The Dutch Railways will equip all conductors with a body camera. According to NS, because aggression against train staff is increasing. According to the caregiver, this involves both verbal and physical aggression. At Arriva on the trains between Emmen and Zwolle, they have more than 5 years of experience with it and the train staff no longer wants to be without it.
With the bodycam, a conductor or train steward at NS can view an unsafe, threatening or criminal situation ‘one minute back in time’ and at Arriva even two minutes back. The camera is worn on the body and is aimed towards the train passenger or a situation that the conductor or train steward is looking at.
Erik Tent is Arriva’s service and safety team manager. He knows the experiences of colleagues and is regularly present on the trains as a steward. “The bodycam gives me and my colleagues a safer feeling during work. You know, when I press the button, there is image and audio that can be used by the police and the judiciary.”
At NS, some of the safety employees have had a body camera for some time, and a trial with a group of a hundred conductors showed that the mini camera can have a de-escalating effect and increases the threshold for being aggressive towards a conductor. Spokesperson Kiran Hokker: “Yesterday I was on the road all day with a conductor who took part in the test and who says that seeing the bodycam among travelers can also prevent escalation. “Then travelers slow down a bit in their use of words.”
Arriva Tent confirms this, but with a caveat: “If just seeing the camera doesn’t help, you can point out to someone that you can film it, that sometimes works. But if someone is already very angry or emotional, that no longer works. Then it no longer matters whether they see the camera or not or whether it is on or not.”
