10:34am Thursday 3rd February 2005
By Yvonne Gordon
Worrying railway station crime figures issued last week could be misleading, according to South West Trains (SWT).
London Assembly Conservatives said they propose the recruitment of hundreds of extra British Transport Police officers to patrol suburban rail and tube routes, as they released figures showing 1,300 crimes were committed last year at South West Trains stations across London.
These included 259 offences at Clapham Junction, 165 at Surbiton and 49 at Kingston.
However, a spokesman for the rail firm said: "These 2004 figures do not show any comparison with other periods.
"But figures from January to June 2004 show an 8.6 per cent crime reduction compared to the same period in 2003.
"We are confident there will also be a comparable reduction in figures from June to December.
"We work closely with British Transport Police to ensure passenger safety. Also, the Travel Safe Scheme deploys workers to provide reassurance to passengers."
The figures also showed that last year there were 135 crimes at Wimbledon station, 51 at Worcester Park, 48 at New Malden, 42 at Chessington South, 30 in Norbiton, 22 in Tolworth and 21 in Chessington North.
Hampton Station had 23, Hampton Wick 26, Richmond 83, Malden Manor 11, and Berrylands nine. The lowest figure was for Barnes Bridge where four offences were recorded.
Conservative London Assembly and Metropolitan Police Authority member, Tony Arbour, said: "With such figures it is no wonder that the public think crime is increasing. London Assembly Conservatives propose tackling this problem in this year's GLA budget by recruiting 600 extra British Transport Police specifically for suburban rail and tube routes.
"This will cost £25million, but save a fortune in damage and clearing up after criminal incidents."
SWT said it is mid-way through a £4 million security investment programme across London.
The spokesman added: "Figures are higher in stations such as Surbiton, because it is busy, with more than £5 million passenger journeys annually. Therefore there is more instance of recorded crime.
"In Kingston, the figure is lower, because there are just over £2.5 million journeys and also fewer trains."
ygordon@london.newsquest.co.uk
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