Uni students urged to follow 'travel window' guidelines on South Western Railway

Thousands will be going home from today

Published 3rd Dec 2020
Last updated 3rd Dec 2020

Students travelling home for Christmas on Wiltshire and Hampshire's rail network are being urged to follow coronavirus guidance.

A South Western Railway spokesperson said the operator has been dealing directly with universities along the network, providing advice specifically for students, on travelling safely on its trains.

It has also shared advice on social media channels.

The operator says while carriages and stations are sanitized, people should still keep their distance and wash their hands, as well as wear face coverings.

It also suggests students travel light.

SWR said it had not changed its travel timetable for the window, after it amended it in September in order to increase capacity and facilitate social distancing.

In a statement, it said it would have extra staff on hand at some stations:

"We have a dedicated command and control structure in place for the travel window period which is in charge of constantly fine tuning our response."

"We are deploying extra staff at some stations to assist students and ensure a positive customer experience for everyone."

"Since the start of the pandemic a number of measures have been taken to ensure that our services are safe to use."

"We have enhanced our cleaning regimes - using special chemicals on our trains and stations, installed hand sanitiser machines at stations and increased capacity to facilitate social distancing."

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