Passengers caught drinking alcohol on ScotRail trains could face higher penalties as part of moves to improve the safety of women and girls on Scotland’s rail network
The move is among recommendations in a report commissioned by transport minister Jenny Gilruth who pledged to tackle the “systematic problem” which made many women feel unsafe travelling by train and bus.
The Transport Scotland report said alcohol and drugs “featured in a lot of the descriptions of incidents that had or would make women feel unsafe” and “were seen to fuel much of the inappropriate behaviour that women and girls were exposed to and caused anxiety due to how unpredictable others became as a result”.
It recommended: “To strengthen existing rules around non-consumption of alcohol on public transport and at points of interchange. Increased penalties for non-compliance and better enforcement of legislation in this regard may also be required.”
ScotRail banned the drinking of alcohol after 9pm in 2012 and extended it round the clock in 2020.
The report said: “Almost all respondents noted a perception of heightened risk to themselves where other passengers were intoxicated because they were seen as being more likely to say or do inappropriate things.
However, the report added that one young woman was keen to point out that: “It’s not always men that are drunk that do it [make women feel unsafe]. Sometimes it’s men that appear to be sober.”
Top picture: Dumbarton Central Station pictured after dark.