Agenda and minutes

Committee Members were informed that Councillor Nadia Farhat is no longer a member of the Committee.

Councillor Francis Purdue-Horan  - personal reasons

Councillor Gordon Wheeler – personal reasons

Jim Thomas (Nottinghamshire Better Transport)

Justin Donne (Nottingham Federation of Small Businesses)

None.

Minutes of the meeting held on 12 September 2023, for confirmation

Subject to including that Councillor John Ogle chaired the meeting, the Committee confirmed the minutes of the meeting held on 12 September 2023 as a correct record and they were signed by the Chair.

Report of the Head of Operations, Nottingham Trams

Trevor Stocker, Head of Operations at Nottingham Trams, introduced a report on NET’s policy towards the safeguarding of vulnerable people on the tram network which highlighted the following:

(a)  throughout this year NET has continued to engage with community partners and in particular The Pythian Club. Together with them they have presented a YouVTram campaign to hundreds of children across the city and county at school. This campaign is complemented with outreach workers engaging with young people on the tram. This partnership has identified a number of at-risk children and young people helping them to get the help they need;

(b)  schools from across the city have been invited to the NET depot as part of the mini police project. During visits children have been shown measures in place to keep them safe whilst travelling on the network and what to do if they get into difficulty;

(c)  NET has continued to support the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner’ Safety of Women at Night (SWaN) project. Training has been embedded for front line staff so they can recognise the signs of vulnerability within a nighttime economy environment and be able to take effective action to reduce any risks;

(d)  at the end of 2022 NET launched a new WhatsApp messaging service to allow customers to discreetly report issues of Anti-Social Behaviour or other concerns to its Customer Experience team. This service is in addition to all trams and tram stops having emergency help points and provides a discreet way of getting in touch if a person is feeling vulnerable;

(e)  in September NET launched a new service for our customers with Widget who are inclusion specialists. They provide guides for customers with additional needs to enable them to travel independently and safely on board.

During the discussion and in response to questions from the Committee, the following points were raised:

(f)  since the Covid-19 pandemic. There has been an increase in people wanting to self-harm or commit suicide nationally, including on Nottingham tram routes. This is a difficult situation. NET is in dialogue with the police around prevention and common locations;

(g)  the Pythian Club directly works towards supporting and mentoring young people with the aim of reducing youth violence and driving community cohesion. They deliver this through a framework of sport, art, and educational programmes within the community. NET has had a relationship with them for several years to engage with young people on the trams and have positive conversations to reduce anti-social behaviour;

(h)  there has been concern about large scooters on the tram that take up a lot of space and could fall on pram or wheelchairs. This is difficult to manage as they are not regulated or licensed. This has also been investigated and there is no evidence to suggest that large scooter less stable than small ones.

Resolved to note the report.

Report of the Head of Operations, Nottingham Trams

Trevor Stocker, Head of Operations at Nottingham Trams, introduced a report on the operational performance and progression of the Nottingham Tram Network which highlighted the following:

(a)  there has been a substantial improvement in reliability and punctuality of the tram over the last 3 months, including the excellent delivery of services during the 2023 Goose Fair Event;

(b)  the network continues to experience some external events and incidents involving third parties that have impacted on tram services. These include a truck pulling down the overhead line in Beeston and storms causing flooding in the Wilford area;

(c)  between 18th and 31st August, planned works to fully upgrade the tracks and the points at The Forest were successfully completed. An operations plan was created to enable customers to reach their required destinations while services were temporarily suspended between Wilkinson Street and Old Market Square, with a dedicated bus replacement service operating between these two locations;

(d)  track replacement works were also undertaken at Middle Hill, between 22nd and 24th October, and works to repair damage caused to the track bed at Cator Lane, following the burst water main incident and subsequent flooding in the area;

(e)  on 17th August, an IT network issue caused a system wide outage of safety critical systems at the beginning of service. Since it was not possible for the control room to communicate with drivers, all trams were withdrawn to the Depot shortly after 0700. Alternative back-up systems are being investigated to avoid this happening again;

(f)  parking enforcement patrols have been extended to the Hucknall and Moor Bridge park and ride sites. The patrols have contributed towards the overall security of the network, with officers deterring anti-social behaviour and criminal damage. Parking Enforcement patrols are planned to progress to Clifton South and Phoenix Park during December bringing all park and ride facilities under the same scheme;

(g)  anti-social behaviour incidents against staff have reduced over the past year, with no reports in November at all. There were some Incidents of youth crime around tram infrastructure involving fireworks around Halloween and bonfire night. Anti-social driving around the Toton Lane area continues to be an issue. Over 50 hours of dedicated patrols took place in the area during October with a specific focus on deterring this activity;

(h)  NET Customer Experience Agents have taken part in Operation Reach, working with 11 plain clothes covert police officers to identify fare evaders and anti-social behaviour. Several fare evaders were stopped from abusing staff or running away without tickets. A large group of eight youths identified by the team as previously causing damage and abusing the network were also stopped and contained;

(i)  during December NET is re-launching its Zero Tolerance to fare evasion campaign. This campaign will focus on education and enforcement of the “buy before you board” rules. There will be an increased presence of staff and police on the system throughout month to target fare evaders on the network together with an extensive publicity campaign;

(j)  at the Global Light Rail awards, held in October, NET received the “Best Customer Initiative” award for the work that has already been undertaken around the Zero Tolerance campaign on revenue protection;

(k)  as part of Keolis Passenger & Innovation Day on 20th September, the NET management team went to one of the system’s most popular stops, Royal Centre, to host a ‘Meet the Manager’ session. The day was spent talking to passengers about the tram service and handing out freebies and goody bags. The team were also joined by The Pythian Club as part of their outreach work;

(l)  NET has met with the Thomas Pocklington Trust, a national charity which supports blind and partially sighted people, to discuss how further support can be provided to the visually impaired and blind people when using the tram system;

(m)NET attended a Safety and Wellness Fair, organised by Nottingham Trent University in October to introduce students to various heath, wellbeing and safety initiatives, both internal and external to the university.

During the discussion and in response to questions from the Committee, the following points were raised:

(n)  the anti-social driving at Toton Lane is still a big concern for local residents, with a petition having been created. A Public Order has been suggested but this would need to come from the Council or the police. Councillor Eric Kerry requested a full update from NET regarding the actions taken to date, and who in the Council and Police could implement a Public Order;

(o)  there is a huge cost to the company when overhead lines are damaged, and it is long process to recover money from insurance. There is also reputational damage which can result in fewer customers traveling.

Resolved to

(1)  note the report;

(2)  request a full update from NET regarding the actions taken to date on anti-social driving at Toton Lane be shared with Councillor Eric Kerry.

For further discussion.

The next meeting will discuss customer survey results, as well as the standard updates.

12 March 2024, Loxley House

The future meeting dates were noted.

Committee members were invited to make arrangements to visit the NET tram depot.