Call the cops, there’s someone taking a picture of a train!
A member of rail staff was threatened with arrest by an agency security worker from another station, after taking a picture of a train – and he's not the only one to feel the wrath of agency staff trying to enforce non existent rules, with powers they don’t have. Rail photographers were very used to such attitudes before the fall of the iron curtain, communist countries being paranoid about spies.
A train dispatcher at South West Railways – who is also an enthusiast – was at Queenstown Road, near London Waterloo and also served by South West Railways, and as soon as he got the camera out of his bag, was pounced on by a member of agency staff, who warned him that taking pictures of trains was “dangerous” and demanding to see ID, which he provided “after they threatened to call the police”. According to British Transport Police, taking train pictures is not illegal and rail staff have no right to demand that anyone deletes pictures. Directly employed rail staff, being better trained and usually more intelligent, are rarely hostile to enthusiasts – many being enthusiasts themselves.
A signaller commented, sarcastically: “I do like members of staff who act in that manner, rude and disrespectful towards others who enjoy their hobbies. I’ve encountered some just like that.” and a guard said “Imagine being the sort of person who enjoys ruining someone's day when they're not doing anything wrong.”
Another enthusiast was also at Queenstown Road station recently and said he was also approached by the same person who told him to get off the station: “I refused and told him that I absolutely could take photos. He said he would call the police, I said go for it. He walked away and just kept staring at me.”
This is not the first time over zealous have overstepped the mark, with train spotters being accosted by agency staff at Clapham Junction and Bournemouth in recent weeks – and that’s before we mention the infamous Blackpool North.
The secrets that rail bosses didn’t want the public to know. Drawing on internal 'secret' reports and candid staff interviews, the 'A Funny Thing Happened on the Train' series of books are a funny, fearless and sometimes shocking narrative of rail travel in the UK. The first two best selling books in the trilogy are https://www.chimewhistle.co.uk/shop/p/a-funny-thing-happened-on-the-train-to-london and https://www.chimewhistle.co.uk/shop/p/afunnythinghappenedonthetraintothemidlands Both now down to very limited stock.