Scarborough students and MP raise concerns about ‘intimidating’ behaviour on evening trains

Students and Scarborough and Whitby’s MP have highlighted safety concerns of passengers on late night services between York and Scarborough, with some saying there is a lack of security.

On Tuesday (April 1), David Skaith, the elected Mayor of York and North Yorkshire, held an event with sixth form students at Scarborough UTC to mark taking control of buses in North Yorkshire.

The combined authority recently approved plans aimed at integrating the region’s transport system.

The sixth form students shared their concerns about the safety of travelling on the trains, especially for women and girls, with some stating that trains “feel more unsafe than buses”.

One student said: “There’s a lot of drunk people on the York to Scarborough train, especially during the races.”

Another student added: “That train is one where you have to be careful who you sit next to.”

Alison Hume, MP for Scarborough and Whitby, said that Transpennine Express, which operates an hourly service between York and Scarborough, “should be doing much more”.

Many also complained that buses were often late and that a lack of reliable and regular public transport discouraged them from staying in the area.

Mr Skaith said that having better services late at night and early in the morning was “a really big part and focus of what we’ve been looking at”.

He added: “When people are leaving work at 10pm or 11pm, it is making sure the public transport is there for them because if it’s not and it’s unreliable, then people can feel quite isolated and it can be quite a scary place to be if you’re finishing work at midnight and there’s no public transport.”

Also attending the event was Ms Hume, who said she was “unhappy with the current situation where intoxicated passengers, usually male, are allowed to board the 22.24 and 23.05 trains from York to Scarborough, particularly on a Friday and Saturday”.

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), Ms Hume said: “In my view, it is not possible for a single conductor to manage the safety of passengers on the train, who have told me that they feel intimidated by the behaviour.

“The advice given to passengers is to call the transport police if an incident happens but I feel TPE should be doing much more.

“I have raised the issue of women’s safety on the last trains with TPE both in writing and in person back in January, and have yet to receive a reply.”

Transpennine Express has been contacted for a comment by the LDRS.