Question
There is nothing more irritating than being sat on a train or a bus and being subjected to someone scrolling through endless videos or blasting music out loud, so I welcome the Department’s action against these headphone dodgers. Can my hon. Friend set out how this policy will be enforced to ensure that we reclaim our public transport from nuisance passengers and restore some tranquillity to our journeys?
Answer
Absolutely. Our “Share the journey, not the noise” campaign has started a national conversation about the standards we should all expect on trains and reminded those few who fall short that there are fines in place. We expect that most passengers will comply with requests to watch videos on silent or use headphones, but there are clear routes for escalation if they do not, up to and including prosecution. Local authorities can now introduce bus byelaws covering excessive noise, with fixed on-the-spot penalties of up to £100.
Verdict: GREEN (85/100)
The reply directly explains how the headphone requirement will be enforced. On trains, it relies on existing fines with a stated route up to prosecution, and on buses, it sets out byelaws with fixed on-the-spot penalties of up to £100. The campaign name is given slightly differently from the earlier reply, but this does not affect the enforcement answer. The person who asked would likely have enough specific information to move on.
How we got there
| Question item | Coverage | Specificity | Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
| How the Government's policy on nuisance behaviour on public transport, including the headphone requirement, will be enforced. | Addressed | Direct | The reply explains enforcement of the headphone requirement on trains through existing fines and a stated escalation route up to prosecution (seqs 3 and 5), and enforcement for buses through byelaws with fixed on-the-spot penalties of up to £100 (seqs 6 and 7), which together answer how the policy will be enforced. The reply refers to the campaign as "Share the journey, not the noise" where the previous reply said "Share the carriage, not the noise", but this does not change the substance of the enforcement answer. |