THE dangers of train travel or even if you only live near a railway line were highlighted in a survey carried out by South West Trains and St John Ambulance when they asked passengers to “stay safe” at an awareness day at London Waterloo before Christmas.

It followed a report that showed in 2014/15 there were 43 preventable deaths, 296 major injuries, and many more minor injuries that could have been avoided on the railways in Britain.

In addition, alcohol-related incidents increase by approximately 25 per cent during December as more people go to Christmas parties and use the trains to travel home.

The event was designed to draw attention to the various risks, such as trespassing on the railway and texting on mobile phones while using level crossings, through its new interactive display stand.

Becky Lumlock, route managing director at Network Rail, said: “The safety of everyone who uses or works on the railway, whether they are a passenger, a pedestrian at a level crossing, or one of our workforce, is the number one priority for us.

“Often we can all take our own safety for granted, so we’re trying to alert people to the little things that they may not even have considered, such as wearing headphones or texting on your phone while using a level crossing which can be a distraction.”