More people than ever are risking their lives on the railways by trespassing on the tracks according to new statistics from Network Rail and the British Transport Police.

 

The figures reveal that on average one person every hour trespasses on the railway and that last year alone there were 8000 incidences – an increase of 11% compared to the year before.

 

Most trespassers highlight taking a short cut as their main motivation for committing the crime, followed by thrill seeking at 19%.

 

The data also shows that young people are most likely to take the risk, with just under half of those killed under the age of 25, while incidents are more common in the spring and summer months than the winter.

 

“Every April we see a huge rise in the number of people taking a risk on the rail network and it’s worrying that these numbers seem to be going up,” said Network Rail’s head of public and passenger safety Allan Spence.

 

“Britain has the safest railway in Europe but still too many people lose their lives on the tracks. The dangers may not always be obvious but the electricity on the railway is always on and trains can travel up to 125MPH so even if they see you, they can’t stop in time.”

 

To tackle the problem Network Rail and the British Transport Police (BTP) have jointly launched a schools engagement programme involving more than 100 schools in areas where the number of trespass incidents are high.

 

BTP officers will also be stepping up patrols across the country during the spring and summer months.

 

Allan Spence added: “As the railway gets busier and we electrify more lines to improve services, we must work harder to keep young people safe by making them aware of the dangers.”

 

(Photo: Network Rail)