Public transport is a critical part of everyday life for millions across the United Kingdom. Trains, buses, trams and the London Underground enable people to work, study, socialise and travel across the country. But for many Muslims, particularly Muslim women, public transport has become a place of fear, vulnerability and frequent exposure to abuse.
In partnership with Muslims in Rail, a community-led network supporting and empowering Muslims across the UK transport and rail industry, Muslim Census has conducted the largest ever study into the safety and experiences of Muslims using public transport in Britain. While there have been numerous reports of Islamophobic incidents across the network, until now there has been no large-scale, representative dataset capturing the lived reality of British Muslims.
Between 9th and 20th November 2025, we surveyed 1,155 Muslims living in the UK. The sample is nationally representative across gender, ethnicity, region and age according to the UK Census 2021. This provides a 95% confidence level with a ±3% margin of error. The findings paint a stark and consistent picture of disproportionate risk, harmful experiences and significant behavioural changes among Muslim commuters.
Why This Study Was Needed
Concerns about Muslim safety have grown significantly in recent years. Tell Mama, the UK’s primary monitor of anti-Muslim hate crime, recorded more than 6,500 anti-Muslim incidents in 2023 — the highest volume ever documented and a 175% increase on the previous year. Their reporting also shows that hundreds of incidents occurred specifically on public transport, though the true scale is likely far higher due to chronic under-reporting.
During testimony to the London Assembly’s Police and Crime Committee, Tell Mama described the level of hostility faced by Muslims on public transport as “the worst we have encountered.” Muslim women in particular are routinely removing their hijabs before travelling, avoiding busy hubs, choosing different routes and even opting for taxis at personal cost to avoid dangerous situations.
Official Home Office figures reinforce this pattern. Muslims account for 44% of all religious hate crime victims in the UK, despite making up less than 7% of the population. The Home Office also noted clear spikes in Islamophobic offences following the Southport murders and subsequent far-right riots in July 2024.
This broader climate of rising hostility forms the backdrop for our study, which seeks to quantify the specific experiences of Muslims on public transport and provide the basis for meaningful action.
About the Research
The Muslim Census survey was live from 9th to 20th November 2025. A total of 1,155 Muslims responded, making this the largest dataset ever collected on Muslim experiences of public transport in the UK. The sample was drawn randomly from the Muslim Census research panel and matches the demographic distribution of Muslims across the country in sex, age, ethnicity and region.
This approach allows us to draw robust conclusions about the experiences of Muslim commuters and the scale of the issues they face.
Key Summary – Muslim Women Face a Disproportionate Risk on Public Transport
Across every measure of safety, Muslim women are disproportionately affected compared to Muslim men and the wider UK population. The findings show that almost half of Muslim women feel unsafe on public transport, compared with just 8% of women nationally. More than one in three Muslim women have experienced Islamophobic or racist abuse directly. These experiences range from verbal harassment and threatening behaviour to physical assault, hijab-pulling, being filmed without consent and being targeted by groups of individuals.
The visible expression of faith plays a significant role in this risk. Nearly two-thirds of Muslim women believe they are targeted because they wear the hijab, niqab or other visible markers of their Muslim identity. The consequences are profound: seven in ten Muslim women change their travel behaviour, whether by avoiding specific routes, travelling at different times, choosing alternative modes of transport or modifying their appearance, simply to stay safe. During far-right demonstrations, these figures rise even further, with the overwhelming majority of Muslim women reporting heightened fear and making significant adjustments to their travel.
Muslim women in Britain are navigating a public transport system that is simply not safe for them. Their experiences demand urgent, targeted and systemic action from transport authorities, operators, police and policymakers.
How British Muslims Use Public Transport
Public transport forms a central part of life for many Muslims in the UK. Nearly one in five Muslims use public transport every day. Half of the community use it at least once a week. Buses are the most commonly used form of transport, followed closely by the London Underground and National Rail services. Travel is most often for work or education, followed by social purposes.
This means the safety issues uncovered in the study have a direct impact on daily movement, employment, education and wellbeing.
Muslim Women Are Five Times More Likely to Feel Unsafe Than Women Across the UK
A significant proportion of Muslims reported feeling unsafe when travelling. For the Muslim community as a whole, 36.1% said they feel unsafe using public transport. However, when broken down by gender, almost half of Muslim women (45.3%) feel unsafe – a stark contrast to the 8% of women nationwide who report similar concerns.
