Foto: Yamaha Japan 

Foto: Honda 

Foto: Heritage & Legends 

Foto: Flickr (Tony Blazier)

Where did this come from? Guillem Farres had clearly shown speed and flashes of potential in his short career to-date and even sparked enough to a level of prominence in 250 SuperMotocross in the United States…but the 23-year-old had struggled to compile a full season of excellence…until a masterful display of consistency in 2026 in which he led the most laps, won the most motos and owned the most Grands Prix and tied on the most podiums. Farres sealed his first world title in Australia last weekend, and also the first for the Triumph factory after just three years of competition with the TF 250-X. From Manresa, Farres is the first Catalan #1 and can join athletes like Marc Marquez, Alex Marquez, Albert Arenas, Toni Bou, Josep Garcia, Marc Coma; adding motocross to disciplines like MotoGP, Moto3, Trial, Enduro and Rally to the small country's ridiculous motorcycling record.

Farres has broken a few barriers by breaking a few bones. He tried to find a space in MX2, then chanced AMA Supercross and Motocross and, finally, signed for a fledging Triumph effort but there were stages of uncertainty, pain and mental strife that he struggles to describe. "Yeah, I mean, there are a lot of things in 2022 where I switched teams, I got a fill-in ride, and then was in MX2," he says. "There was no consistency, also with my programme because I didn't have a mechanic and was working on my bikes. Some days it would be a tuned bike, other days a stock one. I stuck to whatever was available."

Farres found his way to the U.S. and to the long revolving list of Star Yamaha riders later that year. He caught the eye with top ten results and seemed to be cementing an opportunity until he broke his left arm at Thunder Valley for round three of the 2023 motocross season. "I had sacrificed a lot of things to go to the U.S. and I met a lot of amazing people there like Justin Cooper and Jillian, Levi Kitchen…I lived with them and even today I was speaking with Chase Sexton because we all spent a lot of time together in Clermont but it was not an easy time," he recalls. "I had to deal with a lot of problems and with Yamaha also a lot of internal problems after my injury. I went there very happy although I was not earning any money and it was just a dream shot with a factory team. I then signed a contract…but a lot of things happened, and they did not really treat me good."

Solace and another shot came with the factory Husqvarna squad for 2024 but in February that year, eight months after the setback in Colorado, came the injury that would alter everything.

"I'd done two supercross' and I'd finished 8th and 9th or something like that," he explains. "I'd had a good Heat race with a top four and it was at a time when the 250 East class was pretty stacked. I was happy and I was training for Daytona. My family was coming over for that one. I was going through the whoops and the wheel locked. I think the hub had broken but we'll never really know. I had surgery right away because my femur was completely broken and my leg was just hanging off."

"I was still motivated to make it back for the Outdoors. I went back to Spain to work on the recovery, and not to my home but to Madrid. I was sleeping while having magnetic therapy. Lucas Coenen was there, Ruben Fernandez while recovering from his ACL, Francisco Garcia also. After a month-and-a-half the femur was fine but the leg would not bend! I tried to sit on a bike - I always ride on my toes which means you bend your leg more - and I could not sit down because the knee would not bend. So, I decided to have another operation, which improved it a tiny bit."

"I kept working for another month," he continues. "A lot of pushing and pain. I would have people actually pushing my leg to bend and I was crying with pain. The day after something like that was not good. At that time Husky was making a push for me to come back and race…and I could not even sit on the dirtbike. So, I agreed to go back and continue the recovery in America. They were the ones taking care of my visa but when I got to London I could not fly because of a problem. That's when I went a bit crazy and said: 'I'm done…I'm not going back'. I went back to Madrid and called the physio to organise another surgery to remove the rod. We went for it and they couldn't take it out because it was a special rod from the U.S. that required a special tool. They found out it was easier to leave it in because bone had grown over it. They left it but did a good job cleaning up and that's when I started to feel an improvement and things became a bit better…that's when I started talking to Triumph."

