Campaign to stop sexual harassment on TfL services

TfL says it will take a zero-tolerance approach to all forms of unwanted sexual behaviour and sexual harassment on London's public transport network, highlighting seven specific behaviours as common examples including cat-calling, exposing and pressing.

The new campaign is being delivered by TfL in partnership with the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), British Transport Police (BTP), Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) and women's safety group.

It launches today (October 27), aiming to "send a strong message" that harassment is not tolerated on services and to challenge the normalisation and dismissal of this behaviour as 'something that happens' to women and girls on public transport and in other public spaces.

PA

The following behaviours are highlighted by the campaign as common examples of sexual harassment, which are not tolerated on public transport:

1.Cat Calling   

Making unsolicited remarks of a sexual nature about someone  

2.Exposing   

Revealing intimate body parts   

3.Cyber-flashing   

Sending or showing sexual content without consent  

4.Pressing   

Rubbing against someone on purpose   

5.Touching   

Touching someone inappropriately  

6.Staring   

Intrusive staring of a sexual nature   

7.Upskirting   

Taking photos under someone's clothing   

By raising awareness of these issues, TfL hopes to encourage Londoners to look out for and support each other, and to engage bystanders to speak up so that perpetrators can be held accountable for their actions.

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Heidi Alexander, Deputy Mayor for Transport, said: "Any incident of sexual harassment on our public transport network is one too many, and ensuring that women and girls feel safe while travelling around the capital is our top priority.

"This new campaign sends a strong message to offenders that unwanted sexual behaviour is never acceptable in any form, and encourages anyone who has experienced or witnessed it to report it.

"We know that women and girls often feel unsure about reporting these types of behaviours, but if it makes you uncomfortable, it's serious.

"By working with partners on high visibility patrols, targeted policing and engagement activity, we can drive down sexual harassment on the network, ensure that passengers know what to do if they need help, and bring perpetrators to justice."

TfL

A Centre for London survey from 2019 found that women were nearly twice as likely as men to mention personal safety as a barrier to walking and using public transport.

Research also shows that nearly half of those who experience sexual harassment do not tell anyone.

The campaign encourages customers and staff who experience or witness this behaviour to report it, which helps TfL and the police to put the right interventions in place to stop it happening again and bring offenders to justice.  

Siwan Hayward, Director of Compliance, Policing, Operations and Security for TfL, said: "We are working with our transport policing partners in the MPS and BTP to make sure our public transport networks are safe, and feel safe, for all our customers and staff.

"Tackling sexual harassment is an essential part of that. The primary aim of this campaign is to challenge this behaviour, sending a message to offenders that it's wrong, it's harmful and it won't be tolerated on our services.

"We're also asking those that experience or witness sexual harassment to report it so that we can work to prevent it and to take action against perpetrators."

Earlier this month, TfL announced the return of the Night Tube, with the service resuming on the Victoria and Central lines on Saturday 27 November, after being suspended since March 2020 due to the pandemic. Services on these two lines will run throughout the night on Fridays and Saturdays.