Following last week’s train attack in France, plans being considered by the European Union could see airport-style security introduced on British trains.
Surveillance cameras could be mandatory and X-ray machines introduced for high-speed services as well as the possibility of armed ‘rail marshals’.
RT reports: train operators could be made to install CCTV cameras in every carriage and stations could introduce X-ray machines for high-speed services as part of increased security in the wake of the Arras attack.
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The European Union is drawing up plans to create EU-wide rules on railway security for the first time, having previously introduced common rules on air and sea travel in the wake of 9/11.
EU officials will hold a meeting on September 11 (ironically) with transport security experts, which will include representatives from the UK’s Home Office and Department for Transport.
They will discuss the best way to handle any future terror attacks and whether rail security should more closely resemble airport security. EU transport ministers will then discuss their proposals in October.
RT continues: Another proposal is for wall scanners that can detect weapons on people as they move through tunnels in underground subways.
Britain currently advocates the collection and sharing of rail passenger data, known as PNR, as way to boost transport security across Europe.
EU sources told the Telegraph there are no proposals to collect and share such data on rail travelers with police Europe-wide, although some European rail companies, including Thalys, do collect PNR.
Increased security measures will be resisted by train operators, especially in France where 5 million people ride trains each day.
SNCF chief Guillaume Pepy has outright rejected the idea of airport-style security in train stations.
The railway executive said: “There are 20 times more train passengers in France than there are air passengers. So whatever security there is now at airports, you would have to multiply it by 20 in stations. It is not a realistic proposition.”
The US is also considering beefing up security so that travelling by train would involve similar screening procedures as those seen at airports.
Niamh Harris
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