u/One_Fact_4291

Only 18% of buses have air conditioning (the ~1600 that have been introduced after the 2024 specification that requires them, and sometimes they aren’t even effective because TfL hasn’t reached a decision on whether the windows should be locked or not).

By 2034 when the whole fleet is electrified, this should reach 84%, assuming the size of the bus fleet remains the same. But we can’t wait until 2034, as air cooling for buses that don’t have AC is simply not enough, especially during heat waves which is no longer an exception but the new reality.

(Correction 26/6: I forgot to account for the fact that bus manufacturers need time to manufacture buses after the new 2024 spec was written. So the figure of buses with AC currently operating in London would be roughly 1000 or 11-12%, and 6800 or 77% of the entire fleet by 2034.

https://tfl.gov.uk/corporate/transparency/freedom-of-information/foi-request-detail?referenceId=FOI-1582-2526
161 buses in September 2025

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0j72d2x7zpo
2000 electric buses in June 2025, with 3000 electric buses as of a week ago)

We need to advocate for TfL retrofitting air conditioning on older models that don’t have them built in. Like with everything TfL-related, cost is an issue but I don’t care since this isn’t just a comfort issue but an outright safety hazard. They need to find the money to get this done.

It’s especially worse for drivers who have to often deal with dysfunctional air cooling or air conditioning in the cab. I’d fully support them if they decide to go on strike (and I hope they will).

The £1.75 weekend day hopper would be much more appealing if people could travel anywhere they want all day on an air-conditioned bus.

I recently received an email from SFE telling me that they contacted me weeks ago for missing information (they didn’t). I log in, and sure enough the section on providing identity evidence seems says ‘’incomplete’’, which is strange since I’ve filled in all the information. They didn’t specify what I’m missing so I assume they’re not asking for supporting evidence.

It then asks me whether I’m a UK national, to which I answer ‘’no’’ (I have settled status). It then says my identity evidence is being checked and that they would provide an update before a certain date.

Has anyone experienced something like this? What I am supposed to do in this situation, or do I just wait it out?

I listed ‘’improvements’’ in addition to transit expansion because tangible upgrades to service like frequency, speed or reliability should count as well.

What’s the reasoning for your choice? Are there any cities that I should’ve included in this poll? What other cities deserve honourable mentions? And which city is having the most success (cost of construction, ridership, impacts on local urbanism, etc)?

(By ‘’cities in the Anglosphere’’, I mean those within the core Anglosphere, so cities in the US, Canada, UK, Australia and New Zealand)

View Poll

Let’s say my Elizabeth line train was delayed for more than 30 mins due to a signal failure, but the Southeastern train I’m transferring to (as the second leg of my journey) isn’t delayed. Will TfL refund the full fare of my trip, or will they only refund the section for which I used the Elizabeth line (in other words, will they only refund the surcharge I paid to use the TfL service)? I pay using an Oyster card. Thanks

I have a few questions regarding delay repay and daily caps:

- Do I get a refund from TfL if the delayed journey has been made after I’ve reached the daily cap? Does this also apply to national rail services within the contactless/Oyster area?

- Do I get a full, or partial, refund from TfL if that journey is the one that makes me reach the daily cap?

Thanks!

They were such a huge thing in 2022, what happened to them? Did they simply fade into irrelevance?

I’m not asking about the methods used to count ridership, but rather what standards different public transport agencies around the world use.

- Do they use linked or unlinked ridership figures? In other words, do they count a single journey within the system with a transfer as 1 or 2 trips?
- Do station usage figures include only boardings, or both entries and exits?

This makes it much easier to compare ridership of transit systems worldwide, if you happen to know what your local (or any other) public transport agency’s standards for counting ridership are, so thanks for letting me know.

Around 32% of the bus fleet is zero-emission, meaning that they have air conditioning (edit: as some have pointed out this isn’t true, only all new zero-emission buses have legit air conditioning, with the older zero-emission buses having some sort of air cooling otherwise, but I think my point still stands).

However in practice, sometimes it doesn’t work as many people don’t bother to close the windows, letting the cool air out, which is why I think there should be announcements made reminding passengers to close the windows on these buses. What are your thoughts?

I am absolutely fed up with the complete cancellation of phase 2, the value engineering, and the ever-ballooning costs of HS2 (with the burden falling on the taxpayer), not to mention the utter lack of urban rail projects going on in the UK. Even in London, notoriously favoured over the rest of the country when it comes to infrastructure, there will only be TWO new stations starting construction in the immediate future and only on the condition that passenger fares are raised (which doesn’t even fund the Piccadilly line signalling upgrades, only the new trains).

The government (regardless of party) seems short-sighted and is only focused on asking HS2 to address their cost issues without addressing the fundamental problems behind why all public transport infrastructure projects/programmes cost so much (which causes, or is used as justification to support, their reluctance to invest in infrastructure).

There is a sheer lack of ambition in this country, which is a shame since the UK used to be known the forerunner of the Industrial Revolution, and now even other Anglosphere countries (infamous for their high construction costs and bureaucracy) seem to be investing more into infrastructure than we are. I WANT to be optimistic but it’s hard when there’s not much to look forward to.

So my question is, what can we, as ordinary citizens, do about this? Is there more that we can do than sending emails to our MPs? What advocacy groups are worth joining? Thanks!

(Apologies if this comes across as a rant — it kind of is but I desperately want things to be better and to be actively involved in making things better)

At the gym, my sister (who is very accepting of trans people such as some of my friends) used the dedicated women's workout space and the female changing rooms, and at both times she saw a person who looked very much like a man (but sounded like they could be of any gender) go into both of these spaces. She contacted a staff member, who then asked the person, who then replied that they were a woman, so my sister didn’t act further. She told me that she feels uncomfortable with what she perceives as a man enter female spaces, is this transphobia or otherwise unjustified discomfort, what should she do if this happens again, and if this is internalised transphobia how can she get rid of it? Thanks.

(For context, she is foreign to the concept of people entering bathrooms or changing rooms according to their gender identity, since we come from a place that isn’t very progressive when it comes to attitudes towards LGBTQ+. I sent this question in another subreddit and many people said that she shouldn’t worry unless the person is actively doing something illegal like voyeurism, which I understand)

Edit: my sister explained that she did in fact directly ask the person if they were a woman, to which they replied in quite a confrontational tone. Every time she visited the gym and came across them, they stared at her in a way that made her feel uncomfortable (more intimidating than of a sexual nature). She explained that had the person been more friendly, she would’ve not been on alert as much.

I’d also like to know what other routes are worth taking due to their unique features. Thanks

I know TfL probably do automated refunds for same station exits, incomplete journeys and service delays, but do they do automated refunds for same station entries?

I checked my search history and saw that I’d received a £2 automated refund from TfL, and the only explanation I could think of was that 3 weeks ago, I tapped out at a station thinking I had something to do there on my way to my destination, realised that I didn’t have to do it, then tapped back in roughly 20 mins later, charging me two separate journeys. Was this supposed to happen?

Another interesting quirk I found out was that TfL apparently charges you the maximum fare every time you tap in, but refunds the difference every time you tap out, is this true? (I’d always thought that maximum fares were only charged after you passed maximum journey times, but I guess this makes sense since your oyster details can only be updated every time you tap on a reader)