'Bumping' - is it becoming a serious problem?

[Howardh]

Someone tried to tailgate me through the barrier onto the platform at Aylesbury two weeks ago. Luckily I saw him hanging around the barriers and sussed his game. As soon as I passed through the barrier I stopped dead, so he had no space to get through and had to stay the other side. I asked him if he had a ticket and got a blank stare in response so I politely suggested he f*cked off.

Having a large rucksac (sp??) is a bonus because if you go through reasonably slowly, the gates shut behind you as the rusksac is filling up the gap!

 

[island]

Does Paris still have full height turnstiles? I went through one but it shut before my large rucksack did, which was rather embarrassing!

They do, yes.

Paris has a hodge-podge of different gate styles. The core version is the three-finger turnstile, combined with a half-arsed slightly higher manual push gate that unlocks when a ticket is inserted. They also have various tall glass two-half gates that either retract to the side or rotate forward. And there’s plastic paddle ones that also retract to the side with an audible hiss.

 

[Wolfie]

Or pestering railway enthusiasts, though to be fair this doesn’t seem to be quite so much of a thing nowadays as it has been at times over the last couple of decades.

Or pestering railway enthusiasts, though to be fair this doesn’t seem to be quite so much of a thing nowadays as it has been at times over the last couple of decades.

To be fair in an active terrorist environment questioning anything unusual is positively encouraged.

 

[Fermiboson]

To be fair in an active terrorist environment questioning anything unusual is positively encouraged.

And things like photographing railway infrastructure or noting track conditions are exactly the kind of thing espionage would be doing as well.

 

[trebor79]

And things like photographing railway infrastructure or noting track conditions are exactly the kind of thing espionage would be doing as well.

Oh come on! If a foreign state wanted to spy on the rail network there are these things called satellites.
Even Google Earth is good enough for working out how many track, locations of points etc.

 

[bramling]

To be fair in an active terrorist environment questioning anything unusual is positively encouraged.

Totally disagree. The moment we go round questioning activities which (to some people) seem unusual, we have essentially achieved the societal changes which some people want - especially when it becomes an entrenched long-term change in attitudes.

I do not respond well to be questioned if I am doing something entirely lawful, especially if it’s done on a bull-in-china -shop way. It’s difficult enough to do and enjoy outdoor stuff in this country as it is because of the weather, we don’t need people going round being suspicious of each other on top of that.

 

[Fermiboson]

Oh come on! If a foreign state wanted to spy on the rail network there are these things called satellites.
Even Google Earth is good enough for working out how many track, locations of points etc.

This is incorrect. There are many things which can be very valuable that can only be obtained on the ground. I won’t go into detail or specifics for obvious reasons, but it is public knowledge that for example the Soviets in the 70s spent some considerable effort in paying agents to measure the average distance between trees in the UK. Russian provocateurs have also been observed across Finland and the Baltics photographing electric substations, transmission line poles, viaducts and such.

 

[bubieyehyeh]

I noticed something regularly when exiting TFL gatelines, the person in front uses the phone to touch out, the led on the pad flashes green the gate opens and then it flashes orange then red. I'm not sure if this is something to trick the barriers, but when it happens, it takes longer for the barrier to accept my contactless card. If this is fare evasion, it seems to be at epidemic proportions.

 

[nanstallon]

Oh come on! If a foreign state wanted to spy on the rail network there are these things called satellites.
Even Google Earth is good enough for working out how many track, locations of points etc.

I travelled the Trans Siberian in 1991, when it was still the good old USSR. I wanted to take photos on the railway, so asked the Intourist guide (a very knowledgeable and helpful middle aged lady) if this was permissible. She said it was no problem; the West knew everything anyway from satellites.

 

[Fermiboson]

I travelled the Trans Siberian in 1991, when it was still the good old USSR. I wanted to take photos on the railway, so asked the Intourist guide (a very knowledgeable and helpful middle aged lady) if this was permissible. She said it was no problem; the West knew everything anyway from satellites.

One must also remember that by 1991, Soviet troops were selling off fuel for their vehicles, their guns, or even full on military helicopters and jets (which is how the occasional MiG-29 finds itself in the hands of a collector in the American Midwest).

 

[H&I]

This is incorrect. There are many things which can be very valuable that can only be obtained on the ground. I won’t go into detail or specifics for obvious reasons, but it is public knowledge that for example the Soviets in the 70s spent some considerable effort in paying agents to measure the average distance between trees in the UK. Russian provocateurs have also been observed across Finland and the Baltics photographing electric substations, transmission line poles, viaducts and such.

Of course, satellite imagery and technology used for espionage have significantly advanced since the fall of the Soviet Union, and even more so since the 70s. Like most things, espionage techniques do not stand still in time. I do not think the person you are replying to is necessarily incorrect. Even when the best method of gathering information may be on the ground, there are far more covert ways I won't go into for obvious reasons than someone holding a large DSLR camera in broad daylight. I question the logic of having security confront anyone seen taking pictures at stations regardless of the wider context. Regardless, the discussion on taking photographs at stations and espionage is getting off-topic, and we should probably leave it at that.

 

[Mag_seven]

This thread has clearly run its course.