Safer Streets scaled up as 54% of women feel unsafe on Merseyside public transport

Liverpool’s ‘Safer Streets’ campaign is being extended to the whole of Merseyside after a successful pilot helped secure extra funding of over half-a-million pounds.

The scheme was launched in the city centre last year, after a study revealed that more than half of women in Liverpool felt unsafe on public transport at night. The survey, ran by Police and Crime Commissioner Emily Spurrell, revealed that 54% of women felt unsafe when travelling at night, and 42% when travelling during the day.

Following a second successful bid for £576,000 of Home Office funding by the PCC and Liverpool City Council, Safer Streets Merseyside is set to be scaled up, with key aspects of the campaign being taken region-wide.

Ms Spurrell, said: “It’s totally unacceptable that many women and girls still don’t feel safe using public transport or out about in our region, particularly at night.”

Why do women feel unsafe?

The PCC revealed that some of the different types of behaviour from men that have made women feel uncomfortable include: “Men standing too close on buses that were relatively empty. It might have been comments that were made. It might have been going so far as women being groped or inappropriately touched.”

She told BBC Radio Merseyside: “There was lot’s of feedback from women about where they felt unsafe but we were really struck about public transport. We want women and girls to feel safe using it - it’s a key connecting factor for women being able to travel around the region so it felt like a really appropriate project to get off the ground and invest in.”

What is Safer Streets?

The campaign was developed following extensive consultation with key groups, all of whom highlighted how fears around using public transport increased after the tragic murder of Sarah Everard. The 33-year-old marketing executive was kidnapped, raped and murdered in London by Met Police officer Wayne Couzens in March 2021.

“The Safer Streets campaign is all about making public transport feel safer - introducing CCTV, doing training for staff and creating safe spaces around the public transport network,” explained Ms Spurrell. “The second phase is about how we roll that out now across Merseyside.”

Key features also include enhanced high visibility CCTV coverage along key bus routes used by students and other young people, increased police presence and trained student volunteers to help young people get home safely.

Ms Spurrell added: “There is no excuse for sexual violence. Through Safer Streets Merseyside, we are taking a multi-faceted approach to tackling it – not just challenging perpetrators and unacceptable behaviour but also looking to change attitudes.

“This campaign will build on the hard work from last year and is an essential part of our ongoing commitment to bring about change for thousands of women across our region now, and into the future.”