Transport for London (TfL) has launched a new campaign encouraging passengers to act as active bystanders when they witness hate crime, sexual offences or harassment on the capital's transport network.
The campaign, which launches during National Hate Crime Awareness Week (11-18 October), includes a video shown in cinemas across London and on ITVX. It draws on three true stories of Londoners who helped defuse incidents by engaging targeted passengers in conversation, treating them "like a friend". 
Posters displayed across the TfL network feature real bystander stories and conversation starters used in actual incidents to show support to fellow passengers who were being targeted.
A complementary campaign targeting perpetrators has also been launched, warning that those who commit crimes on the transport network are likely to be caught and will face justice. The hard-hitting messaging focuses on sexual offences and harassment, hate crime and fare evasion.
The initiative comes as TfL works closely with police through a new taskforce launched last week to tackle sexual offences, harassment, violence against women and girls, and hate crime on the network. More than 2,000 police officers and 500 TfL Enforcement Officers patrol the Tube, rail and bus networks.
Siwan Hayward, TfL's director of Security Policing Enforcement, said: "Everyone has the right to be safe and feel safe when they travel on our services, and we have a strong police and enforcement presence on our services and in our stations to prevent crime. Sadly, there are still some instances of people being targeted and we know that it can feel hard to know what to do when we see this happen to someone else."
To mark the awareness week, TfL is partnering with charity Protection Approaches to deliver free active bystander training sessions for the public, funded by the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime. Ten two-hour online sessions will run between 22 October and 1 December, teaching people how to take action to prevent or reduce harm when they encounter hate crime.