Following a 1 July 2025 BBC News report about TfL Bus Drivers being forced to drive 10 hours per day in 40c Bus Cabs ( • BBC News London (1July2025) - 40c in TfL B... ), Caroline Russell AM asked TfL Commissioner Andy Lord about the issue of Hot Cabs on Electric Buses.According to London Bus Drivers the issue isn’t that the new electric buses don’t come with functioning HVAC systems. In fact, when these buses first arrive at garages, everything generally works fine, including the cooling side of the HVAC system.The real problem starts after a few months to a year in service.
00:00And we've been explicit that if any of the air cooling or air conditioning, depending on the model of the bus, is not serviceable, the bus should not be taken into service.
00:08The driver has a responsibility as well to refuse to take the bus into service, and there have been a few, but I think it's a very small number.
00:16So in terms of when the procedures are in place, I can't comment specifically around maintenance, but I do have confidence that our bus operators are maintaining buses to a good standard.
