U-turn on Subway photo ban

Transport Correspondent

Monday 18 June 2012

PASSENGERS and amateur photographers have claimed a victory after it emerged controversial plans to ban photography on Glasgow's Subway and fine offenders up to £1000 are to be dropped.

OUTCRY: Web designer David Bennett, who started the Picture Our Subway online campaign to protest the photo ban, has welcomed the revised proposals.

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DAMIEN HENDERSON Transport Correspondent

Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT), which operates the 116-year-old metro system, said it would recommend that councillors on its board cancel the proposed ban following a consultation on updating by-laws dating back to 1980 that closed last Friday.

Revised proposals, which are yet to be voted on, are expected to include a change to the conditions of carriage that will prevent flash photography and could allow Subway stewards to intervene if photographers were creating a disturbance or intervening in the safe operation of the underground trains.But the blanket ban, which provoked a storm of protest on online forums and in formal consultation responses, has been rejected by SPT, whose spokeswoman said its initial proposals had not taken account of the rise of social media and use of mobile-phone cameras.The spokeswoman said: "SPT would like to thank the many people who took the time to respond during the consultation period. As a result, SPT is likely to recommend to our partnership board that photography should not be banned on the Subway. "Responsible photography is something we continue to welcome and we will be revising our conditions of carriage to reflect that. "We also recognise that the initial proposals were written at a time when there were real concerns over transport security, but did not predict the huge uptake in social media and availability of handheld devices, with a built-in camera, which many of our customers use."The climbdown was last night welcomed by campaigners, who said SPT had "seen sense" over the issue. David Bennett, a Glasgow-based web designer who started the Picture Our Subway online campaign when the proposals were published in May, said: "This is very welcome. A slight concern is that we've had reports from passengers who say they've been shouted at by Subway officials to stop taking photos, and I'm very keen to ensure that doesn't happen."I get the impression from talking to people at SPT that they're quite keen to take a sensible approach. If the message effectively trickles down that photography is allowed, unless under exceptional circumstances, that would definitely be welcome."In a sign of the impact the proposals have had, Picture Our Subway has received nearly 3500 visits over the past month and been shared by nearly 500 people on Facebook.Among those to have supported the campaign are Alan Cumming, the Aberfeldy-born Holywood actor. A photo of him standing in front of a poster for the National Theatre of Scotland production of Macbeth in which he stars, while waiting for a Subway train, was widely distributed on Twitter.Business leaders and tourism officials have similarly condemned the proposals, saying they could damage Glasgow's reputation and cause confusion among visitors. Civil liberties organisations said the ban would be unworkable.Officials within the transport body privately admit the proposed photo ban had not been properly thought through when the consultation on updating the Subway by-laws was published last month.The proposals stemmed from security concerns aired in the wake of the London Underground bombings in 2005 and the attempted attack on Glasgow Airport two years later, which led to strict anti-terrorist measures being drawn up to protect public transport systems. But a delay in turning these recommendations into concrete proposals led to a lack of oversight, one official claimed.Ironically, SPT's U-turn comes as the organisation celebrates a successful online marketing campaign that resulted in it being awarded the Best Use of Social Media prize at the Transport Times' Scottish Transport Awards last week.The Subway's Twitter account has attracted more than 5000 followers in less than two years and has been credited with helping to drive up passenger numbers and improve its image ahead of a major modernisation programme, which is only the third since it was built in 1896.

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U-turn on Subway photo ban

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