Policing Public Transport: A Neglected History

  Middle:  Moorgate 1975 (Source U/K) Bottom:  Stechford 1967 (Source U/K) Top:          Great Heck 2001 (Source BTP) Today (28 th February) is the anniversary of the Stechford railway crash ((1967), the Moorgate crash (1975) and the Great Heck crash (2001).     Between them 62 people were killed in the three incidents.   The British Transport Police played a major role in each one, as responders and as investigators.   At Moorgate (43 dead) the force investigated on behalf of the coroner and supported the inquiry carried out by Her Majesty’s Railway Inspectorate.   At Great Heck (10 dead) the scene was secured by BTP and the criminal and coronial investigation was led by BTP.   But read the official accounts of these incidents and there is hardly a mention of BTP.   The major book about the Moorgate Crash, for example, makes two passing references to the force and in one of these gets its title wrong.   This observation is not an attempt to detract from the vitally important role p

As LGBT History Month comes to a close, I am pleased to have seen the material put out by many police forces on the subject.  I learn a lot from sources such as these but, despite the efforts of many, this is still an area of police history that is under researched.  It is an area where academic work continues but where the police history community has been quieter.  It is an area of great relevance to  the history of railway, dock and canal policing. I used to think that the whole question of LGBT+ history was a modern trend and nothing really to do with the history of policing.  As a straight man it always seemed a little niche.  Then one day about twenty years ago a colleague challenged me and said ‘do you think there were no Gay police officers in the past’?  I thought about this and of course we all knew officers who were Gay but who had learned to keep their sexuality hidden for fear of professional and social condemnation, discrimination and, in some cases, violence.  The langua

  Desmond O’Brien CBE QPM   It was sad news indeed when we heard today of the death of former Chief Constable, Desmond O’Brien.   Mr O’Brien was Chief Constable of the British Transport Police from 1989-1997 having previously served in Kent County Constabulary as Deputy Chief Constable and in senior ranks in Greater Manchester Police, the Police Staff College and in the RUC. Mr O’Brien was a successful and highly respected Chief Constable.   In many ways a traditionalist, he was also a moderniser, at a time when the force needed modernisation.   His reforms stood the test of time.   He was a leader with a clear sense of right and wrong.   He prepared the force for the coming of rail privatisation.   This was a time of great uncertainty and he tirelessly stood up for BTP in discussions with government and other forces.   Most of all we remember him as the Chief who led the force through a prolonged and intense terrorist campaign against the railway network.   Many of the innovatio

 I have recently blogged on this subject on a another blog but it may be of interest to those who follow the history of RDC policing: https://scott-trendall.blogspot.com/ Feb 2022

  Memo dated 12th June 1940 re Armed Guarding of Floodgates.  Original Document: LT Archives The London Underground played a vital economic role in the Second World War.   It was central to maintaining a functioning capital city.   Its economic and social importance remains undiminished today.   But London exists because of the River Thames.   The risk of flooding dominated emergency planning in the lead up to war and a number of floodgates were installed to protect tube tunnels and listening devices placed in the river to monitor for unexploded bombs.   Quite a bit has been written about this but very little has been done about attempts to protect the underground infrastructure and the peculiar demands of policing the London Transport network in wartime. At a recent exhibition at the London Transport Museum a memo (above) from Evan Evans, the Operating Manager (Railways) was put on display.   It hints at a treasure trove of documents relating to matters regarding the protection and

         OSTIME's entry in the District Railway Staff Register showing his steady promotion and frequent commendations.  The last entry lists a bonus in respect of the arrest that was to bring about his           conviction.    District Railway Register on www.ancestry.co.uk     Crowded places attract thieves.   This has always been true and the coming of the railways created a particularly attractive target for those who have chosen to disregard the 7 th Commandment.   From the mid 19 th century the railway companies started to tackle the problem of theft from passengers, including pickpocketing.     Several companies employed officers specifically to target this problem and virtually all of these officers executed their duties with zeal and fidelity. More recently and since the war the   ‘Dip’ Squad of the London Transport and then British Transport Police have acquired a reputation for successful detection of offenders that placed it in the first division of detective activity