Sale and consumption of alcohol to be banned on trains?

The Rail Safety and Standards Board, a group which advises the UK's rail operators through research, the understanding of risk and analysis, has produced a report headed "Platform train interface strategy - January 2015".

One of the areas covered in the report is that of intoxication and one of the options which could be adopted to prevent this is banning the sale and consumption of alcohol on trains.

In the conclusions to the report it states "Intoxication has a large effect on the occurrence of accidents at the Platform Train Interface ("PTI"), especially when the person is not boarding or alighting." Further, "Intoxication was the fourth biggest incident factor by number of incidents. This was a feature of 9% of all incidents".

Passenger intoxication was also "identified by the Office of Rail Regulation as a factor in 21 of the 32 deaths at the PTI in the past 10 years. Intoxication is associated with the potential for passengers to fall from the platform, be struck by a train while on the platform, fall between the platform and the train or slip, trip, or fall across the platform train interface."

In terms of how intoxication could be managed the report goes on to say "A range of resources to support the safe management of intoxicated passengers will be piloted at all staffed stations and, where successful, will be implemented, so far as is reasonably practicable. Work will also be undertaken to incorporate requirements for such resources into the design standards for new stations."

A formalised agreement for managing intoxicated passengers will be produced for Network Rail and British Transport Police as well as rail and station staff. The agreement will "be supported by investigation into additional legislation and policy that could be used to support the management of intoxicated passengers, for example banning the sale and consumption of alcohol on trains (similar to TfL)".

Drinking on the London Underground was banned in 2008.

The full report can be viewed here:Platform train interface strategy.

25 February 2015 Update - Drinking alcohol will not be prohibited on the train network, a safety regulator has apparently confirmed today after reports that (as referred to above) it could be banned.