Farres didn't (and doesn't) feel like he had unfinished business in the States. "I had offers from other good teams… but I felt like I didn't belong there," he shrugs.

Initially, a ride back in the world championship was hard to source. "I was waiting for the surgery and I was calling teams," he explains. "A lot of them actually, and they were like 'maybe, but we don't know'. So, basically, they were not interested. But from the first moment I spoke to Triumph they were all-in. I'm grateful for that and it's been great to grow with them."

Once Triumph had made their surprising public declaration to widen the catalogue from enticing naked bikes and retro themed street machines to encompass motocross and enduro, one of their best strategic decisions was signing a deal with Thierry Chizat-Suzzoni's team. Triumph had established a big motorsport brand message by becoming the Grand Prix engine supplier to Moto2 from 2019 but off-road was a dip into the unknown. Chizat-Suzzoni's outfit, marshalled by technician Vince Bereni came within a few laps of winning the 2021 MXGP world championship with Romain Febvre after nearly a decade representing Kawasaki's factory efforts. The Dutch-based cosmopolitan crew were gazumped by Kimi Raikkonen's IceOne team for the green machinery for 2022 but took on the Triumph mantle, began testing and developing, and swiftly started to eye serious results from 2025. The closeknit environment treasured by Febvre was the antidote for Farres and the equipment was progressing.

"Triumph, for me, is not just a team, it is like a huge family," he says. "Vince is the one that trusted me and put me on the radar. Then our boss, Thierry; I don't think I have met anyone like that in my life. It is a very 'human' team and I'm really happy to be here. It's not just about business and that's why I feel comfortable. Obviously, we are very serious and we do all the work but at the same time we try to keep it fun."

Farres needed 2025 as a foundation. He finished 8th in the MX2 series with one podium but then set schedules and objectives that winter; bolstered by the input of test rider/now-trainer and advisor, former-MXGP winner and championship runner-up Clement Desalle and the tight relationship the team fostered with South African teammate Camden McLellan. The unit became strong. "What really stepped my game up was having a full season and two races every other weekend for the first time in 3-4 years…and then obviously putting in the work in the winter with Clement," Farres says, analytically. "It's not just the bike-side but as a person Clement had a lot to show us and to teach us. Having Camden as a teammate is great because we push each other hard when we ride. We always do everything together and you have good days and bad days. I think we are both smart and mature enough to take advantage of that [dynamic]. When Camden smokes me one day in training I don't think it affects me…it helps me step up my game and also the other way around."

Desalle, who had always been a very studious and individualistic racer, embraced the challenge of fine-tuning the riders as much as his diligent work with the TF 250-X (and the factory TF 450-X for its MXGP introduction in 2027; a bike that Farres will debut in his transition to the premier category).

"By the end of 2025 I saw they were 'getting' a few things, and I thought during the winter we could make a progression," the Belgian tells us. "I also saw them more connected. It's been really positive to see what they have learned, not only in training and on the bike but off the bike, in life."

"It was part of the plan to make them work together as much as possible," he adds. "They are open, and they have the characters to do it. I had a discussion with them at a race not so long ago because working together I see them progressing together in the same way."

The bike was competitive for starts and reliability (even superseding the KTMs and Husqvarnas that had long dominated the 250 division) and were already superior to offerings from Honda, Yamaha and Kawasaki. Farres and Mc Lellan would share 11 victories from 19 between them, tally 26 podiums and appear on the box together at 8 Grands Prix. 2026 became the year of Triumph with Bereni as technical ringmaster.

"He has a big influence on the bike and is the one changing stuff on the frame," Farres reveals. "I see him as more of an engineer. We are also lucky to have Gunther Geerts from KYB for our suspension and he gets along great with Vince. When they take decisions then it is done as a group. Vince is super-smart and the way Triumph works is different; I've seen other factory teams, but Triumph's way to be as a group is something else. It's demanding…but also amazing. I might have ten different Triumphs but I know when I hop onto any of them it will feel like the same bike."

