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Archive
1997-03-06 RTK-001
Railtrack plc
Railtrack Southern wins tidy Britain Group National Award
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Press release
Railtrack plc
Railtrack Southern wins tidy Britain Group National Award
Railtrack Southern's anti-litter initiative picked up the top prize in the Tidy Britain Group environmental awards in Harrogate on 4th March.
The prestigious award - The Independent Peoples & Places Programme of the Year Award - was presented to Railtrack Southern's Toby Meadows and Eddie Croal for the work undertaken with local authorities to tackle the litter and fly tipping problem on the railway in the southern area.
The Hayes to New Cross Project to clear the rail embankment and track bed was specifically mentioned by Tidy Britain Group. Also highlighted was The Wildlife in the Community scheme where the local community can adopt a piece of redundant rail land to develop as a nature reserve and an anti-fly tipping campaign which has involved local authorities and police in identifying sites and taking action against the fly tippers.
Railtrack South started the initiative in December 1994, before merger with the South West zone created the current Southern zone. The scheme has carried on and the zone are looking to involve more local authorities in tackling a problem that not only makes the railway look unsightly but can deter people from travelling.
"While it's great to get recognition for our efforts through this award, it is also just as pleasing to see the improvement these schemes make when they are implemented," said Toby Meadows, Railtrack Southern's Environment Manager.
Last year Railtrack Southern spent £1.5 million on clearing litter, with a conservative estimate putting the amount of litter cleared from its stations per month at 240,000 litres of waste. This is equivalent to the waste of 300,000 households. The average fly tip in the Southern area contains five tonnes of waste when cleared, with the largest clean up taking place in Hassocks, Sussex where 60 tonnes of waste was removed.
"People quite rightly do not like seeing litter on their station or the track that runs through their community," said Mr Meadows. "What the people and places programme does is try and harness that feeling and work together to improve the environment.
"Clearing the railway is not as simple as some people imagine, staff cannot simply walk out onto the track and pick up litter. This allied to the sheer number of people who use the railway means we have our work cut out and sometimes despite our efforts litter can reappear very quickly. Our work will not stop at winning this award."
Railnews Archive ::: 1997-03-06 RTK-001
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