This points to Muslim women being five times more likely to feel unsafe on public transport than women across the country.
A Third of Muslim Women Have Experienced Islamophobia or Racism Firsthand
In total, 34.3% of Muslim women have personally experienced Islamophobic or racist abuse while using public transport. Across the entire Muslim sample, 34.6% have witnessed such abuse directed at others.
These are not abstract fears. These are lived experiences.
Respondents shared accounts of being physically assaulted, threatened, spat at, and having their hijabs pulled. Many recounted being mocked with terrorist tropes, subjected to harassment by intoxicated individuals or groups and experiencing humiliation in crowded spaces without intervention.
Real Accounts of Abuse and Harassment
The stories shared by respondents illustrate the severity and scale of the issue:
A woman described being “urinated on by a man while on the train. [Her] hijab and abaya were soaked, yet [her] report was dismissed because the CCTV was allegedly not working.”
Another recounted being surrounded by “drunk football fans who made bomb noises at her and a friend. They refused to let the two women sit, splashed drinks around [them] and verbally abused [them] until another passenger intervened.”
One respondent described a woman repeatedly “tugging violently at another Muslim woman’s hijab” on the bus while the victim pleaded for her to stop. The assailant fought off attempts to intervene and escaped as soon as the bus stopped.
Other accounts include bottles being smashed over heads, being punched in the face, being followed through stations, and being shouted at to remove hijabs or go “back home.”
These stories are widespread across regions, ages, and transport types. They reflect a systemic issue rather than isolated events.
Reporting Rates Are Extremely Low
Despite the intensity of the abuse, reporting remains low. Only 12.5% of incidents are reported. Those who do report often turn to British Transport Police, local police or transport staff. However, 69% of people who reported an incident felt unconfident that it would be taken seriously.
This lack of trust in institutional response contributes to chronic under-reporting and allows harmful behaviour to continue unchecked.
Safety Concerns Are Changing How Muslims Travel
Safety concerns are reshaping how Muslims use public transport. More than half of respondents have changed their travel plans to avoid danger. Among Muslim women, 69.4% reported changing routes, avoiding certain times, modifying clothing or finding alternative means of travelling.
During far-right demonstrations or politically charged moments, these concerns intensify dramatically. Nearly all Muslims, 93.8%, feel less safe during such periods, and 84.9% actively adjust their travel behaviour. For women, the figures are even higher, with 96.3% feeling less safe and 90.7% changing their travel plans.
These figures show that safety concerns are not momentary fears, they are shaping daily routines and access to essential services.
Perceptions of Justice and Institutional Response
A large majority of Muslims, 83.1%, believe that Islamophobic hate crimes are treated with less seriousness than other forms of hate crime. This perception is reinforced by lived experience and aligns with the Home Office’s findings that prosecution rates for religiously aggravated offences remain low.
This erosion of confidence makes it more difficult to build trust between Muslim communities and institutions responsible for public safety.
What This Means for the UK’s Public Transport Industry
The findings demonstrate a systemic and urgent issue. Safety concerns impacting Muslim commuters, especially women, are not isolated incidents but reflect a widespread pattern of discrimination and abuse. These experiences undermine confidence in public transport, constrain mobility and contribute to long-term social and economic harm.
Addressing this requires coordinated leadership across transport operators, policing bodies, local authorities and national policymakers. Strategies must be informed by data, driven by lived experience and implemented with accountability.
This is a moment that demands action.
A Call to Action
Muslim Census and Muslims in Rail will now share these findings with key partners across the UK transport ecosystem. This includes London Underground, TfL, National Rail, major bus operators, British Transport Police, the Department for Transport and key policymakers.
Our hope is that this data will form the foundation for improved safety protocols, targeted interventions, staff training, reporting mechanisms and inclusive policy development.
Public transport must be safe for all. Today, it is not.
About Muslims in Rail
Muslims in Rail is a community-led network that supports and empowers Muslim professionals throughout the UK public transport and rail industry. Through advocacy, mentoring, leadership development and inclusion work, they are dedicated to improving representation and safety across the sector.
Contact & Further Information
For access to the full dataset, further analysis or media enquiries, please contact the Muslim Census team at team@muslimcensus.co.uk.