructure and other projects in the following fields: Iron & Steel Products, Mineral & Metal Resources, Infrastructure Projects, Integrated Transportation Systems, Chemicals, Energy, Food Resources, Food Products & Services, Consumer Services, IT & Communication, and Corporate Development Business. Mitsui is actively taking on challenges for global business innovation around the world. For more information, visit www.mitsui.com .

About JR East
East Japan Railway Company (JR East) was established in 1987, when Japanese National Railways was divided as part of a package of railway reforms. JR East’s railway business covers a 7,500 km (approx. 4,660 miles) network in the eastern part of the Japanese main island, including Tokyo Metropolitan area, and provides transportation services, comprising urban, suburban and high speed operations, for 17 million passengers on a daily basis. JR East also undertakes non‐transport commercial activities, which account for more than 30% of the total revenue of JR East Group. JR East contributes to passengers and communities it serves by delivering high degrees of punctuality, reliability and comfort and also continues to pursue higher levels of safety and service quality through technical innovation. For more information, visit www.jreast.co.jp/e .