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Consequences of drinking wine or beer on a 'dry train'
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Bletchleyite
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I believe the 'All Aboard EC trains' series showed people who did have alcohol and BTP seized it onboard saying that it was a byelaw offence and next time they would be reported?
That's right. So, I think it's fair to say that the consequences of either trying to take alcohol on to a train, or trying to consume it on board would be a risk of having it taken off you, and a risk of being reported under the byelaws if you don't comply.
matt_world2004
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I didn't know there were dry train laws. I knew TFL had some bylaws that prohibited drinking on trains. So if a company wants to declare a dry train do they have to go and get a bylaw enacted?
cjmillsnun
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Which is a bit much if you're taking a bottle of something up with you when you're visiting a relative, and not going to be drinking on the train.
DaveNewcastle
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There are now regular BTP officers on board the last southbound EC service on Fridays, to assist in maintaining order.
Flying Snail
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And you tell the people that are bringing it with them apart from those that are going to drink it but lie about bring it with them how?
It is a stupid conversation I have had many times with people and not one I would like to try with a trainload of them, a simple blanket rule is the only workable solution.
matt_world2004
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haven't there been cases of LU staff who have been fired after doing their Christmas shopping which has included wine and sticking it in their locker until the end of their shift.
One train that should be 'dry' but currently isn't is the 1552 Aberdeen to Kings Cross - there's almost always rig workers heading home after not having had a drop of alcohol (and in some cases seeing womenfolk) for two or three weeks.
I haven't (yet) seen any anything worse than humorous drunken attempts to chat up solo female passengers, but I've no doubt there's been a fight or two in the past.
The Glasgow trains aren't much better, tbh.
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If so, then that is OTT - it's an unopened container that they don't have access to while working.
DaveNewcastle
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causton
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Simply having it in the locker room means they could have access to it! I am not allowed anywhere near an off-licence or pub in my uniform! Bit extreme but it's better to be safe than people think that I may be drinking before going off to drive their train home or something while they see me!
It strikes me as questionable firing someone for what they could possibly do. But as long as the rules are clearly stated I guess it is better safe than sorry as you said.
Llanigraham
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I've heard the same comment about our uniform but no-one has ever been able to prove it is written anywhere. And TBH if I've just finished a row of shifts and want to stop and buy a bottle of something on the way home then I'll do so.
This has been said before regarding taking a bottle of something as a present. It requires a bit of common sense from the passenger really. If you carry alcohol in a carrier bag then they will not allow it on board. I'm not suggesting smuggling but if it's carried in a suitcase and isn't taken out during the journey then it's not going to cause any issues at all. I know technically all alcohol is banned but they army searching every piece of lugguage-they are purely stopping people taking carrier bags full of beer onto the train.
A passenger carrying a bottle as a gift buried in their suitcase etc would have to be pretty stupid to declare it and make a big thing out of it...
A passenger carrying a bottle as a gift buried in their suitcase etc would have to be pretty stupid to declare it and make a big thing out of it...
DelayRepay
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Doesn't that make it awkward if you go to Sainsburys or M&S for a sandwich for lunch, as they are off licenses too.
Flamingo
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I have made the decision before now as Train Manager that the buffet was not going to sell alcohol. It's all been locked away before opening.
VauxhallandI
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What are the implications for lying and later being found out?
Technically, a byelaws prosecution. In the real world, how would you even get found out?
PermitToTravel
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by deciding to crack it open and being rowdy 
theboywho
Member
If you have ever made the mistake of catching the last train from York to the North East you'll understand why. It is atrocious on board, not to mention the misery of being chatted up by endless lines of inhebriated hen-nighters.
Well think it through, away from any technicalities put this into the real world...
Why is the ban in place? Simply to prevent a post football train becoming like a post football pub. People may board drunk but not so time to drink. Continuing to drink onboard could lead to safety risks for the train and passengers, be unfair to other passengers not traveling from football and lead to assaults and abuse between passengers and to staff. What they are trying to prevent is people spending a 2hour train trip drinking their way through a 6-pack.
Te only way to enforce it is a blanket ban or else you end up with issues deciding who can and can't drink, allegations of discrimination etc.
For a start is ask why they would ever find a bottle buried in a suitcase not intended for consumption on board-has anyone here ever had their suitcase searched onboard a train? I certainly never have. And if they did for some freak reason and found a bottle of alcohol in the case of a 75yr old couple returning from a weeks holiday in whose interest would it be to take any action or prosecute?
The rules are in place to control the onboard atmosphere. Every time this is discussed on here people get carried away with the what ifs and a bit of common sense is needed.
DelayRepay
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Policies with which I am acquainted with prohibit purchasing alcohol whilst in uniform, or going into premises who's primary business involves the sale of alcohol, unless they are on railway property and you are required to go into them as part of your role (eg. the pub on the platform). It's quite clear what is meant by the policy and one of them even explicitly states that you can go into the supermarket.
Once again it's down to common sense and how much your uniform stands out. They obviously don't want the image of rail staff in pubs/off licences in full uniform/high viz.
My uniform is dark jacket and trousers and white shirt. Sometimes after work I drop in a pub but remove lanyards and cover any logos etc. so then I just look like someone with a shirt and trousers on.
VauxhallandI
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Q-have you got any alcohol?
A-no
Q-can I look in your bag?
Not an unlikely scenario.
You then come on here for help and you get a barrage of why did you lie to a railway person
I was more thinking of the 'taking a bottle to the family, packed away in your suitcase' situation. As I read the Byelaws, the consequence in your scenario would be either the passenger, the alcohol or both being removed from the train.
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