Vince Cable

SW Trains have decided to close the pedestrian footbridge at Twickenham Station following a number of assaults on staff by students from the Tertiary College who are seeking to dodge paying their fares. Vincent Cable MP has challenged SW Trains over the decision which causes inconvenience for local residents.

Vincent Cable said that as "a regular commuter from Twickenham Station I know that the atmosphere can be very intimidating when dozens of students are arriving with several remonstrating about fares and others jumping the barriers. It is easy to understand why staff are reluctant to divide their forces when they are under siege. But since SW Trains are planning CCTV cameras to cover exits, surely this will identify miscreants so that action can be taken by the Police or College authorities. As it is, residents are being inconvenienced because of the bad behaviour of a few students. Surely, there also has to be a fresh look at the College's admission policy if the student body is being treated as akin to an invading army".