iBus Announcements and DLR/Tramlink Voiceover Questions
Request ID: FOI-1695-2425 Date published: 12 September 2024
You asked
Hi
i made a recent submission saying if i could listen to the bus announcement for Selsdon Wood Nature Reserve
i would like to make a new submission instead regarding that and also ask some questions
my new submission is if it would it be possible if i could have a mp3 file of all audio recordings of bus stops and bus stands that you have across London and the surrounding areas and also all the Announcements that drivers can press
my questions are who voices the Pre 2000 announcements for the Tram before you introduced the current one that is still used now and who is the voice on all DLR trains regarding the DLR also who is the woman who says "the next train is for bank"
Thank You
Much Appreciated!
We answered
TfL Ref: FOI-1695-2425
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 22nd August 2024 asking for information about TfL announcements. Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act our information access policy.
I can confirm that we hold the information you require.
In terms of your request to access the announcements, you should have received an email separately that provides a link to the requested audio announcements. All of the audio announcements across the full TfL network that we are currently able to provide access to are accessible via this site. However, please be aware that many of the audio announcements that can be heard across the network are actually made up of smaller, fragmented recordings which are then combined for the purposes of public announcements so there will be some instances where full recordings of specific stop/station names, numbers or locations are not held.
We intend to update these files on a six monthly basis and so any newer recordings will be uploaded as part of this pre-determined schedule, rather than in response to specific future FOI requests. This is to ensure our resources can be managed effectively. Therefore, if you are aware of newer recordings that have been created that are not yet uploaded, we would appreciate your patience with this as requests for these recordings will be refused under section 22 of the FOI Act on the basis that there is a pre-existing intention to publish these in accordance with our publication schedule. We would therefore encourage you to wait for this upload rather than submit requests for recordings in this way. To confirm, these updates are expected to occur around January and July of each year.
The audio announcements made available to you are copyrighted material and access is provided for personal use only with permission not granted for any re-production or re-use. In the event that these files are re-used in any way we are likely to consider this to constitute a breach of copyright and will consider appropriate next steps.
In regards to your other questions (who voices the Pre 2000 announcements for the Tram before you introduced the current one that is still used now and who is the voice on all DLR trains regarding the DLR also who is the woman who says "the next train is for bank") note that the London tram network opened in the year 2000. There are, therefore, no “pre 2000 announcements for the tram”. Regarding the announcements on the DLR, these are provided by voice artists Emma Hignett, Dave Dawson, and a third who’s name is no longer held on record.
If this is not the information you are looking for, or if you are unable to access it for any reason, please do not hesitate to contact me.
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
