In a bid to tackle a looming workforce shortage, 18-year-olds will soon be permitted to operate trains in the UK.
The UK government is lowering the minimum train driver age from 20 to 18, with legislation set to be brought before parliament this week.
The Department for Transport (DfT) said the change is scheduled to come info force from 30 June, 2026.
It comes amid concerns over an upcoming driver shortage in the rail industry, with roughly 25 per cent of the workforce expected to reach retirement age by 2030.
In some regions, the pressure to hire staff is even higher, with 38 per cent of train drivers in Wales set to hit retirement in the next four years, followed by 32 per cent in Scotland and in the North East.
This initiative aims to rally younger staff, improve industry diversity, and reduce reliance on ‘rest-day’ working – a voluntary agreement that sees staff work on their scheduled off days, often for extra pay.
The UK rail industry also faces a notable demographic imbalance – the average age of a train driver is currently 48, and recruitment efforts are falling behind retirement rates.
Currently, fewer than three per cent of train drivers – the equivalent of one in 25 – are under the age of 30, while only one in nine train drivers are women.
Teenagers aged 18 and above will soon be permitted to operate trains in the UK, a change that will take effect in June 2026
Approximately 25 per cent of the current workforce will reach retirement age by 2030
Drivers from ethnic minority backgrounds, meanwhile, account for 13 per cent of the total.
Staff shortages also account for 87 per cent of train cancellations made the night before a service is due to run.
According to the DfT, the change will ‘level the playing field across the transport sector’, with the minimum age for operating buses and Tube trains already set at 18 in Britain.
Speaking to Sky News, Lord Hendy, the rail minister, said: ‘This change will open doors for those wanting to move straight into the workplace, giving a younger generation the chance to build rewarding careers in the railway, whether that’s in freight or passenger services.
‘It’s a move that will help secure the future of Great British Railways and the wider rail industry, and ensure the workforce reflects the energy, talent, and ambition of the next generation.’
It comes after it emerged that train drivers and their families will benefit from Labour plans to boost social mobility because they are deemed to be ‘working class’ even if they earn £80,000 a year.
In December 2025, ministers admitted that a scheme designed to limit student civil service internships to those from ‘lower socio-economic backgrounds’ would cover the children of well-paid locomotive operators.
At the same time the children of police and prison officers who earn less would be barred from the scheme with starts in August because their jobs are deemed to be ‘middle class’.
The average age of a train driver is currently 48, a notable demographic imbalance in the UK rail industry
Driving a train is officially classed as a ‘lower supervisory and technical occupation’ by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), irrespective of the salary.
Under a related classification by the Social Mobility Commission this means drivers are deemed to be ‘skilled working class’ for government assistance purposes.
The information was revealed in a low key response to a question from the Tory peer Lord Jackson of Peterborough.
The news followed the RMT union and Transport for London’s decision to agree a pay deal that will take the pay of Tube driver in the capital to almost £80,000 by 2027.
A similar deal has also been agreed by LNER.