Farres's regularity each Grand Prix (and in a myriad of tracks and conditions) was critical, as McLellan chased him all the way. He blended precise technique with moments of throttle-heavy necessity. "I think, in a way, I am a little bit similar in style to [Jorge] Prado with the Trial-style and the technique, to ride on toes and stand-up," he assesses. "But Jorge is really smooth on the throttle and carries a lot of momentum. I would say I am a mix between Jorge and Ruben; who is sometimes really aggressive but can also carries rhythm. I'm a mix.".

The only sketchy moment was a double crash in the Qualification Heat in Sweden for round 15. "The second one, there was a bike on the landing and I tried to wheelie-it but I was too late to do something else," he remembers. "Luckily, I was OK." Farres was able to compete on Sunday looking like an extra from a movie bar brawl scene and his 4th position proved to be valuable in terms of points.

Guillem has now joined the very short list of Spanish motocross world champions; a roll call opened by Jorge Prado in 2018 for the first of two crowns in MX2 and then two in MXGP in 2023 and 2024. With Ruben Fernandez earning trophies for HRC in MXGP, Farres blasting MX2, Oriol Oliver clocking a satisfactory first season on the 450 and Francisco Garcia dominating EMX250, plus more riders pushing through the EMX ranks, Spain is very much on the ascendancy.

"I think we are capable," Farres nods. "We have some good tracks, some good people around and some good conditions in the winter. OK, in the summer you might have to move but I love seeing Spanish riders do good in this sport. Before you'd have [Javier] Garcia Vico or [Jonathan] Barragan but it was just them…but now we have consistent Spanish presence at the GPs."

The ability of Spaniards to excel at multiple levels and across various surfaces has also been down to priorities and activations at the foundations. The Spanish Federation has tried to help promote talent in this way. The wider spread of Spanish influence in motocross has been noticed elsewhere.

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"In all the sports, if you do a great job in the base, then the results are coming," said MotoGP Grand Prix winner and 2025 series runner-up Alex Marquez. "Maybe it affects a generation. Something that maybe Prado or riders like [Jose] Butron or Vico in his moment or Barragan also gave an idea of how to work and that it's possible to do it. I remember Guillem, I think it was when he came back from the injury in America, that he was recovering in Madrid, he trained many, many days with us. He had no bike, no team…but then he found this opportunity and he's doing an amazing job."

There might be a very slight hobble along with Farres' new swagger in the coming weeks and months. Motocross of Nations duty beckons for his country, along with the requisite media and promotion duties but then a debut on the 450 is also firmly in the agenda. From a decimated limb and despair he has forged the ultimate sporting pirouette.

Foto: Heritage & Legends 

By Adam Wheeler. Photos by Jordi Wheeler Garcia.

Tim Gajser's blue Alpinestars' look in 2026 has been arguably the best and most attractive in the MXGP gate (props as well for the yellow VR46 livery at the Trentino GP) but aesthetics mean little to the decorated 30-year-old who ends 2026 without a Grand Prix victory on the factory Yamaha YZ450FM after injury problems mean he misses the final two dates of the season.

Gajser has toiled for race-winning pace, effective starts (he has yet to claim a single holeshot) and has starred far too many crash replays. From the 17 rounds of 19 to-date and since the switch from ten years in Honda red to Yamaha blue, Tim has managed just two moto wins, five podiums and led a paltry 22 laps. His current standing of 3rd in the world championship is by no means a disaster, but it ranks a very distant second to fellow 'changer' Jeffrey Herlings, who took Gajser's former mount to the title with two fixtures remaining and a hot streak of six Grands Prix of total dominance.

"It's been a struggle to put everything together in one weekend," Tim sighed when we spoke to him on the eve of the Dutch Grand Prix at Arnhem. "I feel like the speed is there and I am better and better but, on the bike, it is…inconsistent. It's like two of the three races in a weekend would be good but then I would mess up or have some bad luck. Some crashes. It has been a difficult year so far."

