TRANSPORT Safety Officers (TSOs) will travel on the conurbation's busiest routes to tackle antisocial behaviour.

The transport safety pilot saw BCP Council partner with Morebus to address antisocial behaviour after issues were identified over the recent months.

These specially trained officers will travel on bus services and will be seen in and around Poole Bus Station, Bournemouth, and Boscombe Travel Interchanges, as well as key bus routes across the conurbation, interacting with people and dealing with any incidents as part of this scheme.

Dorset Police will work with the officers to help make buses safer for the public by using a three-step approach.

These are engagement, education and, if necessary, enforcement, with limited but targeted police powers under the Community Safety Accredited Scheme (CSAS).

Councillor Kieron Wilson, BCP Council's portfolio holder for housing and regulatory Services, which includes antisocial behaviour, said: "Safety on public transport will be greatly enhanced with the Transport Safety Officers travelling on and around our bus network, engaging people and helping deal with any incidents of antisocial behaviour.

"We want everyone who travels on public transport to feel safe, and we rely on members of the public and bus drivers to report any incidents of antisocial behaviour to ensure our Transport Safety Officers are targeting the correct routes.

"If anyone spots any incidents of antisocial behaviour or feels vulnerable while using our bus network, then please text 'BCP' to 81018 with details of the incident, including the time, date, location, and, if relevant, the route number, to let our Transport Safety Officers know."

In addition to TSOs, the council will be upgrading over 200 bus shelters with new CCTV cameras in the coming months.

Richard Wade, general manager at Morebus, said: "The vast majority of our existing customers are really nice people, and we want to welcome more of them.

"A small element needs a little reminder of how to behave around others, and we've listened to feedback, which tells us a few have some concerns about this.

"The Transport Safety Officers are a great addition to help tackle this."