THE UK NOW NEEDS A NATIONAL BUS DRIVER HEAT SAFETY TASKFORCE

Over recent weeks I have written extensively regarding excessive temperatures inside UK bus driver cabs, defective cooling systems and the growing safety concerns now being raised by drivers across the country.

What started as drivers sharing experiences online has rapidly evolved into something much more significant.

Drivers from multiple operators and regions are now consistently reporting:

• cab temperatures exceeding 40°C;

• steering wheels and controls becoming too hot to touch;

• headaches, fatigue, nausea and dehydration;

• ineffective or failed air-conditioning systems;

• and drivers feeling they have little real option except to continue working regardless.

This is no longer a debate about “comfort”.

It is becoming a serious operational safety issue.

And the UK is increasingly falling behind other countries which already recognise excessive heat exposure as a genuine workplace and transport safety risk.

OTHER COUNTRIES ALREADY HAVE BETTER SYSTEMS

Countries including:

• Germany;

• France;

• Spain;

• Australia;

• and Scandinavian nations

already operate significantly more advanced approaches regarding:

• driver cab cooling;

• occupational heat protection;

• climate control standards;

• fatigue management;

• and heatwave operational procedures.

In many cases:

• defective cooling systems are treated far more seriously;

• modern fleets are designed around climate-controlled driver environments;

• employers are expected to assess heat risks formally;

• and driver welfare is recognised as part of wider transport safety management.

Meanwhile the UK still has:

• no legal maximum bus cab temperature;

• no dedicated bus driver heat safety framework;

• no nationally enforceable cooling standards;

• no DVSA standards on excessive cab temperatures;

• and no nationally agreed operational heatwave procedures for the bus industry.

That is becoming increasingly difficult to defend.

TFL MAY HAVE QUIETLY SHIFTED THE ENTIRE DEBATE

Perhaps the most important recent development has been the position now publicly adopted by Transport for London.

TfL Commissioner Andy Lord publicly stated that buses with defective cab cooling systems should not enter service.

TfL Director of Buses Lorna Murphy also stated:

“If air cooling systems on a vehicle are not functioning and drivers do not feel they can carry out their duties safely, they should contact the controller and action will be taken to support them.”

TfL further stated that operators should not take action against drivers raising welfare concerns.

Those statements are enormously significant.

Because once a major transport authority publicly accepts:

• defective cooling systems can create unsafe conditions;

• drivers may become unsafe to continue operating;

• and welfare concerns should not attract detriment;

then the debate fundamentally changes.

The issue stops being about “comfort”.

It becomes a transport safety issue.

THE UK NOW NEEDS A NATIONAL BUS DRIVER HEAT SAFETY TASKFORCE

I now believe the UK urgently needs a dedicated national taskforce specifically focused on:

bus driver heat safety, cab temperatures and operational welfare standards.

This taskforce should include:

• professional bus drivers;

• trade union representatives;

• trade union leadership;

• operators;

• Combined Authorities;

• the Department for Transport;

• the Health and Safety Executive;

• DVSA;

• Traffic Commissioners;

• occupational health experts;

• and government ministers.

Because this issue now cuts across:

• workplace safety;

• public safety;

• climate adaptation;

• transport policy;

• operational standards;

• workforce welfare;

• and future fleet design.

This cannot simply be left to individual operators improvising during heatwaves.

WE NEED A PROPER NATIONAL FRAMEWORK

The UK now needs serious discussion around:

• nationally recognised maximum safe cab temperatures;

• mandatory functioning cooling systems;

• retrofitting older vehicles where reasonably practicable;

• heatwave operational procedures;

• nationally recognised welfare protections;

• improved hydration and welfare facilities;

• protection from detriment for drivers raising concerns;

• and modernised uniform policies.

UNIFORMS MUST ALSO BE REVIEWED

One area still receiving far too little attention is uniforms.

Many drivers are still expected to wear:

• heavy shirts;

• ties;

• dark materials;

• and uniforms poorly suited to extreme heat conditions.

The industry needs to start seriously considering:

• summer and winter uniform standards;

• breathable materials;

• relaxed tie requirements;

• lightweight alternatives;

• and weather-appropriate policies during heatwaves.

This is basic common sense.

Other industries already adapt uniforms according to weather and operational conditions.

Public transport should be doing the same.

OLDER VEHICLES WILL BE A MAJOR CHALLENGE

One difficult reality is that large sections of the UK bus fleet were never designed for the temperatures now increasingly being experienced.

Retrofitting older vehicles with improved cooling systems and ventilation may prove costly and technically challenging in some cases.

However, that challenge cannot simply become an excuse for inaction.

Because climate conditions are changing regardless.

And eventually the industry will either:

• adapt proactively;

or

• continue reacting after drivers become unwell and serious incidents occur.

LOCAL LEADERS MAY NOW NEED TO ACT FIRST

If Westminster continues moving too slowly, then Combined Authorities and regional transport leaders may increasingly need to fill the gap themselves.

Authorities such as:

• Andy Burnham’s Bee Network;

• Tracy Brabin’s Weaver Network;

• Steve Rotheram’s Liverpool City Region network;

• Oliver Coppard’s South Yorkshire system;

• and EMCCA under Claire Ward

should now publicly clarify where they stand on:

• defective cab cooling systems;

• heatwave procedures;

• driver welfare protections;

• and minimum operating standards.

Franchising and Enhanced Partnerships cannot simply be about branding and ticketing.

They must also be about safety and welfare standards for the people actually operating services.

THIS ISSUE IS NOT GOING AWAY

The uncomfortable reality is that UK summers are changing.

Heatwaves are becoming:

• more frequent;

• more intense;

• and more prolonged.

Drivers are already warning the industry where this is heading.

The evidence is building rapidly.

And eventually the UK transport industry will need to decide whether it acts before a serious incident happens — or only afterwards.

— Lee Odams

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 campaigns on bus worker safety, transport governance, public transport policy and operational standards across the UK bus industry.

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