There were 886 instances of bus-related crime in Newham in 2014/15, according to new statistics released by Transport for London.

The figures include 55 drug offences, 27 sexual offences and 43 cases of criminal damage.

Almost half of crimes reported – 423 – were for incidences of theft and handling, while a further 259 reports were for violence against the person.

The figures, released yesterday, show that there has been an overall decrease in crime on buses from the previous year – down 4.6 per cent from 929.

Despite that, Newham saw the fourth highest number of bus-related crimes, behind Westminster, Lambeth and Islington.

Det Chief Supt Paul Rickett, of the roads and transport policing command, said: “These fantastic crime reduction figures are down to robust policing, quality engagement with the public and strong partnership working.

“However, any crime is one too many and together we will continue to safeguard the travelling public from criminals operating on London’s transport network.”

Across the capital, there was a 5.7pc decrease in crime on the bus network, while there was also a reduction in crime on the Underground, the DLR and the Overground.

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, added: “I applaud the success of British Transport Police, Metropolitan Police and TfL in bringing crime down to record lows.

“We will be relentless in driving it down even further.”

The announcement of the reduction in crime comes as the TfL network acquires several new Overground branches and the TfL Rail route from Liverpool Street to Shenfield from this weekend.