Lib Dems call to fine “headphone dodgers” £1,000 for blasting loud music on trains and buses without headphones

The Liberal Democrats are calling for “headphone dodgers” to face fines of up to £1,000 for playing loud music on public transport.

Already, there are laws in place that ban various forms of anti-social behaviour on public transport in the UK. On trains and at stations, this includes using equipment to produce sound without permission which comes as an annoyance to others.

However, the Lib Dems are looking to take this one step further and want to amend the law to explicitly ban playing music and videos from phones without using headphones. This, they request, applies to trains and buses across England.

According to a survey carried out by Savanta for the party, 38 per cent of the 2,000 participants asked experience people playing music out loud on public transport on a regular basis. Of these, over half (54 per cent) said they would not feel comfortable asking the person responsible to turn down the sound.

“Far too many people dread their daily commute because of the blight of anti-social behaviour – and headphone dodgers playing loud music on buses and trains are some of the worst offenders,” said Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokeswoman Lisa Smart (via BBC).

“Whether you’re heading to work, taking your kids to school, or simply trying to enjoy a moment of peace, everyone deserves to feel safe and respected on public transport,” she added. “It’s time to take a stand for the quiet majority who just want to get from A to B in peace.”

Already, the proposition has support from some Labour and Tory MPs, although it is unlikely to get much momentum without full backing from the Labour government.

The Lib Dems have said that they hope to amend the existing railway byelaws to make it clear that playing loud music from a phone qualifies as anti-social behaviour and should be punished by a fine of up to £1,000. They also hope to develop a national publicity campaign in favour of the law, including posters at bus stops and train platforms.

A Department for Transport spokesperson told BBC that, the laws already in place mean that those who are responsible for unacceptable behaviour can be removed from the mode of transport and can face fines of up to £1,000.

Backing the push to make music from phones a more explicitly mentioned offence in the bylaws, Conservative shadow transport secretary Gareth Bacon said to BBC: “Playing loud music on public transport may seem like a small thing, but it speaks towards a growing tolerance of anti-social behaviour that chips away at public civility.”

This is a developing story.

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