Queensland Rail has paid $10 million in overtime between October and February. Credit:Michelle Smith There was also a sharp increase in the number of people who wanted to see more police or security staff on trains and at stations, up from 66 per cent in 2015 to 76 per cent this year. "We continue to be the only railway in Australia to receive the top rating for safety for the fourth consecutive year, which reflects our ongoing commitment to security on our network," Queensland Rail acting chief operating officer Martin Ryan said. "It is disappointing to hear that some customers feel unsafe on our network and as a result, we will increase our efforts to let our customers know about our wide range of security measures. "Over the last year, we have increased the number of dedicated Police Railway Squad officers by more than 10 per cent, from 70 to 78.

"These officers are dedicated to the rail network and work out of eight purpose-built Railway Squad outposts strategically placed on the network." Mr Ryan said passenger assaults were down 9 per cent between 2014-15 and 2015-16, "with less than two incidents per million passenger journeys". Canstar Blue editor Simon Downes said Sydney's stronger performance could simply be a case of safety in numbers. "You kind of think, you know, it's a bigger city with the same sorts of issues that Brisbane would have, but you would probably suspect the night-time trains in Sydney are probably a bit busier and would have more people on them," he said. "That, I suspect, probably contributes to that feeling of unease (in Brisbane), particularly if you're travelling by yourself on one of those trains that head out right into the suburbs.

"But why the big change in the past year? I'm honestly not quite sure." Mr Downes said perception issues, particularly through social media, could also have played a role. "We've all seen those videos recently of young blokes vandalising the trains, we've had a lot of those videos of people racially abusing other passengers, so it's a strange thing that sometimes going on a train brings out the worst in some people," he said. "People are perhaps a lot more conscious now that things can get out of hand on a train and, of course, you can't just hop off a train, so I can see why people are nervous." In response to the survey results, Queensland Transport Minister Stirling Hinchliffe said the government had also increased the number of CCTV cameras across the network to 9000.

"(That) means there are more eyes on the network, with a dedicated team of security monitoring officers watching our network to ensure passenger safety," he said. Overall, though, the year-on-year results were mostly positive for Queensland Rail. Just 26 per cent of commuters said they often experienced delays, compared to 33 per cent in 2015. Forty-five per cent said they often experienced overcrowding, down from 48 per cent in 2015, while 44 per cent said they witnessed anti-social behaviour, compared to 45 per cent the previous year. Ninety-one per cent of Brisbane train users felt safe during the day, down from 92 per cent in 2015.