NET shares new safety advice for school students and families highlighting the importance of staying vigilant around trams.

Nottingham Express Transit (NET) has shared updated safety advice targeted at Nottingham’s school students, as well as the wider general public, via three short videos highlighting the importance of staying vigilant when travelling on or around the trams. This comes as part of its wider campaign, ‘Think Tram’, which has been rolled out across Nottinghamshire schools.

The three short films showcase a range of scenarios taking place in and around the tram network, including both cycling and walking, to demonstrate the importance of being tram-aware. The films tie into NET’s wider safety mission, with other safety initiatives including extensive CCTV across the network, passenger help points at tram stops and a discrete WhatsApp service, which tram users can utilise at any time to message the NET team discreetly for any support needed.

Connor Hardy, QHSE manager at NET said: “Our new films act as a visual reminder of the consequences of not staying aware of your surroundings across the network, and will support our continued efforts in engaging with local schools and the wider community on the importance of travelling safely.

“Safety is at the heart of Nottingham’s tram network and ensuring that we’re effectively educating our tram users is something we’re really passionate about. Nottingham’s young people are a huge part of this, and through leading school assemblies, hosting visits to our tram depot and working with local community groups such as the Pythian Club, we’re proud of all we have achieved in shining a light on the importance of being safe around our tram network.

“As well as reducing any risks, we’ve also found these efforts have helped to considerably reduce anti-social behavior across the network, helping to improve it for everyone that uses our trams.”

To ‘Think Tram’ and stay safe, Connor offered this advice:

• Stay vigilant when walking and always check for trams and other road vehicles before crossing a street.
• Avoid distractions when you're close to tram tracks - using your phone can be risky.
• If cycling, make sure to cross tram tracks at a 90-degree angle and use designated crossings paths.

With close to 100 schools, many of which are secondary schools, Nottingham has a significant school-age student population. During 2024, NET engaged with more than 25 schools via school visits and hosting visits to NET’s tram depot located on Wilkinson Street. This focus is set to continue in 2025.

The short safety films are being rolled out across NET’s social media platforms which can be found at @nettram (Instagram) @NETTram (X) and @nottinghamtram (TikTok).