Tim's professionalism and unconfrontational nature means he has a willingness to assume responsibility and to evade excuses, but it's clear through the results, the performances and his own words that both rider-and-team were unable to get the multi world champ consistently comfortable on the YZ450FM; a bike that has proved problematic for Maxime Renaux, Calvin Vlaanderen and Jeremy Seewer in past seasons.

Gajser's transfer to Yamaha was one of the big stories for 2026. Tim had sensationally claimed the MXGP crown in his first season with Honda's CRF450RW in 2016 and had been a cornerstone of HRC's reemergence as a Grand Prix super-power. His saddle was taken by Herlings, who was making his own sizeable departure from Red Bull KTM after representing the Austrians from 2010 to 2025. Both riders were tied to their old contracts until December 31st 2025. Herlings certainly won the acclimatisation 'battle' as Gajser also fought niggling physical ailments as a consequence of trying to find the Yamaha's limits.

"If I am completely honest then we started really late," he explained. "I started riding just at the beginning of January and I felt like we were missing a bit. If we have started straight after the season in October then we would have had an extra two months and a half…but it is what it is."

"And it was the same for Jeffrey," he swiftly adds, quite graciously.

Gajser quickly learned that new sensations might not be so accurate for an MXGP contest where Herlings, Lucas Coenen and Tom Vialle were setting standards for starts and pace.

Tim was able to speak with some hindsight of the winter work. "In the beginning I felt good," he revealed, "but I felt like the first reality check came with the first GP in Argentina. We were not ready. The bike was not ready. I felt OK in testing and in the pre-season races but they were one-day events, you know? The tracks are flatter…things like that. Just struggling; how to set-up the bike correctly for bigger tracks, rougher tracks because during the GPs the tracks get so rough and it's not easy to find similar ones for testing. Everything was new for me, and I didn't have any experience riding a Yamaha in these conditions."

Was he ever equally flummoxed by versions of the CRF450RW? "With the other brand, with Honda, I was there so many years and there were times when I did not feel comfortable, but I knew the bike so well that I could figure it out somehow," he justifies. "Here [with Yamaha] everything was new and I thought I had figured it out [but] when you start racing you get faster and faster. At the start I was training in November and December but not so much on the bike…because I did not have one! I had a stock Honda and you can only ride so far with it in the conditions and to the level we ride. Things like that."

Orientation is one thing…but the noticeable lack of progress to move from being a top-five runner to race leader was evident. A big vulnerability has been Tim's lethargy from the gate. It's been punishing, and has led to forced mistakes. "They are super-crucial this year - well, they are every year - but this time everyone is so fast and fit. I don't get out of the gate and then I'm rushing. I'm like 'f**k, I really need to get to the front as soon as possible…' because Lucas, Jeffrey, Febvre were just pulling away and I was back in the pack. I knew I had to be with them to go with them. If you need 4-5 laps to get to 4th place then they are 10-15 seconds gone. You will not catch them because the speed is similar."

It would be naïve to think that Yamaha and the #243 were not rabidly searching for a solution even if it feels like an inherent chassis issue is the drawback as well as trying to shape the YZ's engine delivery for both the gatedrop and the full moto distance. "We try many things. Still trying. We change many things, [including] myself with technique. I feel the starts are getting better but I want to be in front! Top five is possible, top three better but top fifteen?! That's the problem actually. Then rushing the first laps. If guys who are 2-3 seconds a lap slower in Timed Practice are holding the inside line everywhere then it's not easy to pass them. The mistakes come. I have crashed many times. I feel like sometimes it was difficult to control myself…a bit more patience and sometimes accept 3rd, 4th 5th. It's not easy." Those crashes carried a price. His tumble in the Grand Prix of Turkey (where he still managed to tough-it through to 4th) ultimately ruled him out of the trips to China and Australia.

