The number of victims of sexual assaults recorded by law enforcement on public transport in France, the world’s top tourist destination, has risen by 86% in almost 10 years, according to a report published today.

In 2024, 3,374 victims of sexual assaults on French public transport were recorded by police and gendarmerie services, a figure 6% higher than in 2023 and 86% higher than in 2016, the study by the Observatoire de la mission interministérielle pour la protection des femmes (Miprof) specifies.

These figures correspond to an increase in the number of victims of sexual violence, across all means of transport, with 122,600 crimes and offences in 2024 (+7%).

In Paris and its wider region, a survey conducted by the local public transport management authority (RATP) showed that seven out of 10 women have been subjected to such assaults on Parisian public transport in their lifetime.

More than 50% (specifically 56%) of the women surveyed said they did not feel safe on the Paris rail network and 80% confided that they were vigilant, according to this study by the ENOV office, conducted by Miprof.

Women remain the main targets on French transport: they account for 91% of victims, according to the survey by the Ministerial Statistics Service for Internal Security (SSMSI), cited by the Observatory. ¾ of them (75%) are under the age of 30, 36% are minors.

Almost all of the perpetrators (99%) are men. Only 7% of victims filed a complaint compared to 2% in 2016.

“(…) The public space, especially public transport networks, remains a place where women are exposed to sexist and sexual violence once they enter it,” says Miprof Secretary General Roxana Maratsineanu.

“When a woman or a girl modifies their schedules or routes for fear of being assaulted should make us question the freedom of access to public transport services for all citizens,” the former Minister of Sport (2018-2022) believes.