If London Says Buses Should Not Enter Service Without Cab Cooling — Why Are Drivers Elsewhere Still Expected To “Just Get On With It”?
For years bus drivers across the UK have been warning that excessive cab temperatures, failed air-conditioning systems and extreme heat exposure are becoming a serious health and safety issue.
For years many of those concerns were largely brushed aside as:
“part of the job,”
“just hot weather,”
or something drivers were expected to simply tolerate.
But that position is becoming increasingly difficult to defend.
Because what is now emerging is a growing body of evidence from:
- transport authorities,
- regulators,
- parliamentary scrutiny,
- unions,
- and drivers themselves
which increasingly points to the same conclusion:
Extreme heat inside bus cabs is becoming both a worker welfare issue and a public safety issue.
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The HSE Response That Raises More Questions Than It Answers
Recently, following concerns I raised through my MP Michael Payne, the Health and Safety Executive confirmed that:
- there is no legal maximum workplace temperature in the UK;
- bus driver cab temperatures are effectively governed through general risk assessment duties;
- and current workplace temperature guidance was “not written for specific job roles, such as bus drivers.”
That statement alone should concern the entire industry.
Because bus drivers are not working in ordinary office environments.
They are:
- operating large passenger vehicles,
- often in dense traffic,
- for extended driving spells,
- carrying vulnerable passengers,
- whilst expected to maintain concentration and safety-critical decision making.
And increasingly they are doing so inside what many drivers describe as “greenhouses on wheels.”
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Drivers Are Publicly Reporting Temperatures Of 36°C, 40°C And Higher
Across social media and industry groups, drivers are once again documenting conditions inside cabs during hot weather.
Temperatures of:
- 36°C,
- 40°C,
- 42°C,
- 44°C,
- and in some cases reportedly even higher
are regularly being discussed where air-conditioning systems are weak, defective or non-functioning.
Some drivers describe:
- headaches,
- nausea,
- dizziness,
- dehydration,
- exhaustion,
- concentration difficulties,
- and concerns about fatigue.
Many drivers also point out the contradiction that:
livestock transport guidance states animals should not normally be transported above 30°C without temperature-controlled vehicles —
yet professional drivers can still find themselves expected to operate buses in conditions significantly beyond that.
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Drivers Are Now Producing Real-Time Temperature Evidence
As this article was being prepared, more drivers continued sending photographs of cab temperatures recorded during service.
Some of the temperatures documented included:
- 42.7°C
- 44.6°C
These are not temperatures recorded in direct desert conditions or inside industrial furnaces.
These are temperatures being recorded inside UK passenger buses whilst drivers are expected to continue operating public services safely.
The images further reinforce what many drivers have been warning about for years:
that some bus cabs are effectively becoming heat traps during extreme weather, particularly where air-conditioning systems are defective, weak or absent.
At those temperatures drivers are still expected to:
- maintain concentration,
- monitor road and passenger safety,
- manage fatigue,
- navigate congested traffic,
- and make constant safety-critical decisions.
The industry cannot continue pretending this is simply an issue of “comfort.”
The combination of:
- extreme heat,
- prolonged exposure,
- fatigue,
- dehydration,
- and operational pressure
raises legitimate public safety concerns which regulators and operators will increasingly struggle to ignore.
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TfL And Andy Lord Have Quietly Changed The Conversation
This is where the issue becomes particularly important.
Because Transport for London and TfL Commissioner Andy Lord have now publicly acknowledged concerns which parts of the wider industry still appear reluctant to fully recognise.
During London Assembly Transport Committee discussions and related reporting, TfL and Andy Lord stated that:
- buses with defective cab cooling or air-conditioning should not enter service;
- drivers who do not feel safe should raise concerns;
- operators should support those drivers;
- and operators should not be penalised for withdrawing buses over welfare concerns.
That is an extraordinarily significant position.
Why?
Because it effectively recognises that:
- excessive heat can impair safe operation;
- failed cooling systems matter operationally;
- drivers themselves are capable of judging when conditions become unsafe;
- and welfare concerns should not attract punishment or detriment.
TfL also referenced:
- reduced uniform policies,
- cooling measures,
- water provision,
- reflective roofs,
- insulation improvements,
- and resilience planning.
In other words:
a major transport authority is openly treating extreme heat as an operational and safety management issue.
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TfL Has Quietly Gone Further Than Much Of The Industry
What makes the Transport for London position particularly significant is not just that TfL acknowledged the issue — it is how far they have now publicly gone compared with much of the wider UK bus industry.