Gajser has had to navigate a different political landscape in 2026. In HRC he had the tight link with Giacomo Gariboldi, Japanese Honda technicians and staff like Team Manager Marcus Pereira de Freitas and Roger Shenton, Roger Harvey and Massimo Castelli, who actually followed him to Yamaha. In blue it's been the influence of Hans Corvers' devoted team, the Michele Rinaldi led YRRD division heading race bike development on behalf of the Japanese and the organisational influence of Yamaha Motor Europe. It was an alternate panorama that will probably shift again for 2027 when Yamaha Motor Racing concentrates MXGP under one roof with MotoGP and WorldSBK at their new and expanded HQ near Monza. The company are doubling down on their investment to get MXGP back in the winners' circle. "It's a big team…a good team and they are all really supportive: whatever I request they try to give their best," he says quickly. "Even in bad races it's important to have the team at your back [but] there are a lot of things going on. It is a big group working hard to get me better and more comfortable."

"It was a change," he concedes. "With Honda the Japanese were a little more involved. With Yamaha they are also…but not that much. Many things go through Rinaldi, especially for developing the new stuff and the new parts. In the end they are both professional, factory teams."

If anything, Gajser has been able to sharpen his overtaking instincts in 2026. It's not quite the breeze that he so emphatically showed in Russia in 2021.

It means he has become more observational of the track preparation and the frugality of line choice in Grand Prix generally. "I think they are doing what they can…" he says diplomatically, "but they can do way-better with ripping and watering the tracks earlier."

The adversity in his work led to speculation that Gajser had had enough and was being courted for an exit; towards Kawasaki and for the seat vacated by Ducati-bound Romain Febvre. One year after being crowned MXGP world champions Kimi Raikkonen's KRT crew are staring at a 2027 campaign without a leading Grand Prix protagonist. It's a tough topic to speak about on the record but the tone of conversation with Tim when the recorder is both on and off is one of defiance, if slightly fatigued.

He considers it a personal mission to try and reverse the course of their season results. After all, he's been signed by one of the largest manufacturers in the paddock to bring glory back to Yamaha and bag a title that has been elusive for over a decade. It won't be an easy fix: the YZ450FM has been stubborn in the hands of several riders for a full title tilt. "I feel like it is just the beginning," he advocates. "We are working hard and we are doing many things. We will find what suits me. We are almost at the end of the year and we are still not there and I am impatient with that. I know what I am capable of still and I have full belief in myself."

Inevitably judgement has been circulating. Can Gajser set up a bike? Can he still run the pace of his peers? Are his best years behind him against younger foes like Vialle, Kay De Wolf, Andrea Adamo and the incoming Guillem Farres? "I see people are talking…and saying things but I feel like I am in the best shape ever," he counters. "I changed many things coming into this year on this part; personal trainer and different things that have made me feel better. We just need to figure out the bike side and we should be back. The difference is not that big. Even if I don't feel 100% comfortable on the bike or at any track, I am still there: 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and I know how much we can still improve."

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Tim has dealt with physical setbacks, his broken right femur in 2023 perhaps the hardest and most damaging, but this has been a fresh career obstacle. He breaks into a rare smile when we suggest that laying the hard yards in 2026 might actually be beneficial for a renewed force in 2027. "I believe in that! I believe that way," he grins. "I am going through some difficult times now, especially mentally because it is not easy to be where I am. Fighting yourself a little bit, especially in the mind, but this does make me stronger and makes me understand more."

Maybe Jeffrey Herlings will be feeling a little more blue next year.

By Adam Wheeler. Photos by Jordi Wheeler Garcia.

Kay De Wolf won't be 2026 MXGP Rookie of the Year. This fairly innocuous label will go to either Red Bull KTM's Andrea Adamo or HRC Petronas' Tom Vialle but the 21-year-old Red Bull Husqvarna Factory Racing Nestaan racer has certainly made an impact. De Wolf's all-action style on the FC 450 turned heads, and the results also appeared when he was in a state of fitness and readiness: a first podium at round four in Sardinia and three more runner-up finishes. He also led 15 laps of MXGP but couldn't quite penetrate the quartet of moto winners in 2026 [Jeffrey Herlings, Vialle, Lucas Coenen and Tim Gajser].

