Daniel Wolfram
Ministers back tough enforcement against “loudcasting” on rail carriages and local buses, warning travellers to use headphones or face escalating penalties.
The British government is drawing a hard line against noisy bus and train riders.
Under new government guidance, anyone caught vaping, littering, or playing loud music that is bothering others on a bus faces a £100 fine. The enforcement powers arrived under the Bus Services Act 2025.
Passengers in train carriages will face an even tougher response from the government.
Turning it down
Transport safety officers and police will handle enforcement. There will be a three-step process before a fine will be handed out. First, they will speak with the passenger, explain how the disruption bothers others, and finally issue a ticket as a last resort if the person refuses to stop.
Under the banner “Share the carriage, not the noise,” officials are targeting loudcasting, the practice of playing phone audio aloud without headphones. Loudspeakers will broadcast warnings, and train crews can kick defiant travellers off at the next platform.
Fines on the tracks can reach £1,000, according to politics.co.uk. The crackdown covers major routes run by Great Western Railway, Avanti West Coast, and CrossCountry.
‘It gets on your nerves’
Prime Minister Andy Burnham backed the push. As Burnham observed: “We’ve all been on the train when someone starts blasting music or videos from their phone. It gets on your nerves and can quickly spoil the journey.”
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander also praised the initiative, saying: “It is so frustrating when the actions of an inconsiderate few spoil journeys for the rest of us, whether that is vaping, littering or blasting music out loud.”
Opposition leaders were quick to claim credit for the crackdown. Shadow Transport Secretary Richard Holden insisted the government is simply copying ideas his party championed last summer.
Holden said: “After we led the charge against antisocial behaviour on public transport last summer, ministers have worked out that nobody wants to endure pounding techno or blaring hip-hop on a packed train or bus.”
