New measure to tackle train vandalism a success

15/5/01
A tip-off from a concerned train commuter, who will receive a $500 reward, has resulted in a juvenile vandal being identified and summonsed to appear in court, Planning and Infrastructure Minister Alannah MacTiernan said today.
Late last month the Minister appealed to the public to call a new Transperth hotline -13 16 08 - to provide details of incidents of train vandalism they had witnessed.
A reward of $500 is given for information leading to the identification of vandals.
"The tip-off was received last week from an individual who witnessed a teenage school boy vandalising seats, using a can of spray paint, on a suburban train," Ms MacTiernan said.
"WA Government Railways train guards were then able to pinpoint the incident on video surveillance equipment, identify the vandal and issue that person with a summons to appear before a court of law.
"Vandalism to trains and train stations costs taxpayers nearly $1 million each year.
"That is $1 million that could otherwise go into improving the rail system."
Ms MacTiernan said the new Government had a commitment to improve safety and amenity on our trains. However, this could not be done without community assistance.
"We give a big thank you to the person who saw last week's act of vandalism for coming forward," the Minister said.
"This incident is an excellent example of how we can work with the community to take action on tackling this problem.
"Each week video surveillance equipment records more than 5,000 hours of on-board train activity which is impossible to monitor effectively.
"So we need all members of the community who witness acts of train vandalism to take action and record the time and date, the service they were travelling on and a description of the perpetrators. They should then ring the 13 16 08 hotline.
"This can result in a $500 reward for the caller and a win for the community through a reduction in vandalism."
Media contact: Kaye Hopkins 9213 6400