Swifties encouraged to Text 61016 and ‘Speak Now’ to report crimes or concerns on trains.

British Transport Police (BTP) is in its reporting Era and has jumped on the Taylor Swift bandwagon to raise awareness of their discreet text-to-report number, 61016.

Charm bracelets are a crucial part of any Swiftie’s tour outfit, and officers deployed to the station for this year’s tour are no exception. Attendees to Swift’s UK tour date at Principality stadium in Cardiff will have their chance to bag unique BTP bracelets customised to read: Text 61016 and Tecstiwch 61016.

This effort follows a campaign to raise awareness on how to report sexual harassment in collaboration with singer Lex Gibbon, who released a new single following her experience of being sexually harassed on the rail network.

Research data previously released by BTP last year showed that over one third of women have experienced sexual harassment on the rail network, yet only one in five have reported it to police.

In Wales, crime data released last month shows that reports of sexual harassment by teenage girls declined from 28 in 2022 to 21 in 2023, with the low figures, police believe many incidents are going unreported. Officers encourage anyone who is a victim of crime to report it.

The force hopes this innovative (and fashionable) move will spread the word about how easy it can be to report harassment, or any other crimes and concerns, to BTP.

All rail passengers are encouraged to save 61016 as a contact on their phones. On mobile, click here to automatically save a contact: https://qr1.be/X0RR

British Transport Police Superintendent Andy Morgan said:

“We take all reports of sexual harassment and offences extremely seriously, and it’s these reports that help us shape how we tackle the issue both proactively and reactively. That’s why we continue to try new ways to inform passengers of how they can report to us.

“We’re committed to tackling this behaviour on the network, and we can only do this if we know where and when it’s happening. Text 61016 offers a discreet and easy way for people to report to us in the moment, without alerting anyone else to their behaviour.

“This means we can act swiftly, whether it’s meeting the train at its next station, or getting in real-time intel requests.”

How to report

Every report is important. See it or experience it, you can report anything that makes you uncomfortable by text 61016, via the Railway Guardian app or by calling 0800 40 50 40.

You can also report past incidents and anonymously report sexual offences at btp.police.uk.

In an emergency, always call 999.