De Wolf's eagerly anticipated MXGP debut in 2026 came after a career-emboldening 2024 MX2 title win and a dogged pursuit of a successful defence in 2025 that went down to the final laps of the season. The Dutchman was hampered in his transition to the premier class by a succession of small injuries. He broke a ligament in his left thumb pre-season and needed surgery. He then tweaked his other thumb in a Dutch Championship event. He snapped a ligament in his right ankle during the Italian Grand Prix at Montevarchi. A crash before the Turkish Grand Prix delivered a hairline fracture of the knuckles and prompted an early withdrawal from the championship. Kay will have missed 7 of 19 rounds but looks to have cemented a top ten slot in the standings.

Along the way De Wolf also re-signed with the Lommel-based Nestaan outfit to give Husqvarna considerable motocross clout for the next two seasons.

2026 was stop-start-stop for the tall racer but De Wolf has time on his side; he will turn 22 at the end of September and his patient and measured approach to his career trajectory (staying in MX2 as reigning champ while title-rival Lucas Coenen vaulted into MXGP) could pay off. "I've learnt almost every weekend this season," he tells us. "For example, in Sweden 8th position is not the result we are looking for but every time I came off the bike after a session I thought 'wow'. So maybe experience has value…and helps more than a result. It definitely gave me confidence."

"The start is super-important in the MXGP class," he explains when we ask him to get specific on his education. "It is one thing we all see but…you cannot waste a single turn. If you mess around on the first lap then it will cost you twenty minutes to pass some of the riders. That's where Jeffrey is so good: he passes so quickly and that puts him up front and able to pull away or react. That's the biggest thing but, in general, learning the riders, learning the bike more. The bike is completely different and I still need to get adapted to it…but it's getting better and better all the time."

Racing a 450…and the rivals

250 to 450: it leads to the obvious question of dealing with the same weight and chassis but extra horsepower. Kay won't be the first or the last Grand Prix star to need prime race mileage to work out the intricacies of the different packages. On the FC 250 he often seemed to bend the quarter litre to his will, like a BMX. "You can hang it out and just keep it wide-open; give it all you have and make it work. You cannot do that on the 450. You have to respect it."

"It's something I need to work on in the winter; to be more efficient. I am using too much energy at the moment," he confides.

We point out that MXGP fans quite like watching his exciting and expressive 250 approach. "It is my style!" he grins. "But we have to take it down a little bit. It's my type of riding and I feel comfortable doing it, so maybe that's why I'm riding more like that. It's natural to me but I will calm it down for next year…and be a bit more straight-forward."

In 2017 Jeffrey Herlings went into his debut MXGP term with a broken right hand. De Wolf's countryman also spoke that season about initially underestimating the demands of the 450 as well as his peers. How was Kay's discovery? "I wasn't shocked," he confesses. "I knew this class was going to be tough and I was really prepared. It proved to be! If you told me last year in Arnhem 'the 450 class is really gnarly…' I would have thought 'OK, but I'll get on with it, and it'll be fine' but once you race it…'

'It's weird," he adds. "Because it doesn't look as crazy on TV. It doesn't look that spectacular because you cannot really appreciate the speed…but when you are there on track then you have to figure out that speed. It's a gnarly class at the moment…"

Tale of the [surgical] tape

De Wolf might have a pair of wonky thumbs from 2026 (a hand brace allowed him to make his MXGP debut at round two) and a painful set of knuckles but it was the ankle ligament in Italy that really threw him off kilter, and will push him into a second phase of surgery and recovery this autumn. "I was around the top five until Montevarchi when I injured myself again, pretty bad," he recounts. "With that I am still struggling, and with my confidence a little bit. Not riding-wise but performance-wise."

