FOOTBALL fans have been banned from drinking alcohol on London's underground trains in a bid to stop trouble at Saturday's FA Cup final.
But they will be able to drink as much as they want on the way to the capital.
South West Trains is letting supporters drink on its services to London.
British Transport Police will be patrolling trains and waiting at stations with bins for fa
ns to ditch alcoholic drinks. Booze is also banned on the city's buses.
Services from Cardiff to London, however, will be booze-free.
British Transport Police Superintendent of Operations Andy Ball said because of large crowds and safety issues expected on the day, there would be alcohol controls in place at key rail interchanges.
'Alcohol bans will be in place on the Underground and on some mainline services coming into London', he said. 'These controls have worked well at previous large sporting events and we've had no problems in the past.
'We are simply letting fans know what we are planning so that they know what to expect on Saturday.'
The one-day crackdown comes ahead of the permanent, widespread ban on booze on London public transport being introduced by the city's new mayor Boris Johnson, pictured below, on June 1.
More than 80,000 fans travelling from Portsmouth and Cardiff are expected to arrive in the capital from early on Saturday.
Mr Ball added: 'Alcohol, bottles and the like combined with large crowds simply don't mix.
'Other members of the public, who may not be football fans, will be using rail services on the day and we want to ensure that everyone travels to their destination safely.'
The full article contains 286 words and appears in NS-City newspaper.
