Passengers have been urged to be cautious while travelling via train to the airport this summer, following a rise in the number of people falling between the train and the platform edge.
Greater Thameslink Railway (GTR) has recorded 93 cases of people falling while trying to board a train so far this year, up 43% from 2025. The operator, which runs services to and from Gatwick and Luton airports, said that most accidents are caused by preventable behaviour. The most common causes for accidents are people trying to board a train while the doors are closing, running for trains, and taking pushchairs and luggage on escalators.
Earlier in the year, GTR also reported an overall 5% drop in slips, trips and falls following a public information campaign on safe travel.
Jenny Saunders, Customer Services Director for GTR, said that while it is good to see an overall reduction in accidents across the network, they also want to see a reduction in those attempting to board a train as the doors are closing.
Both Gatwick and Luton Airports are expecting their busiest day this summer to be Sunday 16 August. GTR operates Gatwick Express, Southern and Thameslink services to both airports.
In 2024, around 500 London Tube passengers were injured after becoming trapped in closing doors or falling between the train and the platform edge. Data published earlier this year, by Personal Injury Solicitors London, showed that more than 10,000 injuries have been recorded on the London Underground over the past three years. The tube station with the largest number of injury reports was Waterloo, also ranked the busiest Tube station last year, which recorded 471 incidents between 2022 and 2025.