Railways face 'epidemic of violence' after policing cuts

A rise in crime on the railways has left passengers facing an “epidemic of violence”, it has been claimed, after transport police bosses admitted a lack of officers was affecting their response to emergency calls.

- ALEX ROSS

The latest Home Office figures show the British Transport Police (BTP), which also polices the London Underground, recorded a 5 per cent increase in crime in the year to June 2025 compared to the previous year. It included a 7 per cent uptick in “violence against a person” incidents, and a 6 per cent rise in sexual offences.

The Department for Transport has insisted that the railway network still has a low crime rate, with 26 offences per million passenger journeys, and said that the BTP recently agreed an increased budget that would allow it to employ the highest number of officers since the Second World War.

However, an £8.5m funding shortfall for this financial year has triggered an “establishment reset”, with more than 500 posts set to go by March, and 11 police stations closed, on top of the five that have shut since 2020.

A report submitted to the British Transport Police Authority warned: “Despite best efforts to maintain services, the establishment reset has reduced the visibility of BTP, with police stations having closed with resources redistributed to higher demand posts. We now have fewer frontline officers and staff than last year, and less capacity to investigate crime. Where we have closed stations, we are responding more slowly to emergency calls.”

Several major towns and cities are without BTP stations at rail hubs, including Stoke, Bradford and Middlesbrough, while two cities - Bath and Derby - have police stations but no BTP officer cover. Five London stations - Blackfriars, Charing Cross, Cannon St, Marylebone, and Fenchurch Street - have no permanent BTP presence.