Safeguarding passengers and infrastructure

On 8 and 9 September 2009, Global Railway Review, together with its sister publication Eurotransport, welcomed leading industry personnel to Berlin, Germany, for Public Transport Security 2009 – an important conference to share knowledge and experience of providing safe and secure public transport systems.

The conference, held at the Westin Grand Hotel in Berlin, began with an informative Welcome Address by Hans-Werner Franz, CEO of VBB Verkehrsverbund Berlin-Brandenburg GmbH who were also the hosts of the conference. Mr. Franz explained “it is our job to care about our passengers, and the system we provide must be high-quality, and high quality for me means high punctuality and frequency.” Mr. Franz continued to explain how important it is to increase the level of safety for passengers by implementing CCTV systems and placing more staff on vehicles and at stations. Mr. Franz finished his speech by stating that “passengers are always at the centre of our attention.” The Chairman of the conference, Jacques Colliard, Head of the UIC’s Security Division, commented on Mr. Franz’s speech, saying it was “very interesting and a very important start to the conference.”

Next to the stand was Stephen Thomas, Assistant Chief Constable of London and 2012 Olympic Games, British Transport Police. Mr. Thomas’ presentation gave an important insight into the challenges that London will face in just under three years time when the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games will come to the capital city of the United Kingdom. Mr. Thomas also focused on safety and security projects and also looked at how the aspects will be approached.

Next up was Ervigio Corral Torres, Head of SAMUR (Madrid Emergency Services) who gave a very interesting and eye-opening presentation entitled ‘Emergency First Response; dealing with and learning from numerous experiences of transport incidents’.

Geoff Dunmore, Operational Security Manager for London Underground was next to the stand with a presentation focussing on the role of customer service as a security measure in public transport systems. Mr. Dunmore expressed the importance of having staff present at stations and the vision for his company to be a world class Tube for a world class city. Their strategy is to combine a reliable train service with high standards of customer care, whilst facing the challenge to keep London moving while simultaneously transforming the Tube.

Next to speak was Joseph Gordon, President of G Team Security Ltd, a company who took advantage of exhibiting with a stand placed in the foyer of the conference area. Mr. Gordon spoke about innovative electronic security solutions for mass transit systems.

Valentin Arenas Gómez, from the Madrid Region Public Transport Authority was next and gave a presentation explaining the process of incident management using a central control room across different transport operators, and how these work to report disruptions and incidents in real-time.

A Panel Discussion made up the of the morning speakers was to follow which gave delegates the opportunity to put forward their questions to the speakers. Key topics discussed here included risk assessment processes and what other projects there are to deliver better security systems. The topic of money and budgets was also raised and the speakers also commented further on terrorist situations and general criminal aspects.

After a networking lunch break, Linda Tavlin, President of Tavlin Training took to the stand. Linda has been a communications specialist since 1989 and she used her experience to comment on increasing passenger confidence by increasing the use and methods of communication techniques. She also explained a communication method she refers to as the ‘Four Point Formula’.

Next to the stand was Hendrik Vanderkimpen, Security Manager at SNCB Holding. He made a presentation concerning CCTV and explained the argument is CCTV is the right answer to deter crime, or is it just another part of the security jigsaw? Mr. Vanderkimpen also explained MALAGE – the large scale CCTV initiative of SNCB Holding.

Up next was Chanan Graf, General Manager of G Team Security Ltd, who focussed on risk assessment frameworks, approaches and components. Mr. Graf also discussed qualative and quantative approaches.

The final presentation of Day One came from Chris Crawford, Director of Network Solutions, Bombardier Transportation Systems. Mr. Crawford spoke about the security challenges that transit operators face and also some solutions from Bomardier which can help, including the Integrated Security Event Management System and also their SEKURFLO solution. Bombardier were also the Sponsors of the conference.

A second Panel Discussion brought Day One to a close where delegates asked other questions to the speakers of the afternoon session, which was followed by a networking drinks reception – a valuable opportunity for delegates and speakers to gain wider knowledge in a relaxed atmosphere.

Day Two started with Udi Segall, Senior Product Marketing Manager, NiceVision, NICE Systems Inc. Israel. Mr. Segall spoke about smart video surveillance and what makes it effective.

Next to the stand was Jacques Colliard with a presentation looking at the international aspects of railway security policy which included, among other topics, the advantages and disadvantages of CCTV and what other devices could benefit delivering high quality security.

Peter Prak, Programme Manager Security from Prorail was next up to the stand with a presentation topic of developing an integrated system on security risks. Mr. Prak explained the vision and goals and performance requirements.

Next was Philippe Salaun, Security Deputy Director at SNCF who took the chance to explain how SNCF is improving security for protection and prevention, and also gave delegates some information concerning the Channel Tunnel crossing and the security tasks needed.

The final presentation came from Valentin Scinteie, Director Business Development, ALSTOM Transportation Information and Security Inc. Mr. Scinteie discussed various options for security implementation and explained how the concept of an Integrated Control and Security Centre can enable an operator to manage incidents more effectively.

A final Panel Discussion bought the conference to a close.

Global Railway Review and Eurotransport would like to thank our excellent speakers and delegates for making the conference so successful. Thanks also go to our hosts, sponsors and exhibitors, without whom this conference would not have been possible.

We look forward to welcoming you again to next years’ Public Transport Security conference.

If you would like to receive the Conference CD-Rom containing all presentations and a list of speakers and delegates, please contact us or telephone +44 (0) 1959 563311.

Price: £340 +VAT