Posters and Plexiglas against vandalism at bus stops

Railroad - Posters and Plexiglas against vandalism at bus stops

Smashed and smeared windows, destroyed and burnt furniture - vandalism at bus and train stops causes high costs and enormous repair work. Verkehrsgesellschaft Frankfurt am Main (VGF) wants to draw attention to the problem with a prevention concept. The VGF has put up posters from this program at four stops in the city area that have been damaged particularly often in the past.

"I'm standing in the rain because of you" is one of the messages. Another: "523 portions of chips - That's how much a new window costs at this stop". They are intended to provide more insight, consideration and deterrence at the stops "Harthweg", "Waldfriedhof Goldstein" and "Waldau" at the Stadtwald in Schwanheim as well as at the "Walter-Kolb-Siedlung" stop on Friedberger Landstraße in Bornheim.

"Replacing destroyed windows, display cases and bus stop furniture is not only expensive, but also time-consuming and causes a great deal of frustration for passengers and VGF employees," explained VGF. Vandalism costs the company over one million euros a year. This is money that the VGF would like to use more sensibly. In addition, damaged and dirty stops also lead to a diminishing sense of security.

In addition to the posters, the VGF is using information screens in the stations and its social media channels to spread the message. The company is also holding talks with the Prevention Council and the local police, for example in Goldstein. "Further talks in schools and youth facilities are possible and desired. The public order service has been stepping up its operations in the heavily affected areas of the city since October," it said. The VGF intends to use tried and tested approaches from the four concepts at other stations and stops in future.

There are also problems with vandalism elsewhere. The Nordhessischer Verkehrsverbund (NVV) mainly reports broken glass - i.e. damaged or destroyed glass panes on the walls of bus shelters, doors and windows, elevators and timetable display cases - as well as soiling with posters and graffiti. "So far in 2023, around 1000 cases of vandalism damage have been recorded at train stations and bus stops in the NVV area - this includes the Kassel city area," said a spokeswoman. In addition to removing graffiti as quickly as possible, she said that glass panes on bus shelters that are repeatedly destroyed are sometimes replaced with perforated sheets.

According to a spokesperson, the Kasseler Verkehrsgesellschaft (KVG) has registered almost 3,000 cases of damage to streetcars and infrastructure - mainly bus stops - since 2019. This has resulted in damage of almost 1.5 million euros. The "wanton vandalism" causes "high, avoidable material damage, significant additional work and can endanger the safety of passengers and KVG staff if, for example, windows of stops or vehicles are shattered or doors of streetcars are damaged", she explained.

The removal of graffiti and stickers at KVG bus and streetcar stops is the top priority - 970 such acts have been recorded since 2019, according to the spokeswoman. The damage amounted to more than 430,000 euros. "Vandalism in streetcars followed at a clear distance, followed by damaged, smashed or scratched windows on streetcars, and then vandalism against electronic timetable displays at stops."

The KVG is primarily combating this with camera surveillance in streetcars and at stops. "At weekends and before public holidays, employees of a security company accompany journeys, which also contributes to prevention. There is also a ticket inspection service," says the spokesperson.

In Darmstadt, glass damage to the passenger shelter, ticket machines and digital passenger information (DFI) displays is the biggest problem. "On average, between 100 and 200 streetcar stops are damaged every year," explained a spokesperson for the transport company Heag mobilo. The company has an annual loss of around 50,000 to 80,000 euros due to vandalism. "In 2023, it was around 50,000 euros so far," said the spokesperson.

The cleaning of graffiti is excluded from this. "Removing graffiti or stickers - at the moment especially stickers of the Darmstadt lilies - is annoying, but it is part of daily cleaning." To prevent damage, Plexiglas is used on the display cases and bus stop signs.

The Rhine-Neckar Transport Association (VRN) is also aware of vandalism problems at its stations in the Bergstrasse district. "The focus here is certainly on the stations along the Riedbahn, such as Biblis and Groß-Rohrheim," explained a spokesperson.

The stops in the Offenbach city area are the responsibility of the outdoor advertising specialist Ströer, as announced by Stadtwerke Offenbach. "According to Ströer, there have been isolated cases of vandalism damage to the bus shelters in the past, such as broken glass on the side and rear windows of the passenger shelters and graffiti on the windows and benches," explained a spokesperson. Emergency hammers have recently been broken or stolen from the city buses operated by Stadtwerke. And: "On Halloween, 30 buses were pelted with raw eggs and had to be extensively cleaned."

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1. The VGF's initiative against vandalism at bus stops also extends to stops in Bornheim, specifically "Walter-Kolb-Siedlung" on Friedberger Landstraße.
2. Vandalism has also been a persistent issue for the Nordhessischer Verkehrsverbund (NVV), particularly in the Kassel city area, where over 1000 cases of damage have been reported in 2023.
3. The Kasseler Verkehrsgesellschaft (KVG) has witnessed nearly 3,000 cases of damage to streetcars and infrastructure since 2019, with damages totaling almost 1.5 million euros.
4. In Darmstadt, the transport company Heag mobilo faces annual losses of around 50,000 to 80,000 euros due to vandalism, with an average of 100 to 200 streetcar stops damaged each year.
5. In response to vandalism, the KVG employs camera surveillance in streetcars and at stops and hires a security company to accompany journeys on weekends and before public holidays.
6. The Nordhessischer Verkehrsverbund (NVV) deals with vandalism by quickly removing graffiti and replacing glass panes with perforated sheets.
7. In the heavily affected areas of the city, the public order service from Frankfurt on the Main has stepped up its operations since October, focusing on preventing vandalism.
8. The VGF, responsible for public transportation in Frankfurt on the Main, intends to use tried and tested approaches from its current concepts at other stations and stops in the future to combat vandalism.
9. The Rhine-Neckar Transport Association (VRN) also experiences vandalism issues in the Bergstrasse district, with a particular focus on stations along the Riedbahn.

Source: www.stern.de