Request ID: FOI-0484-2223 Date published: 13 June 2022
You asked
Under the FOI Act, I wish to know if there is standard announcements for platform staff to adhere to when dispatching a tube- I wish to see such scripts and the policy given to staff.
I wish to know how complaints have been received by TFL from customers regarding non standard announcements in the last year?
We answered
TfL Ref: FOI-0484-2223
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 30th May 2022 asking for information about announcements for train departures on the London Underground.
Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy.
Specifically you asked:
“Under the FOI Act, I wish to know if there is standard announcements for platform staff to adhere to when dispatching a tube- I wish to see such scripts and the policy given to staff on acts of behaviour.
I wish to know how complaints have been received by TFL from customers regarding non standard announcements in the last year and the stations where these complaints refer to.”
I can confirm that we hold some of the information you require.
In answer to your first question, there are no specific scripts for staff to use when announcing a train departing a platform. There are relevant points provided in standard S1311 Customer Information - Stations, but these are for platform announcements generally and not specifically for train departures. The relevant extracts are as follows:
5.5.1 Prior to the arrival of a train in each platform, the following audible information shall be provided either by LU staff or automatically: • The name of the line the next train serves (only if the platform is served by more than one line). • The destination and routeing of the train; • The prevailing platform edge safety announcement.
5.5.6 In addition to normal operations information, the following warrant a message being given out to customers, either by LU staff or automatically, when relevant: • Current service disruptions on any LU line; • Current service disruptions on other transport services within the London area; • Current station closures on the LU network; • Current station or facility closures on other transport services within the London area; • Current security alerts or other major events in specific areas of London.
5.5.7 Platform announcements, whether by a member of staff or an automated voice announcer, shall be timed to avoid coinciding with a train entering or leaving the platform or whilst an announcement is being made on the train and the train doors are open.
5.5.8 In between the departure and arrival of each subsequent train, the following audible information shall be provided, either by LU staff or automatically: • The destination and routeing (if appropriate) of the next train; • The expected length of time prior to the arrival of the next train.
5.5.9 At stations where departures in the same direction are possible from more than one platform, customers shall be informed from which platform the next departure shall be.
In answer to your second question, from 01/06/2021 to 31/05/2022 our Customer Services team have found 2,242 contacts from customers that have been coded with the following terms, within which complaints about “non standard announcements” would most likely fall:
“Knowledge/Information” “Customer Service” “Information given by Staff”
Of this total, 693 were recorded as “complaints”. However, note that not all of these complaints would necessarily have been about non-standard announcements, as the codes used to log them could also be used for complaints on other matters. In order to determine which ones were / were not about that exact subject - and which stations they relate to - we would need to review each one individually. This is not possible within the £450 limit for responding to cases as set out under section 12 of the Freedom of Information Act. In order to bring your request within the costs limit you may wish to reframe it to narrow its scope - for example, by limiting the request to a much narrower timeframe.
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal as well as information on copyright and what to do if you would like to re-use any of the information we have disclosed.
Yours sincerely,
David Wells FOI Case Officer FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London
