RailCorp Transit Officers

NSW Railcorp Transits

RailCorp Transit Officers can be found on the City Rail Network in NSW. Transit crews are responsible for our safety as we travel. They also have the power to issue on the spot infringements (fines) to persons found breaking the law and also traveling without a correct ticket.

Transit Officers can be seen in their distinctive grey and black uniforms patrolling station platforms, railway property and on board trains. They also have several vehicle patrol areas that can be used to target any vandalism.

According to the official City Rail website, it states that 600 Transit Officers are employed to protect the network.

Crews do a thankless job and never receive any positive publicity, I hope, that through this webpage that I can help promote the hard work they do.

Transit Officers have a rank structure within the organisation. Officers wear rank epaulettes to display their title

Plain black epaulettes, no stripe = Probationary Transit Officer

1 stripe = Transit Officer

1 stripe & 1 bar = 1 year as Transit Officer

2 stripes = Senior Transit Officer

2 stripes & 1 bar = 1 year as Senior Transit Officer

3 stripes = Chief

Crown = Deputy Principal Transit Officer

3 stars = Duty Officer

If you have any information to help me with this site, please email me at the address below

Equipment carried by a Transit Officer while on duty include

· Transit Officer Guide Book

· Infringement Book

· Note Book

· Two Way Radio

· First Aid Kit

· Torch

· Hi Visibility Vest

· Keys

· Handcuffs

· Expandable Baton

· Water Bottle

· Mobile Telephone

· Baseball Cap

· Train Timetables

For those of us who monitor their radio transmissions, the following information will help you understand what is being said.

Abbreviations Used

ASTO	Acting Senior Transit Officer
STO	Senior Transit Officer
CTO	Chief Transit Officer
SCC	Sydney Control Centre – also see “RMC”
RMC	Rail Management Centre – Central Railway Station
VDAP	Vehicle District Area Patrol
VRW	Radio Operations Base
HAG	Hunter Action Group
GRML	Group Reporting Monitoring Location

Callsign Prefixes

Bravo	BAS Officers
Foxtrot	Fire Services
Lima	BAS Supervisors
Sierra	Senior Transit Officers
Tango	Transit Officers
Victor	Vehicle Patrols
Welfare	Officer who interacts with Transit Officers who have been injured
X-Ray	Supervisors (Chiefs)

Victor Units are car patrols that cover various areas throughout the rail network. Below is a list of the areas covered. Sometimes you may hear VRW calling Victor 5-Alpha or 5-Bravo etc. This indicates that there are two patrols in the area.

Victor1

City Circle, Airport & East Hills, Cronulla & Illawarra lines

Victor 2

Eastern Suburbs & Inner West Lines

Victor3

North Shore Line

Victor 4

Cumberland & South Line

Victor 5

Western Line

Victor 6

Northern Line

How did the RailCorp Transit Officers evolve?

The Unit known as the Railway Investigation Branch was established in the 1930’s. The first uniformed officer commenced in 1969, being the PTC Security Service. All Railway Patrolmen had the same qualifications as the NSW Police because officers attended training in the NSW Police Academy with normal police constables. Training was the same with the exception of the Railway Patrolman not being trained with knowledge of the motor traffic act..

The Transport Investigation Branch did everything that the current Transit Officers did. All members were sworn Special Constables of the State of New South Wales and so had the powers of arrest. Yearly the TIB Officers made in excess of 2000 arrest and noted 18,000 breaches per year, not including Official Cautions. Before the introduction of on the spot fines, these guys and girls used breach offenders by the way of written report to the SRA prosecution branch, who would then have a court summons issued for the offender.

The officers also had various other powers such as search and detain in goods yards or anywhere where goods were dispatched, received or delivered as well as being Special Officers of the Urban and State Transit Authorities.

The first introduced on the spot fines were for were for parking offences

The SRA TIB covered the whole network with offices in Newcastle, Gosford, Wollongong, Central, Mt Druitt, Granville and Liverpool. They also had a Detective Branch [they had completed and passed the NSW Police Services Detectives Course.] The detectives covered the whole of the state working on fraud and theft cases. They were also the experts on Graffiti and the NSW Police often called on them for their expertise

In 1988 the SRA officially handed control of the Branch over to the NSW Police Service, the Police offered a shortened course and entry into the actual Police Service for the TIB members. About half of the then Transit Officers took up the offer and moved to the Police Service. There are still Transit Officers serving with the NSW Police Service, doing the same job as the new Transit Officers.

If you have any photographs of Transit Officers that you would like to share, or have anything positive to add, please email me at lakescanslist@netspace.net.au

I also keep a log of the radio call signs used by Transits Officers, if you can help me, please email me at the address above

This is an un-official web page and IS NOT associated with any Government Department whatsoever

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