British Transport Police

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Coat of arms of the BTP

The British Transport Police ( BTP , Heddlu Trafnidiaeth Prydeinig in Welsh ) is the police force responsible for rail transport in Great Britain . She is responsible for both local and long-distance traffic. In Northern Ireland , the Police Service of Northern Ireland has also taken on this task.

history

The British Transport Police with its predecessors is one of the oldest police forces in the world. First units in Liverpool and Manchester are mentioned in 1830. Around 1900 there were more than a hundred railway companies, of which around 20 had their own police units. The Railways Act 1921 saw the formation of four large railway companies, each with their own police units:

In 1949 these police forces became the British Transport Commission Police , which was renamed The British Transport Police in 1962 .

Structure and staff

The BTP is responsible for all routes operated by Network Rail . They are also used in the London Underground system, the Docklands Light Railway , the Channel Tunnel Rail Link , which connects Kent with the Channel Tunnel, the Sunderland line of the Tyne and Wear Metro between Pelaw and South Hylton, the Midland Metro , the tram in South London ( Tramlink ) and the Glasgow Underground (since 2007). A total of around 16,000 kilometers of rail will be entrusted with more than 3,000 fixed facilities. The monitored system transports more than a billion passengers a year on the main routes alone.

Together with the French police, she also monitors the railroad in the Channel Tunnel.

It may only monitor other railways if the operator signs a contract for this with BTP. The BTP is not responsible for museum railways.

Joint responsibility for the BTP is now shared by the Department for Transport (DfT), the Scottish Government and the Welsh Parliament , which together with representatives from passenger and industry associations form the British Transport Police Authority .

As of November 2009, the BTP had 2,885 police officers, 218 volunteer police officers ( Special Constables ), 327 police community support officers ( Police Community Support Officers ) and a further 1,334 employees. Andy Trotter OBE , QPM , has been Chief Constable of the British Transport Police since June 2009 .

The service area is divided into the following districts ( division ) (the respective seat in brackets):

  • London North (London, Caledonian Road)
  • London South (London, London Bridge Street)
  • London Underground (London, Broadway)
  • North East (Leeds)
  • North West (Manchester)
  • Scotland (Glasgow)
  • Wales and West (Birmingham)

Each district is subordinate to a Chief Supierindent.

In addition, the BTP is involved in neighborhood policing ( e.g. neighborhood police ) to ensure safety in local traffic. Corresponding units belong to each district. The seats of these units are:

  • Scotland: Edinburgh Waverley, Glasgow Central, Glasgow Queen Street, Glasgow Subway, Stirling, Haymarket to Falkirk
  • North West: Southport, Manchester, Wirral
  • Northeast: Leeds (West Yorkshire), York (East Coast Main Line), Nottingham (Robin Hood Line)
  • Wales and West: Birmingham, West Midlands Cross City, Pontypridd, Newport
  • North London: Euston, Kings Cross, Liverpool Street, Paddington, St Pancras
  • London South: Clapham, Lewisham, London Bridge, London Bridge First Capital Connect, Victoria, Victoria Loop, Waterloo, Richmond, Bromley
  • London Underground and Dockland: Inner London Central Line and Bakerloo, Inner London District and Northern Line, Inner London Victoria and Piccadilly Line, Met, Ham and Circle Line, Central Line East, Central Line West, Central Line North West, District Line East, District Line West, District and Circle Line South, Piccadilly Line West, Piccadilly Line North West, Piccadilly Line North, Northern Line North, Jubilee Line East, Jubilee Line North, Dockland, East London Line Extension, Victoria Line North, Victoria and Northern Line South, Hammersmith and City Line, Bakerloo and Jubilee Line South, Bakerloo Line North, Metropolitan Line North West

In special cases the "rail traffic police" also take on the duties of the regular police officers.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Queens Police Medal
  2. ↑ "Rail traffic policeman" armed only with baton stands in the way of terrorists, DERWESTEN, accessed on June 4, 2017