West Midlands Police Officer Calls for Safety Stickers on Every Bus in the Region
Paula Shortland, an education officer at West Midlands Police, has publicly endorsed a campaign to install safety stickers on all public transport vehicles across the region. As the Violence Against Women and Girls champion for the Safer Travel Partnership, she believes this initiative could significantly improve awareness and reporting of issues on buses.
Easy Solution to Enhance Passenger Safety
In an interview with BirminghamLive, Paula Shortland highlighted the simplicity of the proposal, which involves placing "Empower" and "SeeSay 81018" stickers on alternate bus seats. The SeeSay number is specifically designed for reporting anti-social behaviour, providing a non-emergency contact for passengers to use discreetly.
She explained, "It's such an easy thing to do, and we tried to do that on buses, but the bus companies were like, 'You're not putting stickers on the back of the chairs.'" Despite this resistance from some operators, who fear it might alarm passengers, Paula argues that the stickers represent a "great idea" and an "easy solution" to foster a safer travel environment.
Challenges and Future Opportunities
The officer noted that the West Midlands has hundreds of different bus companies, not just National Express, complicating uniform implementation. However, she expressed optimism about future changes, stating, "I think when the franchising goes ahead with a new mayor, we will have more say in what we can do." This suggests that upcoming political shifts could provide the leverage needed to enforce such safety measures across all transport providers.
By advocating for these stickers, West Midlands Police aim to empower passengers to report incidents without hesitation, ultimately contributing to reduced anti-social behaviour and enhanced community well-being on public transport networks.
