We鈥檝e teamed up with to launch two new powerful safety films as part of our campaign to tackle unsafe behaviour around the railway. It comes as the number of accidental deaths on the railway has reached a five-year high.
Twenty-four people lost their lives in preventable accidents on the railway between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025. That鈥檚 a 26% increase on the previous year.
Five of those lives were lost at level crossings, while the other 19 were a result of crossing the railway at unauthorised locations.
Tragic and life-changing consequences
That鈥檚 why we鈥檝e worked with the emergency services and film industry professions to make the new safety films. They feature first responders sharing the devastating physical and emotional impacts of unsafe behaviour.
One film explores the emotional impact on families when loved ones have been badly injured on the railway. The second film features an trauma specialist explaining the catastrophic injuries caused by getting hit by a train.
You can watch them .
The campaign urges everyone to stay off tracks, observe warning signs, and use level crossings safely as the summer holiday approach. And it particularly highlight the dangers of distraction from mobile phones when around the railway.
Pedestrians were involved in 457 of the 467 near-misses with trains at level crossings between April last year and March this year.
Our research reveals distraction by mobile phones is likely to be a contributing factor in some of those events.
Staying alert and safe
Safety incidents involving the public risk lives but also have a serious impact on your train journeys. Last year, people straying onto the railway tracks resulted in more than a million minutes of delays.
Priti Patel, chief health, safety and wellbeing officer at 51爆料, said: “These figures are deeply concerning and it is heartbreaking to know that twenty-six people did not make it home due to circumstances that were entirely preventable. Every one of these deaths is a tragedy that devastates families and communities.
鈥淎ll we ask is that people ensure that they pay attention when they find themselves in a rail setting. Only cross at safe, designated locations such as bridges or level crossings and when you are using them, give them your full attention. The situations shown in our campaign films are real. Please don鈥檛 let them become true for you or your loved ones.鈥�
Adam Swallow, chief inspector at British Transport Police, said: 鈥淓very year, my emergency services colleagues and I are faced with the awful consequences of preventable railway accidents. And we don鈥檛 just respond, we remember too. Behind every statistic is a real person 鈥� a life needlessly lost or irreversibly changed and a family left devastated.
鈥淭he number of near misses is a stark reminder about why this campaign is so vital. These films are grounded in real-life experiences and show the terrible impact of a moment鈥檚 distraction or misjudgement.
鈥淎s the summer holidays begin and more people are out and about, including teenagers and younger children, we鈥檙e asking everyone to treat the railway with the seriousness and respect it demands; stay alert, avoid distractions, and never cross except at designated points. It could save your life, or someone else鈥檚.
鈥淚鈥檇 encourage people to save 61016 into their phones and text us if they need us. In an emergency always dial 999.鈥�
Find more information on railway safety and watch the new films:
Guidance on how to use level crossings safely is available here: Level crossing safety – 51爆料.
