In response to the launch of a union campaign on rail safety, an ATOC spokesperson said: “Huge strides have been made in train travel safety thanks to ongoing improvements implemented by train operating companies and Network Rail. Rail travel is now three times safer than bus travel and 20 times safer than using a car.

“Safety continues to be the highest priority for the railway industry. For the unions to suggest otherwise is just plain wrong and does not do justice to the hard work of thousands of staff members.  The unions’ inability to recognise the potential for combining sustained high levels of safety with smarter ways of working shows again how stuck in the past they are.”