Does public transport in Greater Manchester need air conditioning?Testing the temps on the Bee Network during a heatwave in Manchester
It’s a sweltering hot day in Manchester, and a bus driver in the city centre is pouring water over his head. He’s dripping with sweat, face red, and still has several hours of his shift to ferry passengers around in what has become a ‘glasshouse’ on wheels.
Temperatures in the city have risen above 30 degrees for the third day in a row. The yellow bus at Piccadilly bus station, fitted with Bee Network branding, has air conditioning – but the driver says it’s either not working or won’t turn on, a situation which has been like this ‘for ages’.
“I think it’s actually hotter than a glasshouse on the bus,” he says. “It’s really difficult to do your job properly in heat like this.”
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He’s not been given any extra support, he says, other than being told to drink more water due to the high temperatures.
That means the driver and passengers will be shuttled to their destination in a bus which is several degrees hotter than being outside.
The driver added: “We’re all struggling with it, it’s been like this for days, it can feel like 40 degrees inside. It’s so difficult for the elderly too, I don’t think it’s safe for them to be on a bus in these temperatures.”
Another bus driver at Piccadilly bus station was gearing up for the next part of his shift, and said there was no working air conditioning on the Bee Network-branded vehicle.
He said: “I’m sitting here in a puddle of my own sweat, and I’ve got another four hours here before I finish my shift.
“I believe they are trying to get buses that have air conditioning, but it is so hot driving one at the moment.”
Transport for Greater Manchester explained that their zero-emission buses have air conditioning fitted in the driver’s cab, and Metrolink driver cabs also have air conditioning.
On older buses, cab fans have been installed on vehicles that have needed it, as well as side blinds.
But several passengers and drivers at Piccadilly bus station on June 26 all said temperatures on board Bee Network buses were ‘unbearably’ hot.
Phillip Wadley, 56, gets off the number 250 service from Hulme to Manchester.
Phillip Wadley(Image: LDRS)
He said: “The windows were open on the bus, but it was still very hot. There was no air conditioning on.
“I was on the bus for about 20 minutes, it felt hot, sticky, humid. For elderly people or kids, I would say it feels unsafe, 100 per cent.
“It puts you off getting a bus because it’s just so hot.”
The heat has been tough on tram passengers too.
Barbara Haynes, 60, and John Ogle, 61, took the tram to Bury and back to do their shopping, and they climbed off at Piccadilly Gardens in ‘buckets of sweat’.
Barbara said: “There’s no air conditioning on the tram we were on. You just feel sick sitting there in that heat.
“It does put you off public transport, but we don’t drive, so we have no choice.”
John Ogle And Barbara Haynes(Image: LDRS)
A passenger named John, 72, said: “I’ve just got off the tram to Bury, it was very hot.
“I’ve taken buses in this heat too, and it was similar on the 81 from Moston.
“There needs to be more improvements to the air conditioning and ventilation on public transport.
“There were so many people struggling on the tram. I looked like a red cherry when I got off.”
The Local Democracy Reporting Service got on a bus in Manchester, the 250 to Trafford, with a thermometer.
Outside the bus, the thermometer read around 32 degrees, but after just a few minutes on the bus, it had climbed to nearly 36 degrees.
It was the same story on the tram.
A Metrolink to East Didsbury from St Peter’s Square saw the thermometer give readings of more than 35 degrees in just a few minutes of travel.
Several passengers have called for improvements to the bus and tram networks to help passengers cope with high temperatures, such as air conditioning.
In response to the hot weather, the Bee Network relaxed its uniform requirements for drivers to wear thinner/looser clothing, and have reminded operators to re-enforce hot weather plans.
Drivers who are feeling unwell are advised to stop the bus and rehydrate.
Bosses at Transport for Greater Manchester are working with operators to make sure a proportionate contract management approach is in place when/if a driver needs a break.
Danny Vaughan, TfGM’s Chief Network Officer, said: “We understand it is difficult travelling and working in these conditions, and we are doing all we can to make it more comfortable for staff and passengers on the Bee Network.
“Extreme heat, as we have seen this week, means that temperatures onboard buses, trams and trains are inevitably higher than normal. We encourage passengers to carry water, avoid the hottest parts of the day where possible and wear suitable clothing.
“Our zero-emission buses have heating, ventilation and air condition (HVAC) systems installed to help regulate temperatures, and trams have a built-in ventilation system that allows air to flow around the vehicles, with fresh air circulating from fans on the roof.”