Unstaffed trains will be unsafe on match days, warn unions

THE imminent arrival of Britain’s first fully unstaffed trains has prompted a safety row after politicians and union officials voiced concerns about football crowds on match days.

The new Glasgow Subway trains, announced to much fanfare this week, are designed to be driverless and totally unstaffed by 2021. While some laud this as the future of transport, others worry about passenger safety.

Pat Mcilvogue, of Unite, said overcrowding and rowdy behaviour on match days was a cause for concern. He said the impact of the move towards automation had not been fully considered. He asked: “On match days how are they going to manage the influx of people piling into doors when the doors are shut? Who will operate doors and manage the situations? What happens if the train needs to be halted?”

Sandra White, a SNP MSP, insisted the trains would be a “fantastic addition” to Glasgow, saying it was “common practice in countries across the world like Denmark to have unmanned electric trains. Safety and customer service will remain a top priority on the new Glasgow Subway trains that will be fitted with CCTV throughout.”

A spokesman from Strathclyde Partnership for Transport, added: “Staff accept there will be changes to working practices. The closest thing to an unmanned train on Britain’s tracks is the DLR (the Docklands Light Railway in London), but even that has train attendants who travel on board, operating the doors and solving passenger problems.”

Andrew Boff, a Tory member of the London Assembly, said he was “committed to going driverless because of the stranglehold the unions have on the network.”