The condition of his ankle makes his feats in Lommel and Arnhem (the latter when he pressurised Herlings for the win) all the more impressive. "One ligament is broken and is ripped clean away in my ankle," he describes. "It is quite unstable and I can feel it when I land in deep holes. Jett [Lawrence] and Jeffrey also had ankle problems and what we see with Jett…they had to make a footpeg for him and it's the same for me. I feel it's unstable. I have bone-to-bone problems…but I also had freeplay."

The pre-Turkish Grand Prix accident and culmination of his campaign has accelerated planning to fix his limb. "It will take at least two months but the doctor said he would get my ankle 80% better. So, I will give up everything for that."

Staying White

De Wolf's profile and adaptation to MXGP (he was top five in the motos in his second Grand Prix and breached the top three in his second start) put him firmly on the radar for other factory efforts for 2027. #74 was tempted by the market but also knows the team owned by Kay Hennekens and run by Rasmus Jorgensen is the kind of 'nest' that can help him reach further up the tree. Common dominations between the prolific athletes of MXGP this century - Tony Cairoli, Jeffrey Herlings, Jorge Prado and Tim Gajser - were long-established teams and crews around them.

There is a case for over-familiarity and clichéd talk of comfort zones and motivation levels for some athletes, but a sea-change did not dent Herlings' level of performance in 2026 and did not deter Romain Febvre from winning with Kawasaki in 2025 (after coming so close in 2021). De Wolf bet on what he knows and a setting where he came all the way through the EMX ranks.

"It's a team I have been with since I was 13, such a long time, and they know when I will have an 'off' day," he explains. "They know me in-and-out and if I'm not feeling it then there will not be a push to turn the bike upside down; I'm not sure that would work in another team. My base with this team in general means we are not jumping from left to right."

De Wolf was in demand though as the silly season started to build. "Of course, a lot goes through your mind in that one-two month period because you get offers and you have to imagine yourself being in another team. There is a lot of things going through your head. There was an offer…and I really saw myself in this other team because it has a really cool structure but I don't think I would have enjoyed it as much as I do with my team now. I really thought about it and realised just how good I have it where I am. I'm really happy."

De Wolf's ability, his environment and his potential mean he carries a wealth of expectation into 2027; a season where Herlings will be #1, Coenen will have departed, Romain Febvre will steer Ducati's third attempt at the division and Triumph will lunge into the fray with Guillem Farres. Maybe old foe Simon Längenfelder will also make the step. Is De Wolf a confidence rider? "I have days where I feel really bad on track but then I come in after Free Practice and the guys say: 'you looked amazing on the bike'. And I'm like: 'What?!' But I think it's because I want to be picture perfect…and that means I don't always 'feel it'."

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A perfectionist then. "I would not say so in my daily life…! But on the bike I want it…for the 450. On the 250 I can be really loose and make it work. I'm tall and the bike is a bit lighter but you are always on the throttle with the 250 and that makes it easier to handle, I think. Sometimes I see it like riding a jet ski; you cannot turn one unless you are on the throttle. I think it's the same with an MX bike where you need to steer with your rear wheel. You cannot come into a turn without the throttle. It is something I have to get used to…but if we can fix my ankle and have a decent winter then we can come out in a very decent place next year."

Bugatti has spent a century building cars that ignore the normal rules about what a road vehicle should be, and in March 2026 it turned that habit onto a bicycle. The Bugatti Factor ONE is a limited run of 250 numbered aero road bikes, built with British manufacturer Factor, and it sells for $23,599 in the US (£25,799 in euros, $35,999 in Australia). That is more than a base Toyota Corolla, and about $9,400 more than the fastest standard Factor ONE.

Factor Bikes was founded in Norfolk by Rob Gitelis, a former professional rider who moved into carbon-frame engineering and now designs and builds his frames in-house. The standard Factor ONE already carries a serious claim: the fastest UCI-legal aero road bike in the professional peloton, first raced at the 2025 Critérium du Dauphiné.

