Jailed for spitting and assault on the tube

A man who spat at and punched a Tube passenger in an unprovoked attack at Clapham Common Tube station has been sentenced to 12 weeks in prison after British Transport Police used CCTV images to put him at the scene of the violence.

Clive Collins, 45, spat at the 26 year old man on the platform at Clapham Common and followed him onto a northbound train where he punched him repeatedly. Members of the public separated the pair on board and Collins remained on the train as the victim escaped at Clapham North.

While attacks of this sort are fortunately quite rare on the tube network, they do happen, and although CCTVs are not perfect - in some places, downright controversial - they do at least help to identify the person after the event.

I've been spat at once myself on the tube. A guy was had his bag on the seat next to him - the only one available - and I actually had to ask him to remove it. As I got off the train later he spat at me through the crowded train. A bit urgh, but at least I was spared a assault that the above victim was subjected to.

There was also a quite nasty fight on a rush hour Jubilee Line train at Canary Wharf last year. Didn't see what caused it, but there was a loud "watch it" sort of shout and then the carriage shook as a fight broke out between two rather large looking figures. I presumed someone was trying to barge onto the train without letting people off first. While the reaction was extreme and totally unwarranted, I do sometimes find myself snarling a bit at people who block Jubilee Line doors as I am trying to get off.

Quite why people stand on the Jubilee Line extension platforms right in the centre of the double-doors, and then express surprise that someone on the train might be on the other side and wanting to get off the train still puzzles me.

I keep thinking it would be quite fun sensibly educational to get a load of people with crutches to spend the day using the extension line and hobbling off the trains at each station - maybe people blocking the doors will move sharply out of the way when faced with a person in crutches and plaster cast legs?

Then again, I suspect they might not.