Cases of "Intrusive Staring" on Transport for London services.
Request ID: FOI-2870-2223 Date published: 24 February 2023
You asked
In 2021, a new campaign was launched to emphasise zero tolerance to all forms of sexual harassment on London's public transport. This includes the following behaviours: 1) Cat Calling 2) Exposing 3) Cyber-flashing 4) Pressing 5) Touching 6) Staring 7) Upskirting.
I would like to know the number of times someone has reported receiving any of these seven behaviours since October 2020 up until the most recent data available. By "reported", this could include a victim directly reporting the incident to a British Transport Police staff member, or by reporting the incident via a TFL hotline, or any other method of reporting sexual harassment, in relation to any of the seven behaviours outlined above, to the police on TFL services.
I would like the data in an excel spreadsheet and for it to be split into: Date and
time of case, gender of victim, age of victim, area in London, TFL service type
(bus/tube/overground). For 'TFL service type', I would like to know which
underground line the incident occurred on and which bus route or overground
route.
If the data is not available for the seven behaviours outlined above, then I would like to know the number of any sexual harassment cases on TFL since October 2020 until the most recent data available, even if they are not related to the seven behaviours outlined above.
If any of the data cannot be retrieved from October 2020, then please provide the data from the oldest time available after October 2020.
I would like the data in calendar years.
Thank you.
We answered
Our Ref: FOI-2870-2223
Thank you for your request received on 6 February 2023 asking for information about harassment on public transport in London. 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 hold some of the information you require. As previously advised, Transport for London (TfL), in partnership with the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), British Transport Police (BTP), Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) and women’s safety groups, launched the campaign to tackle sexual harassment on the transport network in October 2021. The campaign highlights various forms of unwanted sexual behaviour that can take place on public transport and aims to send a strong message to offenders that sexual harassment is not tolerated on TfL’s services. The campaign was informed by research, including focus groups, and the expertise of violence against women and girls (VAWG) campaign groups and the policing sector.
Sexual harassment does not only affect those who are directly targeted - it can affect how safe all women and girls feel when travelling. 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. The campaign builds on efforts by TfL and police to tackle unwanted sexual behaviour on public transport through Project Guardian and the award-winning Report it to Stop it communications campaigns - both of which aim to improve reporting levels and to create an environment on the network that is intolerant of intimidation and sexual harassment. The new campaign posters form part of a joined-up national approach to addressing sexual harassment, featuring a consistent message across the TfL and national rail network. The campaign also includes magazine and newspaper advertising, editorial partnerships, and other communications. The materials, which appear on buses and trains and at stops and stations, help educate passengers about how to report incidents, encouraging them to do so wherever possible on the bus network at met.police.uk or, for all other TfL services, to text the British Transport Police on 61016. Alternatively, people can contact Crimestoppers, and should always call 999 in an emergency. You asked: In 2021, a new campaign was launched to emphasise zero tolerance to all forms of sexual harassment on London's public transport. This includes the following behaviours: 1) Cat Calling 2) Exposing 3) Cyber-flashing 4) Pressing 5) Touching 6) Staring 7) Upskirting. I would like to know the number of times someone has reported receiving any of these seven behaviours since October 2020 up until the most recent data available. By "reported", this could include a victim directly reporting the incident to a British Transport Police staff member, or by reporting the incident via a TFL hotline, or any other method of reporting sexual harassment, in relation to any of the seven behaviours outlined above, to the police on TFL services. Please see the table below for the information we hold regarding recorded unwanted sexual behaviour. Please note that the information below relates to crimes reported to the BTP on London Underground, London Overground, Docklands Light Railway, Trams, Elizabeth line since the launch of the campaign in October 2021. The data below is recorded by committed date, not recorded date.
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
2020
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
17
9
15
2021
9
4
29
23
27
24
21
22
34
47
48
27
2022
28
15
22
38
78
62
78
53
52
70
60
55
2023
81
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
We are unable to breakdown the information any further, if you require more detailed data please contact the BTP directly:
https://www.btp.police.uk/foi-ai/af/accessing-information/ If you require information on incidents on the bus network please contact the Metropolitan Police Service: https://www.met.police.uk/foi-ai/af/accessing-information/ Please note that additional incidents may have been reported directly to our Customer Services team or through other channels, however this is not recorded in a way that would allow us to locate and extract this information within the ‘appropriate limit’ of £450 set by the Freedom of Information (Appropriate Limit and Fees) Regulations 2004. 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
