CaptainHaddock
Established Member
- Joined
- 10 Feb 2011
- Messages
- 2,206
I was recently changing trains at a small staffed Northern station and, with 20 minutes to kill, decided to open one of the cans of craft ale I'd bought from Lidl. As I happily supped away on the open platform I was approached by a large man in a fluorescent jacket and asked if I was drinking alcohol. When I confirmed I was he insisted that I had to immediately stop as it was forbidden to drink alcohol on a station platform. I asked him when this new law had come in and he said it had always been the case that drinking alcohol was forbidden on stations. To cut a long story short we had a disagreement which ended with him storming off in a huff.
Now as I understand it there is no law against drinking alcohol on a station platform. Yes, you can be refused entry to a station if intoxicated, but there's nothing to stop you having a drink whilst waiting for your train. Curiously though, I can find no definitive confirmation of this fact online. On Northern's own website's FAQs they posit the question "can I drink alcohol on trains or at stations" but don't actually answer it with regard to stations.
So is there somewhere online I can find confirmation that, so long as you're not intoxicated, you can drink alcohol on a station platform as I change at this station frequently and will probably run into this security jobsworth again!
Now as I understand it there is no law against drinking alcohol on a station platform. Yes, you can be refused entry to a station if intoxicated, but there's nothing to stop you having a drink whilst waiting for your train. Curiously though, I can find no definitive confirmation of this fact online. On Northern's own website's FAQs they posit the question "can I drink alcohol on trains or at stations" but don't actually answer it with regard to stations.
Can I drink alcohol on trains or at stations?
You are allowed to consume alcohol on our trains; however, we do not tolerate any anti-social behaviour. Under the railway byelaws, if you are deemed to be intoxicated we may ask you to leave the t...
www.northernrailway.co.uk
So is there somewhere online I can find confirmation that, so long as you're not intoxicated, you can drink alcohol on a station platform as I change at this station frequently and will probably run into this security jobsworth again!