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Attacks targeting passengers and members of the public across Britain’s rail network have climbed to an all-time high, official statistics show. Data published on Thursday by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) revealed a total of 13,464 reported assaults against non-railway workforce members on mainline services between April 2025 and March 2026. This represents a 36 per cent rise compared with the previous year and the highest figure recorded since the ORR began collecting the data in 2004.
The regulator stated that harassment and common assault accounted for the majority of these incidents. Across the London Underground network, reported assaults on the public and passengers rose to 5,534, marking a 20 per cent increase over the previous year. Mainline rail staff also experienced higher levels of violence, with attacks on workers up by 12 per cent compared with the previous year to reach 11,289 incidents.
The recorded total for staff included 6,390 occurrences of verbal abuse, 2,487 physical assaults, and 2,412 threats. Richard Hines, ORR’s chief inspector of railways, said the increase in assault reports was ‘concerning’ (PA Archive) There were 3,525 reported assaults on the London Underground workforce, a decrease of 3 per cent from the previous year. Richard Hines, ORR’s chief inspector of railways, said the increase in assault reports was “concerning”.
He said: “No-one on the railway should be subjected to violence, threats or abuse. “We’re working with industry and our trade union colleagues to address work-related violence and harassment, including through recent guidance which sets out what we expect from rail employers. “This includes understanding where the risks are, putting effective controls in place, encouraging staff to report incidents and providing appropriate support afterwards.
“Our inspectors will continue to check how these risks are being managed.” Mark Phillips, Rail Safety and Standards Board (RSSB) chief executive, said: “The rail industry continues to take action to better protect staff, but these figures underline the need for a change in public behaviour and greater respect for the people who keep the railway running safely every day.” There were 13,464 reported assaults against people who are not part of the railway workforce between April 2025 and March 2026 on mainline services, data published by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) (AFP/Getty) RMT general secretary Eddie Dempsey said that the figures were horrendous and concurred with union figures that two-thirds of RMT public transport members experienced violence at work in the past year. “Despite the fact that my union launched its Action Against Assaults campaign last year we are seeing soaring levels of abuse and violence against rail workers and passengers. “We are calling for a significant increase in staffing across public transport, including an end to lone working.
“We also clearly need stronger legal protections for public transport workers against assaults at work. “British Transport Police funding cuts have also been disastrous which has undermined a proper policing presence on all public transport. “RMT has also been demanding an end to outsourced security and enforcement staff to be brought in-house as a matter of urgency,” he said.
Source: The Independent
