London bus shelters equipped with CCTV in safety trial to support safer travel
Bus shelters are to be fitted with CCTVs in a trial to see if they can improve safety for people waiting to catch their next bus.
Transport for London (TfL) tested the installation earlier this year at five bus stops, and now, in coordination with the Metropolitan Police, the trial is to be expanded to 20 more bus shelters.
The extra CCTVs have been installed on bus shelters across Brent, Croydon, Hackney, Hammersmith and Fulham, Hillingdon, Lambeth, Newham, Redbridge, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, and Westminster. These locations were selected to provide good coverage across London and to understand the effectiveness of CCTV in different areas. This includes busy locations with high footfall, quieter locations with less frequent bus services, higher crime areas, or places where women and girls have reported feeling more unsafe.
The trial is a step towards delivering the Mayor’s commitment to increase CCTV in bus shelters.
TfL says that only the police can access the camera footage, which will be retained for 31 days and only used to support police investigations. The camera is recessed within the roof of the bus shelter, and there’s a large yellow notice on the side wall alerting the public that camera footage is being recorded.
Deputy Mayor for Transport, Seb Dance said: “Everyone deserves to feel safe and be safe at all times when travelling around London and it is the Mayor’s top priority to ensure the transport network is a safe and low-crime environment. That’s why I welcome this trial of CCTV at bus shelters, which will improve safety for women and girls and ensure they can travel with confidence.
“Increased CCTV will help to ensure the network is secure and welcoming round the clock, supporting the Mayor’s aim to continue building a safer London for everyone.”
The trial’s results will be used to evaluate the costs and feasibility of a wider rollout of CCTV cameras in other locations in London.
Seems sensible, assuming they are kept working (unlike the CCTV on the bus where I was involved in an incident). As for “places where women and girls have reported feeling more unsafe”, I guess men would be reluctant to so report. A pity given they are actually far more likely to be the victims of violence including, sadly, murder.
It might be safer to post a notice in *all* shelters that CCTV *may* be operational. Someone intent on harming another will otherwise know which shelters are unprotected