01.03.07
Tackling graffiti on the railways
Derek McGovern, chairman of the Anti-Graffiti Association, looks forward to this year’s national conference
Those of us who work in the rail industry well know that the railway is a dangerous environment. Unfortunately, graffiti vandals do not fully appreciate the dangers. Earlier this year, two young men were tragically killed attempting to apply graffiti to London Underground trains at Barking. For us in the industry, graffiti management in this environment has its own unique problems. While graffiti removal from a station will not radically differ from removal from any other building, removal trackside naturally involves extensive safety requirements-ensuring all contractor staff are suitably track trained and reviewing method statements and work practices to ensure that safety is not compromised. The safety culture, of course, is a necessary fact of life but it does not allow for a rapid process to remove graffiti as quickly as possible in order to discourage the graffiti vandal.
Graffiti removal from rolling stock can be more straightforward but both exterior and interior finishes can easily be damaged by inappropriate cleaning agents and methodology. A further additional concern is the growth in glass graffiti, more often by scratching but sometimes by the hazardous application of hydrofluoric acid which etches the surface. This has caused train companies such as South West Trains and Metronet Rail servicing London Underground stock to apply clear plastic film over interior windows as a sacrificial barrier for glass protection.
Overall, graffiti management in the rail industry is difficult and costly. However, against this background, the Anti-Graffiti Association is aiming to make a significant contribution. The Association came into being approximately five years ago when a positive effort was made to bring together interested parties concerned with the spread of graffiti vandalism. The AGA is not a trade association or, indeed, a political pressure group. Its aim is to bring together all sectors who are concerned about improve graffiti management with the eventual aim of eradicating graffiti vandalism. Since its inception, the Association has been well supported by city and local authorities throughout the UK and by transport organisations such as London Underground. It has grown in strength and many leading manufacturers and contractors have joined its ranks. The Association is, of course, continually seeking to increase its membership and would like to attract more members from all sectors, whether local government or the transport industry.
The Association particularly wishes to promote best practice when it comes to the protection of buildings and structures from the worse effects of graffiti vandalism. Building owners do well to apply anti-graffiti coatings but there are many types of coatings on the market, some of which are ‘sacrificial’ while other are referred to as ‘permanent’. Sacrificial coatings are generally based upon cellulose and micro-crystalline waxes. Sacrificial coatings are reapplied to substrates following graffiti attack and subsequent cleaning and hence should be easy to remove and reapply. On the other hand, permanent coatings are expected to survive repeated graffiti attacks and, being able to survive weathering and exposure to ultra-violet light, should have good durability in service. The actual life of a coating is also going to depend upon how often it is attacked by graffiti and how often and by what method it is cleaned - if, in the long term, the coating can withstand particular types of solvents from either paints and markers or cleaning agents.
In practice, without documented site histories, which are rarely compiled, the actual durability of coatings is difficult to estimate. In some cases, coatings have been found to yellow and lose efficacy after a relatively short time due to the combined effect of the environment, repeated graffiti attacks and cleaning solvents.
Working together and communication are vital which is why our national conferences are important events. The next conference will take place in Nottingham on 25th/26th April and will feature the introduction of a new national database for recording criminal damage. This database is in current use by British Transport Police and is supported by the Home Office but it could potentially be used by local councils, transport organisations and police forces throughout the UK.
The Association is pleased that Tim O’Toole, the managing director of London Underground, will be a guest speaker and will be making a presentation on his management strategy for combating graffiti and other forms of criminal damage. There will also be a presentation by Tony Meadows Associates, a leading architectural practice, on building design at Finsbury Park station which took into account security matters in conjunction with the needs of the local community. Other topics include a partnership approach to graffiti management, understanding graffiti culture and problems on London buses caused by graffiti and scratched glass vandalism.
Significant time and discussion has been allocated to the subject of anti-graffiti coatings with presentations being given by representatives of Sheffield Hallam University and SP, the Technical Research Institute of Sweden. These presentations will enable specifiers to have a better appreciation of coatings, how their efficacy can be assessed and what types should be applied to their buildings and structures. The conference is also well supported by leading manufacturers who have applied their technical expertise to the development of new products. There will be at least ten trade stands at the conference.
It is apparent that there is no single solution to deal with graffiti but that it requires a multi-disciplinary and multi-agency approach that includes local government, various industrials sectors, such as transport, manufacturers and contractors, and the police and communities themselves, working in partnership.
The Anti-Graffiti Association advocates a partnership approach as a means of establishing ‘best practice’ within each sector. For instance, within the rail industry there is the potential for rail operators to meet together, review common problems and find common solutions. The Association is therefore looking for more transport industry members to make the formation of a specialist rail group a viable proposition. Graffiti is a blight on the urban landscape - but by working together and developing appropriate strategies, we can move forward to deal with this form of vandalism.
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