AN urgent warning is being issued to young people in Worcestershire as figures show trespass at railways is on the rise, bringing increased risk of death on the tracks.

Last summer, the number of reported trespass incidents rose by 13 per cent compared to the same time period in the previous year.

Longer evenings, coupled with the start of the holidays, spell danger for Britain’s youth as statistics also show young people are twice as likely to trespass at this time of year than in the winter.

As summer gets underway, British Transport Police and Network Rail are urging parents to warn their children of the dangers of playing on the tracks.

Over the past 10 years, almost 170 young people in the UK lost their lives through trespassing on the railway. The data shows that just under half of those killed were under the age of 25.

Nick Jordan, Community Safety Manager for Network Rail, said: “Trespassing on the railway is a criminal offence; however its impact goes way beyond that. One simple act of entering onto the railway can permanently affect the lives of dozens of innocent people, including the family of those trespassing as well as railway workers, the emergency services and rail users.

“Network Rail continues to make improvements to Britain’s railway and safety is at front and centre of everything that we do. One person injured on Britain’s rail network is one too many.”

Figures show that 72 per cent of all trespassers who died over the last 10 years were struck by a train, another 17 per cent were electrocuted and the others fell from structures or trains.

Most trespassers highlight taking a short cut (42 per cent) as their main motivation for committing the crime, followed by thrill-seeking (19 per cent).

In response to the seasonal surge in incidents, officers from British Transport Police are stepping up patrols across the region. The trespass figures show a rise in the West Midlands from 109 in 2013 to 131 in 2014 and to 148 in 2015.