BBCReports of sexual assaults and harassment on trains have risen by more than a third over the past 10 years, according to data requested by a BBC investigation.
There were 2,661 incidents reported across England, Scotland and Wales last year, where one in 10 were children – with some younger than 13.
Rhiannon Williams said she was sexually harassed on a train earlier this year and recalled: “You can’t go anywhere, you can’t escape. I had to sit there and put up with it.”
British Transport Police has said the rise is a “concern” and will take every allegation “seriously” while the group that represents train companies added operators have a “zero tolerance to sexual harassment”.
Data gathered by the BBC via a Freedom of Information request to the British Transport Police found a 37% increase in reports of sexual offences across England, Scotland and Wales since 2015.
Warning: This story contains details some may find distressing.
Rhiannon said she was sexually harassed on a train this summer by a group of drunken men while going home in west Wales after a day out with friends at the seaside resort of Tenby in Pembrokeshire.
“It was uncomfortable and scary,” the 18-year-old told the BBC.
“It’s a situation of feeling quite cornered. You’re on a train, you can’t go anywhere, you can’t escape. It definitely made me feel trapped.”
A witness reported the harassment to the British Transport Police and officers are still investigating the incident, which happened in August.
“It’s due to the normalisation of these situations, the attitude that boys will be boys and it’s something women should put up with,” added Rhiannon, who is from Llanelli.
“It shouldn’t be like that, these situations make women feel extremely intimidated and uncomfortable.”
Sexual offences can include rape, sexual assault or sexual harassment. Police say harassment is anything that makes you feel uncomfortable or is inappropriate, such as staring, constant questioning or catcalling.
Despite the rise, officers fear sexual assault and sexual harassment on trains and in stations is still underreported – and worry some do not report it to police at all.
Like Maddie Waktare, who said she was sexually assaulted by a man sitting next to her while travelling on a train from London Waterloo.
“It was a busy train, but he was taking up more space than he needed to,” said the 30-year-old.
“His body was encroaching onto me which made me feel uncomfortable. It was summer and I was wearing a dress and he ran his hand up the side of my thigh.”
Maddie said she froze. “He kept doing it,” she added.
Maddie Waktare“I stood up forcefully and glared at him. I was in shock and disbelief. I couldn’t believe this had happened to me.”
Now Maddie is angry for not reacting.
“I never thought I would be someone who would freeze,” she said.
“It made me realise how normalised it is in society. The problem is you don’t know what these people are capable of, it starts with something like this and then their crimes can get worse. I should have reported it.”
Of those 22,100 reports of sexual offences on trains in the past 10 years, detectives could not identify a suspect in half of the cases.
The UK government has said they have pledged £17m to improve British Transport Police’s access to station CCTV to help “ensure offenders are identified and brought to justice more quickly”.
Footage of a train conductor being arrested on a station platform after sexually assaulting an 18-year-old female passenger has been released by the British Transport Police as part of the BBC investigation.
Nicholas McMurray was jailed for seven years after being convicted for sexually assaulting a woman who cannot be named for legal reasons, on a mainline train between London Paddington and Swansea.
She had been talking on her phone on a journey from Cardiff when Great Western Railway (GWR) train manager McMurray asked to check her train ticket, before adjusting her dress, and sexually assaulting her.
The passenger reported the incident to British Transport Police when she arrived at Swansea Station and McMurray was arrested on the platform.
Officers placed clear bags over his hands to preserve evidence before he was taken to the police station.
The 38-year-old from Swansea was found guilty of sexual assault and assault by penetration at Swansea Crown Court earlier this year and put on the sex offenders register for life.
British Transport PoliceGWR said McMurray was immediately removed from duty.
“He resigned with immediate effect during the disciplinary process, where the likely outcome was immediate dismissal,” a spokesperson said.
British Transport Police said McMurray had “completely abused his position and took advantage of this young woman”.
Sexual offences involving children under 18 have trebled on the trains in the past decade from 146 reports in 2015 to 443 in 2025. In total more than 2,900 reports were made over the past 10 years involving children.
“While any rise in crime figures is a concern, it’s important to contextualise that this is down in part to an increase in intelligence-led operations involving plain clothes officers who are specially trained to identify offenders,” said Det Ch Insp Nia Mellor of British Transport Police.
Those undercover officers patrol stations looking for “people hanging about not catching trains”.
“It’s people moving up and down platforms trying to position themselves closer to lone females, or females that may be a bit more vulnerable because of intoxication,” said Sgt Morgan Andrews.
Officers also feel men should be more aware of how women may feel about being approached.
It happened to Julia who was on a train with a friend from Bedford to London when she received unwanted attention from a group of men.
“They kept staring and speaking in a different language and it felt like they were planning something,” said the 22-year old actress, originally from Switzerland but now living in London.
She said at the end of the train journey the men started to follow them.
“We ran so they couldn’t follow us to the tube or follow us home, you don’t know what their intentions are,” she said.
“I was really anxious. I was scared, I was scared for my friend.”
Anyone that experiences or witnesses sexual assault or harassment on the rail network is advised to text the British Transport Police on 61016 with details of the incident, location and time.
“No woman or girl should be made to feel uncomfortable during their rail journey,” said Det Ch Insp Mellor.
“Unacceptable behaviour on the network has serious consequences and will not be tolerated.
“We are relentless in our pursuit to hold these offenders to account and ensure the railway network is a safe place to be for everyone.”
The Rail Delivery Group, which represents the UK’s train operators, said every allegation will be “taken seriously”.
“There’s zero tolerance in terms of sexual harassment on our network,” said their chief executive Jacqueline Starr.
The UK government has said people should be able to use the rail network “without fearing for their safety”.
“A rise in reports does not necessarily mean more incidents are occurring,” added a government spokesperson.
“It may reflect that more victims now feel able to come forward because of increased awareness and messaging across the network.”
If you have been affected by the issues raised in this story you can visit BBC Action Line.
Additional reporting by Lucy Dady and Tom Curd
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