Our ref: FOI-1615-2425
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 17 August 2024 asking for information about fire saftey on the London Underground.
Your request has been considered under the requirements of the Environmental Information Regulations and our information access policy.
I can confirm that we do hold the information you require. You asked:
1. What are the current fire regulations in the TLF underground rail stations?
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005
The Fire Precautions (Sub-surface Railway Stations) (England) Regulations 2009
The Railway (Interoperability) Regulations 2011
The Building Regulations (Amendment) 2023 (most recent amendment of the 2010 regulations)
Construction Design and Management Regulations 2015
The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022
2. What is the primary risk of fires in underground railway stations?
Fire data on London Underground stations shows the following breakdown of the root causes/primary risks of the fires: There were 27 confirmed fires on LU stations between April 2023 and April 2024. 80% of these fires resulted from three root causes; Fire on the track caused by litter (29%), Fire caused by Vandalism (29%) and Sleeper/wood fire (22%).
3. What is the average and the highest internal temperature inside the underground stations?
Temperature data for the London Underground has been uploaded to the GLA Data Store under ‘London Underground Average Monthly Temperatures - London Datastore' covering the period from 2013 to 2023. Maximum temperature data is not held, and the dataset only shows average monthly temperatures recorded during evening peak hours, broken down by tube line. Data for 2024 will be made available in early 2025, as the collection process is manual and requires time for collation before uploading.
If you are not satisfied with this response please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.
Yours sincerely,
Tahsin Prima
FOI Case Officer
General Counsel
Transport for London
