Day trippers urged to respect, protect and enjoy sand & sea
14 July 2022
Ahead of the traditional Glasgow Fair we have joined forces with ScotRail to bring our My Beach Your Beach campaign messages to the thousands of day trippers who will take a train to one of Ayrshire stunning beaches this summer.
The tradition that has been enjoyed by generations of those who live in the city to go “doon the watter” and get a dose of sea air continues to be a holiday of choice following the pandemic. And, My Beach Your Beach aims to encourage everyone, whether a visitor or a local, to take small actions to protect the sand and sea.
Last year, ScotRail displayed campaign materials with information at key stations to remind people to take their litter home or bin it, to bag and bin dog poo, and to enjoy their visits to the beach. This year those messages will be shared at railway stations in Ardrossan, Saltcoats, Irvine, Troon and Ayr.
The campaign, has been running since 2018, encouraging everyone to take better care of the beach, and to support efforts to improve bathing water quality. The Ayrshire beaches which are part of the campaign include Ayr, Troon, Irvine and Saltcoats / Ardrossan – all easily accessible from the main Stranraer Line in Scotland.
Paul Wallace, our Campaigns Manager said: “Every year thousands of day trippers take a train from Glasgow Central ‘Doon the watter’ to the stunning Ayrshire beaches. Now with the support of Scotrail our successful My Beach Your Beach campaign will raise awareness of what actions people can take to play their part in protecting the sand and sea they choose to visit before they arrive.
“It is great to be working with ScotRail again this year – we all want people to value and care for the beaches they visit this summer. The new banners and messaging will play a large part in encouraging people to leave the beach they chose to visit cleaner than they found it – which we know from our recent survey 82% of visitors want to do.”
James Ledgerwood, ScotRail Head of Economic & Community Development, said:
“ScotRail is proud to be once again getting behind the My Beach Your Beach campaign with Keep Scotland Beautiful. We should all be doing what we can to raise awareness about how to protect our wonderful beaches.
“Putting litter, including dog poo and leftovers, into bins is easy, and it will go a long way to keeping our beaches clean, tidy and beautiful for everyone who uses them.”
My Beach Your Beach, is funded by the Scottish Government and supported by SEPA. It sits alongside our Upstream Battle® and Clean Up Scotland campaigns and Scotland’s Beach Awards scheme, which is celebrating 30 years in 2022.
The key beaches selected for this campaign have faced challenges in improving the quality of their bathing water as measured by SEPA, and research confirms the strong link between behaviour on the land and the cleanliness of the local seawater.