In statements issued through TfL’s press office and by TfL Director of Buses Lorna Murphy, TfL effectively confirmed several major principles which could have implications far beyond London.
Among the most important points were:
- operators should have comprehensive hot weather plans in place;
- all driver cabs should have air cooling systems fitted;
- buses with failed cooling systems should be reported and action taken;
- drivers who feel unsafe should contact controllers;
- operators should support those drivers;
- drivers raising welfare concerns should not face repercussions;
- additional mitigation measures may include:
- reduced uniform requirements,
- water provision,
- cooling towels,
- reflective roofs,
- insulation,
- and ventilation improvements.
That is a substantial shift in tone compared with the historic culture many drivers elsewhere still describe, where excessive heat has often simply been treated as:
“part of the job.”
TfL also acknowledged that bus drivers:
- play an essential public role,
- operate under difficult conditions,
- and require active welfare protections during extreme weather events.
Perhaps most importantly of all, TfL’s position now appears to move the debate beyond simple “comfort” arguments and into operational safety territory.
Because once a transport authority publicly accepts that:
- defective cooling systems matter,
- drivers may become unsafe to continue,
- and buses may need withdrawing from service,
then the issue is no longer merely about welfare.
It becomes a transport safety issue.
And that creates an obvious question for the rest of the country:
If London can publicly recognise these risks, why are so many drivers elsewhere still being expected to simply “get on with it” in extreme temperatures?
The wider significance here may be enormous.
Because TfL has potentially established a benchmark position which:
- unions,
- drivers,
- safety representatives,
- and transport campaigners
may increasingly point towards when challenging conditions elsewhere in the UK bus industry.
It also places growing pressure on other Combined Authorities, franchising bodies and transport leaders to publicly clarify whether they support similar protections for drivers operating within their own networks.
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Other Combined Authorities Now Need To State Their Position Clearly
The statements now coming from Transport for London are important because they establish a clear public position from one of the UK’s largest transport authorities.
TfL and Commissioner Andy Lord have publicly stated that:
- buses with defective cab cooling should not enter service;
- drivers who do not feel safe should raise concerns;
- operators should support those drivers;
- and drivers raising welfare concerns should not face repercussions.
TfL Director of Buses Lorna Murphy also confirmed that:
- operators should have hot weather plans in place;
- action should be taken where cooling systems are not functioning;
- welfare concerns should be supported;
- and additional mitigation measures may include:
- reduced uniform policies,
- water provision,
- cooling towels,
- insulation,
- reflective roofs,
- and ventilation measures.
That raises a very important national question:
What is the position of other Combined Authorities and regional transport bodies across England?
Will they publicly support similar standards and protections for bus drivers?
Because drivers outside London are increasingly asking the same questions.
Authorities and Mayors including:
- Andy Burnham and the Bee Network in Greater Manchester;
- Tracy Brabin and the Weaver Network in West Yorkshire;
- Oliver Coppard and the South Yorkshire “People’s Network”;
- Steve Rotheram and the Liverpool City Region network;
- and Claire Ward at EMCCA within the East Midlands
should now publicly clarify:
- whether buses with failed cab cooling should remain in service;
- whether drivers can refuse unsafe vehicles without detriment;
- what heat mitigation policies operators are expected to have;
- and what standards are being required through franchising or Enhanced Partnership arrangements.
Because if one major transport authority now openly recognises excessive cab heat as both a welfare and operational safety issue, it becomes increasingly difficult for others to simply remain silent.
The wider question is no longer whether extreme heat affects bus drivers.
The evidence increasingly shows it does.
The question now is whether transport authorities across England are prepared to publicly lead on the issue — or continue waiting for a serious incident before acting.
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If Government Will Not Act, Local Leaders Must
If national government continues refusing to introduce clear legal protections or maximum cab temperature standards for professional drivers, then pressure increasingly needs to shift towards regional transport authorities, Combined Authority Mayors and local transport leaders.
Because they already have enormous influence over:
- franchising contracts,
- Enhanced Partnership standards,
- vehicle specifications,
- operator expectations,
- health and safety requirements,
- and public transport funding agreements.
London has now shown that regional transport authorities can publicly take a position on this issue.
TfL, Andy Lord and Lorna Murphy have effectively acknowledged that:
- buses with failed cab cooling should not enter service;
- drivers should be supported when raising concerns;
- and welfare protections matter operationally.
That now places pressure on other transport authorities and regional Mayors to clarify where they stand.
