Thefts of line side cable cost the rail industry over £15 million a year. Figures released by Network Rail recently reveal a £43m price tag on this crime-spree over the past three years, resulting in over 16,000 hours of delay.
Says Dyan Crowther, director, operational services at Network Rail, ‘These criminal acts have to stop. Every day passengers and essential freight deliveries upon which our economy relies are being delayed by thieves looking to make a quick buck at our expense. I cannot over-emphasise just how serious these crimes are. Cable thieves deny passengers the service they rightly expect and, through the massive cost to the industry, deny everyone improvements to rail services.’
Over the last year nearly 1,000 individual attacks on essential rail systems were reported, a 52 per cent jump on the previous year. Undercover patrols and line side monitoring devices are part of a secret arsenal being deployed by ingenious rail cops around the network.
Says Alan Pacey, Assistant Chief Constable of British Transport Police, ‘The railways have seen significant delays and cancellations as a result of thieves cutting and stealing signalling and power cables from the side of the track. But we are working to tackle the issue and in the past few months have seen significant jail sentences handed down to cable thieves put before the courts.
‘We are determined to send a clear message that such attacks on our critical infrastructure are unacceptable and the police and rail industry are working together to tackle the problem.’
Network Rail has even acquired a helicopter to chase the p-way robbers. Anyone with any information about cable theft should contact British Transport Police or Crimestoppers where they can report the crime anonymously and could receive up to £1,000 reward if their information leads to a conviction. BTP can be contacted on 0800 40 50 40 and Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
