Our Ref:          FOI-0942-1819

Thank you for your request received on 5 July 2018 asking for information about heat related passenger incidents.

Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Environmental Information Regulations and our information access policy. I can confirm we hold some of the information you require. You asked:

1. The number of passenger and staff incidents in 2016, 2017 and 2018 so far that you may be aware of related to heat illness related issues. For example, passengers/staff dehydrated on the tube, heat exhaustion, fainting, dizziness. Could I please have the details of any of the above events that you may have recorded, such as; date, time, severity (were emergency services contacted), which tube line or which station the event occurred and what were the potential causes.

I am looking for data provided in this similar FOI to TFL: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/how_many_tube_passengers_faint_e#incoming-505973

I would like to know how many tube passengers have fainted while travelling on the London Underground in the last two years as well as in 2018 so far. I do not need to know if the passengers were pregnant or not but I would like to know if an ambulance was called or not.

2. How many times have the tubes (all London lines) surpassed the temperature of 30C in 2016, 2017 and 2018 so far?

As for question 2, if possible, I would like to know the average temperate of each line during 2016, 2017 and 2018 so far.
During the summer months (June-September), how many times has the temperature exceeded 30C on each line during 2016, 2017 and 2018?

To provide this information would exceed the ‘appropriate limit’ of £450 set by the Freedom of Information (Appropriate Limit and Fees) Regulations 2004.

We are not able to provide a breakdown of passengers who have fainted on the London Underground as we no longer use this system to record data. We do not centrally record whether an ambulance was called or whether the incident was heat related. Additionally, the cause of any incidents will be based only on the member of staff’s opinion at the time and therefore may be found to be incorrect following further investigation. This information would only be recorded in the incident report forms completed at the station which would all need to be reviewed in order to extract the requested data. In addition, we would need to extract the requested temperature data.

Under section 12 of the FOI Act, we are not obliged to comply with a request if we estimate that the cost of determining whether we hold the information, locating and retrieving it and extracting it from other information would exceed the appropriate limit. This is calculated at £25 per hour for every hour spent on the activities described.

We have estimated that it would cost over £450 to provide a response to your current request. This is because it is estimated that it would take over 18 working hours to retrieve and compile the information you have requested.

We can provide you with a list of all instances of a person ill on a train as well as average monthly temperature data available, if you would like this information then please submit a further request.

3. What are the procedures being made to help lower heat on the tube

We are investing millions as part of a long-term programme to ensure we can deliver more services, and continue to introduce new trains to meet growing customer numbers whilst providing more comfortable journeys. We have implemented energy efficient solutions on new trains which saves energy and reduces the heat generated. We have also removed heat from our station and tunnel environment by installing new ventilation or cooling solutions.

On the Central line we have installed solar reflective material on the external surface of train roofs and solar reducing films on windows to minimise solar gains into the carriages.

On the Victoria line we have doubled the capacity of thirteen ventilation shafts which provide more air flow, as well as introduced regenerative braking (which returns power to the rails while the train is braking) on the new trains. We have also installed air cooling units and mechanical chillers at some key busy stations, such as Oxford Circus, and have been using groundwater underneath Victoria Tube station to provide cooling to the platforms. We are similarly using water from the aquifer underneath Green Park to provide cooling for that Tube station. In addition, we have upgraded existing ventilation fans and installed new fans at a number of stations across the network.

As part of this work to make customer journeys more comfortable, we are also working to reduce temperatures inside carriages. 192 new air-conditioned trains are now in operation on the Circle, District, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan lines, which equates to 40% of the network. We will be introducing 250 new Tube trains with air-cooled carriages on the Piccadilly, Bakerloo, Central and Waterloo & City lines, with the first new trains serving the Piccadilly line from 2023.

If this is not the information you are looking for please feel free to contact me.

Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.

Yours sincerely

Gemma Jacob
FOI Case Officer
FOI Case Management Team
General Counsel
Transport for London

[email protected]