Moment foul-mouthed youths spark terrifying brawl on Elizabeth line train after middle-aged passenger asks them to stop vaping
A group of abusive teenagers sparked a horrific brawl in a London train carriage after a middle-aged passenger asked them to quit vaping, while Sir Sadiq Khan was accused of failing to prevent crime.
Video footage showed passengers trapped on the Elizabeth line carriage passing through a tunnel before the fight spread to the platform at Stratford.
The argument began when a girl wearing a baseball cap ignored a man’s request to quit vaping and blew smoke towards him.
The man said ‘don’t smoke in the middle of the train’ but the woman continued and told him to ‘fuck off’. They continued talking and she appeared to spit at him.
The group the girl was with began shouting abuse at the man while on the train before the fight continued on the platform.
He was stopped on the platform by his girlfriends as other members of the group continued to shout insults and make offensive hand gestures.
Crime on the London Underground network is on the rise under Mayor Sir Sadiq; There is more violence, disruption of public order and a huge increase in vandalism.
Susan Hall AM, leader of the Conservative group in the London Assembly, told the Daily Mail today: ‘Sadiq Khan’s two main tasks as Mayor are to improve London’s transport and reduce crime, so it is no surprise that crime on the public has skyrocketed over the last decade.
‘We know that ignoring minor offenses creates a snowball effect, and it’s clear that respect and courtesy on London’s public transport has been in decline in recent years. ‘Londoners deserve so much better.’
A girl using an e-cigarette ignores a man’s request to stop and blows smoke towards him
Woman tells him to ‘fuck off’ after man tells her ‘don’t smoke in the middle of the train’
The girl is being held by friends on the platform at Stratford station in east London.
Approximately 12,951 crimes were recorded in the metro between July and December 2025; There was a 2.7 percent increase from 12,606 crimes in the same period in 2024.
This includes a 152 per cent increase in criminal damage offenses, from 947 to 2,390, due to the ongoing graffiti epidemic in the Underground.
Around 24,565 crimes were recorded across all Transport for London (TfL) services in July and December 2025; In the same period in 2024, this number increased from 24,508 to 57.
A British Transport Police (BTP) spokesman said: ‘We are aware of a video showing a fight on the train. Investigations continue. ‘Anyone with information should text BTP on 20 March to 61016 or call 0800 40 50 40 using reference 134.’
Smoking is prohibited on TfL trains and stations and is subject to possible fines of up to £1,000. It has been banned since the King’s Cross fire in 1987, which killed 31 people.
The exact time of the incident is not yet known, but a TfL spokesperson told the Daily Mail today: ‘We prohibit smoking and vaping on all our services and premises.
‘Everyone has the right to travel safely and we encourage anyone who experiences or witnesses a crime or antisocial behavior on the Tube or on our rail services to report it to British Transport Police by texting 61016.’
Other incidents that have shocked Londoners on TfL services in recent months included a three-person knife fight at Colliers Wood station last December.
Another video has emerged showing a fight at Highbury and Islington station last July; A screaming toddler fell to the ground in the scuffle.
In a fight that broke out on the stairs during rush hour, screaming members of the public tried to intervene as the group threw a man down the stairs.
Another notable incident last August saw a man expose himself in front of children on a busy eastbound Regional train passing through east London.
Three passengers tackled the man, who had mental health issues, to the floor of the train before throwing him onto the platforms at East Ham station.
Sir Sadiq has faced significant criticism over crime rates in what some have dubbed ‘lawless London’, and there has been a huge increase in knife crime during his time as Mayor.
Analysis published by the Policy Exchange think tank in July last year showed that knife crime in London had risen by 86 per cent in a decade.
But in August Sir Sadiq welcomed figures from the City Hall showing a fall in some serious crimes, including knife crime, between April and June 2025.
This was later criticized by Reform UK Councilor Alex Wilson, who said: ‘If Sadiq Khan thinks London is getting safer he needs to get out more.’