If authorities like:
- Andy Burnham’s Bee Network,
- Tracy Brabin’s Weaver Network,
- Oliver Coppard’s South Yorkshire system,
- Steve Rotheram’s Liverpool City Region network,
- and EMCCA under Claire Ward
are serious about:
- passenger safety,
- driver welfare,
- modern public transport,
- and integrated transport reform,
then they cannot simply ignore the reality drivers are increasingly reporting from behind the wheel.
Franchising and Enhanced Partnerships should not just be about branding, ticketing and painted buses.
They should also be about setting minimum welfare and safety standards for the people actually operating the services.
If national legislation will not move quickly enough, then local leaders must start stepping up and showing leadership themselves.
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Yet Drivers Still Report Feeling Pressured Elsewhere
Despite these public statements, unions have also raised concerns that some drivers elsewhere still feel pressure to continue operating buses in excessive heat conditions.
That contradiction matters.
Because there now appears to be a widening gap between:
- organisations beginning to formally recognise heat risk,
and
- parts of the industry still culturally treating it as “just get on with it.”
This is particularly important given the wider legal context around:
- health and safety protections,
- fatigue management,
- Section 44 Employment Rights Act protections,
- and detriment for raising safety concerns.
The issue is no longer simply whether drivers “feel uncomfortable.”
The issue is whether:
- prolonged exposure to excessive heat,
- combined with fatigue,
- dehydration,
- operational pressure,
- and long driving spells
creates an avoidable public safety risk.
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This Is Not A New Campaign For Me
I have personally been raising this issue for a number of years within the bus industry and through the RMT.
At the 2023 RMT National Bus Workers Industrial Organising Conference in Torquay — the same conference at which I was elected Secretary following Keith Murphy’s 14 years in the role — our Nottinghamshire & Derbyshire branch submitted a resolution calling for action on maximum bus cab temperatures.
That resolution highlighted:
- cab temperatures reportedly exceeding 40°C,
- failed air-conditioning systems,
- the absence of a legal upper workplace temperature,
- and the contradiction between livestock transport guidance and professional driver welfare.
The resolution called upon the union to work with the Health and Safety Executive to issue clear guidance and protections regarding excessive cab temperatures.
Three years later, the issue has not disappeared.
If anything, it is becoming more serious.
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Climate Change Is Making This Harder To Ignore
The uncomfortable reality is that UK summers are changing.
Heatwaves are becoming:
- more frequent,
- more intense,
- and more prolonged.
Many parts of the bus industry were simply not designed operationally for these conditions.
That creates major questions around:
- vehicle specification,
- cab cooling standards,
- route scheduling,
- recovery time,
- welfare protocols,
- hydration,
- toilet access,
- fatigue management,
- and whether existing regulatory frameworks remain fit for purpose.
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The Bigger Question Now
The biggest question may no longer be:
“Is this a real issue?”
The evidence increasingly suggests it is.
The real question now is:
who actually owns the problem nationally?
Because currently responsibility appears fragmented between:
- operators,
- transport authorities,
- regulators,
- health and safety bodies,
- and government departments.
Meanwhile drivers continue sitting behind the wheel in temperatures many other workplaces would likely find unacceptable.
A driver suffering heat exhaustion behind the wheel is not just a worker welfare issue.
It is a public safety issue.
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The Most Dangerous Phrase In Safety
The most dangerous phrase in transport safety has always been:
“nothing serious has happened yet.”
But history repeatedly shows that waiting for a catastrophic incident before acting is rarely good regulation.
The bus industry now faces a simple question:
How hot does a driver cab need to become before somebody finally accepts there should have been a national standard all along?
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About The Author
Lee Odams is Branch Secretary of the Nottinghamshire & Derbyshire Bus Branch of the RMT and Secretary of the RMT National Industrial Organising Conference of Bus Workers.
He has campaigned for a number of years on:
- bus worker safety,
- welfare,
- operational standards,
- transport governance,
- and public transport policy.
His work has included:
- conference resolutions,
- public campaigning,
- freedom of information requests,
- regulatory correspondence,
- and engagement with transport authorities and policymakers regarding bus safety and driver welfare.
Blog:
https://leeodams.blogspot.com
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#BusDrivers #Heatwave #PublicSafety #TransportSafety #HealthAndSafety #DriverSafety #HeatStress #BusIndustry #PassengerSafety #ClimateChange #TfL #AndyLord #LornaMurphy #LondonBuses #BeeNetwork #WeaverNetwork #PeoplesNetwork #EMCCA #Section44 #WorkersRights #RoadSafety #TradeUnions #RMT #BusSafety #HeatExhaustion #Fatigue #WorkerSafety #DriverWelfare #HeatwaveUK #BusIndustryNews
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