CCTV OF INCIDENT AT STATION
Customers can feel safe travelling on the Queensland Rail network knowing a team of security experts are on hand to respond to any incident, at any time, at any location.
Queensland Rail Senior Manager Security and Emergency Preparedness Drew Brock said serious crime on the network was the exception and reinforced that while the majority of customers are law-abiding citizens, a raft of security measures are in place to stop antisocial and criminal behaviour by a few.
“Your safety and security is our priority. A team of 22 Security Monitoring Officers based at the Rail Management Centre monitor feeds from more than 12,000 security cameras around the rail network. Our 24/7 security monitoring crew are here to bolster security on our rail network,” Mr Brock said.
“These cameras are vital in supporting our close working relationship with Queensland Police Service (QPS) and are coordinated in real-time by our Security Monitoring Team and Railway Squad Police Liaison Officer.
“The Security Monitoring team is only the push of a button away if you need assistance when travelling with Queensland Rail by using the emergency help phones located on station platforms, or via the emergency intercom onboard in every train carriage.
“When you press the emergency intercom, it either comes through to the Security Monitoring team (if pressed at stations) or to the train guard (if pressed onboard).
“The Security Monitoring Team can see you in real time and arrange for resources to be sent to your location, if needed, while the train guard can investigate any on board incidents and coordinate a response via the Rail Management Centre if required.
“Customers should press the emergency intercoms if they feel unsafe, when somebody’s life is at risk and when someone is experiencing a medical episode or is injured.
“We do not tolerate crime or anti-social behaviour on the network and work closely with QPS, including the 90 officer-strong QPS Railway Squad, to deter, detect, identify and prosecute offenders. We also have 30 Authorised Officers, 11 canine teams patrolling stations, and Guardian Trains at night with security officers onboard.
“These Guardian Trains operate on selected night-time services during the week and on the majority of services after 7pm on Friday and Saturday nights.”
Security Shift Supervisor Neil Freeman said his number one priority was to ensure customers get to their destinations safely and that employees remain safe while at work.
“In my role as Security Shift Supervisor, I work with the QPS Liaison Officer to coordinate security and police resources across the network to where they are needed most,” Mr Freeman said.
“CCTV is monitored in real time but in addition there is a team of CCTV Analysts that review and process footage to support investigations.
“Security incident trends inform our monitoring activities. In addition, we gather information from a range of sources – station staff, police and the travelling public - they are an extra set of eyes and ears for us.
”Our goal is to support the security response while causing minimal disruptions to customers.”
QPS Railway Squad Office in Charge Senior Sergeant Simon Arnold said QPS has a proud and longstanding relationship with Queensland Rail.
“We have Police Liaison Officers based at the Rail Management Centre to allow a seamless flow of information between our two organisations,” Senior Sergeant Arnold said.
“Our Railway Squad officers have specialised training and operate in teams across the rail network. They proactively patrol trains, stations and car parks.
“There are also eight purpose-built QPS outposts and two police hubs located across the SEQ rail network, which are there to keep everyone safe.”
In addition to the security roles at Queensland Rail, all frontline employees keep customer safety in the forefront of their minds.
A recent example of this was an incident at Roma Street caught on CCTV, where Station Customer Service Office observed a customer receiving unwanted attention from two intoxicated customers. He stood with the customer until the train arrived and warned the men to leave the customer alone while on the train, moved them to a different carriage and alerted both the Security Monitoring Team and the train guard.
The customer submitted positive feedback back to Queensland Rail saying she really appreciated him being observant and stepping in.
ENDS