Reported assaults against rail workers and passengers have risen substantially, with new Office of Rail and Road (ORR) figures highlighting work-related violence and abuse as a growing challenge for the industry.
ORR‘s annual rail safety statistics for April 2025 to March 2026 show 11,289 reported workforce assaults on the mainline railway, an increase of 12% compared with the previous year.
Meanwhile, reported assaults against passengers and members of the public on the mainline increased by 36% to 13,464 – the highest figure recorded since the data series began in 2004.
The figures come alongside a wider mixed picture for rail safety, with train accidents falling significantly but passenger and public fatalities increasing, driven partly by a rise in deaths at level crossings.
More than 11,000 workforce assaults reported
For the first time, ORR’s annual rail safety statistics have broken down workforce assaults into three categories.
Of the 11,289 incidents recorded on the mainline railway, 6,390 involved verbal abuse, 2,487 were physical assaults and 2,412 involved threats.
The overall figure represents a 12% year-on-year increase and reinforces the scale of the challenge facing frontline employees across the network.
The issue extends beyond physical attacks. Verbal abuse and threats together accounted for more than three-quarters of reported workforce incidents, illustrating the broader range of behaviours employers need to consider when assessing risks to staff.
Richard Hines, ORR’s Chief Inspector of Railways, said: “The increase in reported assaults is concerning. 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.”
Passenger assaults reach highest level in series
The increase was even greater among passengers and members of the public.
There were 13,464 reported assaults on the mainline railway during the year, 36% more than in 2024-25 and the highest number since the series began in 2004.
Within that total, reported harassment increased by 52%, while common assaults rose by 30%.
London Underground also recorded an increase in incidents affecting passengers and the public, with reported assaults rising 20% to 5,534.
However, the trend for employees on the Underground moved in the opposite direction, with reported workforce assaults falling 3% to 3,525.
The figures underline the importance of violence and harassment increasingly being treated as an occupational and passenger safety issue alongside the railway’s more traditional operational risks.
For employers, ORR’s comments place particular emphasis on understanding where incidents are occurring, implementing appropriate controls, encouraging reporting and ensuring employees receive support following an incident.
Level crossing fatalities increase
ORR’s statistics also show 18 passenger or public fatalities across Great Britain’s rail networks during the year, four more than in the previous 12 months.
Of those fatalities, 11 occurred at mainline level crossings – six more than the previous year and the highest annual number since 2014.
Across the mainline railway there were 12,551 workforce and passenger or public injuries, representing a 6% increase.
The level crossing figures will be a particular area of concern given the long-standing industry focus on managing interfaces between the railway and members of the public.
Train accidents fall but SPADs increase
Against the increases in assaults, injuries and fatalities, ORR recorded a significant reduction in mainline train accidents.
There were 252 train accidents during the year, 43% fewer than in the previous year. None resulted in workforce, passenger or public fatalities.
Signals passed at danger (SPADs), however, increased slightly. There were 310 SPADs on the mainline, 11 more than during the previous year.
Taken together, the statistics demonstrate the breadth of the safety challenge facing the railway. Traditional operational risks remain central to safety management, but violence, abuse and interactions between the railway and the public are increasingly prominent within the overall picture.
For operators and infrastructure managers, the sharp increase in reported assaults puts renewed emphasis on how risks to frontline employees and passengers are identified and controlled – and on ensuring that reporting, prevention and post-incident support form part of the industry’s wider safety culture.
