‘We’re doing what Sadiq Khan can’t!’ Fed-up commuters take matters in their own hands and scrub graffiti off Tube trains
professorkamrankhan@gmail.com 
They are the UK’s oldest passenger trains in regular scheduled use, and are known for their rather tired feel and appearance given they started running in the 1970s.
But a group of volunteers so angered by graffiti-covered carriages on the London Underground’s Bakerloo line have taken matters into their hands to clean them up.
The team led by Joe Reeve, 28, are now attracting praise from Transport for London (TfL) train drivers and passengers who have thanked them for their efforts.
It comes as Tube carriages with graffiti inside are no longer being removed from service but instead cleaned overnight when the network is not running – despite TfL saying it had ‘recently seen a significant increase’ in the number of graffiti incidents.
Mr Reeve, who is the founder of a policy group called Looking for Growth, has been critical of London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan – saying he is ‘doing what Sadiq Khant’.
Speaking about wider concerns about the state of the Tube, he told The Standard: ‘I take the Bakerloo line every morning and I see someone push past the barrier.
‘Then when I get down to the Tube, every single carriage is full of graffiti. It feels like no one is doing anything to make the city better. I’m pretty patriotic.
‘I love London, and I think it should be the best city in the world. I had the option to move to the US for work, but I want to stay in the UK and see it get better.’
He added: ‘Sadiq has been mayor for a while and has said in videos he’s proud of what he’s achieved. I – and a lot of people – feel pretty frustrated with him.’
Joe Reeve has led a group of volunteers cleaning graffiti off Bakerloo line trains in London
Mr Reeve said his team has attracted praise from train drivers on the London Underground
Mr Reeve has been making a political point with the slogan that he is ‘doing what Sadiq Khant’
One of the team wipes graffiti off the top of a door on board a Bakerloo line train in London
Mr Reeve, who lives in Lambeth, South London, said three drivers have thanked the group for their efforts, with one telling them: ‘At least someone’s doing something.’
TfL claims that it works to remove graffiti as quickly as possible – but where it cannot be removed easily, it is covered if possible and cleaned during engineering hours.
The aim is to keep trains out on the network and minimise passenger delays.
Trains were previously taken out of daily service by TfL to remove graffiti, but this is no longer the case.
Susan Hall, leader of the City Hall Conservative Group, told MailOnline: ‘A group of activists in one morning have put Khan and TfL to shame by showing how easy it is to clean up our Tube.
‘It’s disappointing that the Mayor constantly has to be humiliated into acting, but we look forward to legions of TfL staff being put to good use wiping down the remaining graffiti which has adorned Tube carriages for disgracefully too long.’
It comes after Neil O’Brien, the Conservative MP for Harborough, Oadby and Wigston, tweeted last month: ‘Mad what Khan has allowed to happen to the Bakerloo Line — looks like 70s New York.’
Meanwhile shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick has recently been highlighting fare dodging on the TfL network.
He released a video in which he confronted people who forced their way through the ticket barriers at Stratford station, and it quickly went viral.
Siwan Hayward, TfL’s director of security, policing and enforcement, told MailOnline today: ‘The safety of our customers and staff is our top priority.
A Bakerloo line train arrives at Edgware Road station on the London Underground (file image)
File photo of a Bakerloo line train carriage, which is one of the existing 1972 Mark 2 stock trains
‘We are working closely with the police to prevent crime and anti-social behaviour on the network, with over 2,500 police and police community support officers and 500 TfL enforcement staff patrolling the network at all times.
‘We work hard to ensure that our customers and staff feel safe when travelling on the network and continue to strengthen our capability to deter and detect fare evaders and ensure our trains and stations remain a pleasant and clean environment for passengers.’
A British Transport Police spokesman added: ‘Vandalism is not a victimless crime, it has tangible consequences for passengers alongside huge financial implications for the rail industry.
‘We urge anyone who witnesses vandalism or criminal damage taking place on the railway network to report it to us. You can do this discreetly by texting 61016, or by calling us on 0800 405040.’
The current rate of fare evasion on the TfL network is estimated at 3.4 per cent of journeys, and the transport body wants to cut this to 1.5 per cent by 2030.
The issue has also been highlighted by the ongoing Channel 5 documentary ‘Fare Dodgers: At War with the Law’ which is next airing this Sunday at 9pm.
The Bakerloo line runs from Elephant and Castle to Harrow & Wealdstone, with the current set of 1972 Mark 2 stock trains now more than half a century old.
