Police drones now launching from boxes across the UK rail network
Key Points
- British Transport Police is the first UK force to routinely fly drones beyond visual line of sight
- Drones launch from seven remote drone-in-a-box stations and are flown from London Bridge
- BTP plans to expand to up to 14 stations over the next two years
- BT's Drone SIM on the EE network carries the command link and live UHD video
- Network Rail logged more than 19,300 trespass incidents in 2023/24, roughly one every 30 minutes
British Transport Police (BTP) has become the first UK force to routinely fly drones beyond the pilot’s line of sight, launching them from seven remote “drone-in-a-box” stations and flying them from its operations centre at London Bridge.
BT announced the rollout on Wednesday (16 September) as it supplies the connectivity through its Drone SIM product running on the EE mobile network. The firm said BTP plans to grow the network to as many as 14 stations over the next two years.
The stations hold a drone in a sealed unit at fixed points along the railway, and an operator in London can launch the aircraft remotely and fly it to an incident without anyone on site.
BT said the SIM keeps the command link and a live ultra-high-definition video feed running at altitude, including in areas with no Wi-Fi and in locations with heavy radio interference.
BTP covers more than 20,000 miles of railway, and Network Rail recorded more than 19,300 trespass incidents on the network in 2023/24, which works out at roughly one every 30 minutes.
Officers have typically had to travel long distances before they could see what was happening at a remote incident and decide how to respond.
The drones now give officers and rail operators a live aerial view of an incident before anyone arrives, which BT said cuts the time taken to make decisions, improves officer safety and helps clear disruption for passengers sooner. BTP started using the drones as part of routine operations earlier this year.
“As the first UK police force to routinely operate BVLOS drones as part of day-to-day policing, we are transforming the way we respond to incidents across the rail network,” said Simon Bachelor, Head of Drones Programme at British Transport Police.
“Real-time aerial intelligence enables our teams to assess situations faster, deploy resources more effectively and improve safety for both officers and the public.”
“Together we’re delivering clear benefits for both passengers and rail operators, by giving officers real-time intelligence, improving safety and helping the rail network respond more quickly when incidents occur,” said Sian Penny, Public Safety & Justice Director at BT.
BT said it is working with other transport, law enforcement and public safety bodies on drone deployments, and the firm has positioned the BTP rollout as a model for other public sector organisations looking to run routine BVLOS flights at scale.
