British Transport Police is the national police force for the railways providing a policing service to rail operators, their staff and passengers throughout England, Wales and Scotland. The Force is also responsible for policing the London Underground system, the Docklands Light Railway, the Midland Metro Tram System and Croydon Tramlink. Between them, these rail businesses move some five million people every day.

The railway environment presents its own particular policing needs and British Transport Police - which now numbers 2,280 police officers and 704 support staff - exists to provide a specialist policing service to meet those needs.

The Force can trace its history back to 1825, to the origins of the police service in Britain.

Policing the railways is an integral part of policing the community generally and today the Force forms part of the national policing structure which safeguards the citizen. The majority of the Force's activity, like that of any other police force, is law and order policing, maintaining the Queen's peace and protecting staff and public.

During the early years of railway policing, Constables had specific responsibility for the surrounding area as each Constable was sworn in as a County Constable as well as a railway company police officer. Nowadays, the Force is constantly giving help to, and receiving help from, local forces to provide the best possible service to its customers.

Crime and criminals do not hesitate to cross county boundaries and crimes can be committed on the move with rapid means of escape. The network nature of the railway system also means that incidents affecting its operation in one location can reverberate down the system creating knock-on effects for thousands of people many miles away. This is why the railway has special policing needs and why a national police force for the railways is a cost-effective solution.

In the late 19th century, the continually spreading rail network gave criminals new opportunities to move around the country. Nowadays, British Transport Police makes full use of modern technology to track, prevent and detect crime across the nation.

The railway police have been an innovator in other areas as well as in the use of technology.

The modern British Transport Police force aims to provide a quality policing service and that means staying in the forefront of developments within the railway industry and within policing in general.

A major reorganisation of the Force's structure to anticipate the future needs of the restructured railway industry was carefully planned and implemented in April 1992.

Throughout its history, the Force has evolved to meet the increasing demands of the industry it polices. The present eight Area organisation is designed to deliver the best possible value for money policing service to the railway industry and its users into the next century.