Our Ref:          FOI-2065-1819

Thank you for your request received on 7 November 2018 asking for information about injuries on London Underground escalators.

Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy. I can confirm we do hold the information you require.

The Tube supports nearly 5 million passenger journeys per day, and up to 1.36bn journeys were made in 2017/18 on the Tube. The safety of our staff and customers is our top priority and the Tube is recognised as one of the safest metros around the world. We are never complacent, however, and continuously strive to reduce injuries.

We have done a lot to understand the key locations, issues and contributory factors which lead to customer accidents occurring on escalators. To reduce numbers of incidents we are focussed on both influencing customer behaviour and changing our infrastructure to remove/reduce risk. Both elements are integrated into a plan which is cascaded to each of the London Underground lines and stations with escalators. These plans are visualised, performance and delivery reviewed each week and action taken to improve performance where required (using a continuous improvement approach). Recent actions have included senior management team visits to hotspot locations to talk about the issues and challenges.

To minimise slips, trips and falls, we have been trialing and implementing a variety of ways to highlight risks and encourage safe use of escalators. These encourage customers to hold the handrail; walk or stand safely; be aware of the step or landing interface; and, where available, to use lifts when mobility impaired.

Initiatives to minimise slips, trips and falls include blue footprints on the steps, hand prints on the handrails, contrasting colours to highlight the ‘comb’ between the moving steps and the landings, wording on step risers, new electronic displays, under-step lighting, escalator and lift floor signs, projections of staff members giving safety messages near escalators and frequent public address announcements.

Additionally, TfL's safety campaigns, which run throughout the year, use posters in lifts, stations, as well as advertisements on the escalators across the network, to remind our customers of the risks of running on stairs and escalators. We continually monitor the effectiveness of our measures and campaigns in reducing accidents and adjust our approach accordingly.

Please find below a table showing the annual numbers of people injured by a fall on a London Underground escalator concurrent with that escalator being stopped by means of an Emergency Stop button; for the last five complete calendar years:

 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018* Total
Number of persons injured 4 2 3 2 4 2 17
*To end of October 2018

If this is not the information you are looking for please feel free to contact me.

Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.

Yours sincerely

Gemma Jacob
Senior FOI Case Officer
FOI Case Management Team
General Counsel
Transport for London

[email protected]