The Bugatti version keeps the frame's DNA but abandons the UCI rulebook entirely, and that decision drives everything interesting about it.

Look at the front fork. It measures 147 mm across, where the UCI caps fork stance at 115 mm, so Factor's engineers gained 32 mm they are normally forbidden. The standard ONE uses a bayonet fork, similar in principle to the Cervélo S5 and Colnago Y1Rs, where the legs run up into a narrow head tube.

The Bugatti version widens that stance and adds a fairing with a vent at the base of each leg to manage airflow around the brake caliper. Factor puts the drag saving at roughly two watts. That sounds trivial written down, but at racing speed two watts is the difference a rider will chase for a full season, and here it comes purely from geometry the rules would never allow.

Beyond the fork, the build is a catalogue of expensive decisions. Black Inc Bugatti Hyper 62 wheels run full carbon-bladed spokes and weigh 1,298 g for the pair. The tyres are blue Bugatti-branded Continental Grand Prix 5000 TT.

The crankset is a bespoke Carbon-Ti unit with a chainring cut from carbon and titanium, paired with an SRM power meter. The saddle is a carbon-shelled Selle Italia wrapped in Alcantara, the suede-like material Bugatti uses inside its cars.

The paint is a two-tone Bugatti Blue over bare 3K twill carbon, the same weave the company shows off on its road cars, and the head tube carries the 'Dancing Elephant', a small sculpture the founder's brother Rembrandt Bugatti made in the early 1900s. Factor sizes the bike 1 through 5 rather than in centimetres, each frame gets a numbered badge, and every bike ships assembled in a Factor travel case with bottle cages and a 3D-printed computer mount already fitted.

For a sense of the premium, the standard Factor ONE runs from about $7,599 to $14,199 depending on spec. The Bugatti costs roughly ten thousand dollars more than the dearest standard build. Some of that pays for the wheels, the crankset and the limited run. The rest pays for the badge, and Bugatti has never pretended its badges are cheap.

The Factor ONE is the first thing Bugatti has attached its name to that a cyclist would take seriously. The earlier attempts did not clear that bar.

The first official one came through PG, a German carbon specialist, who built a belt-driven single-speed with Bugatti branding. The work itself was competent enough. The problem was the concept: a flat-bar fixie from a company whose whole reputation rests on aerodynamic engineering for outright speed. It looked like a licensing deal, because that is what it was.

The better bike never had Bugatti's blessing at all. A Sydney car restorer working under the name Tuning Mako built a one-off Chiron tribute in his own garage, and it is the bike this article was written about when it first ran, after the build appeared at Sydney's Throttle Roll. No endorsement, no production, no press release. Even so, the proportions and paintwork caught the Chiron's character better than anything Bugatti had officially signed off to that point.

That a backyard tribute beat the factory's own efforts for years says a lot about how carmakers usually treat bicycles: as merchandise, not machines.

Plenty of people will pick apart the component choices, the geometry and whether the thing actually rides well, and they will have a point. But that misses what it was. A car restorer built it to satisfy a personal obsession, and as a two-wheeled Chiron it caught the essence of the original far better than Bugatti's own fixie ever did.

The builder goes by Tuning Mako, and he set up a Facebook page to show off the build, with more of his work and shots from the Throttle Roll party where these photos were taken.

Motorcycle marques send their stock models to custom shops for street cred all the time. It makes you wonder what a Rolls Royce, a Land Rover or an Aston Martin might get back if they handed a brief to some of the British frame builders we cover here.

On paper, yes. The Factor ONE platform underneath it is fast and properly engineered, the parts are all top of the range, and the wider fork is a genuine aerodynamic decision rather than a styling flourish. Nobody has published a long-term ride review yet, so the honest answer stops there.

Sensible is a different question. For $23,599 you could commission a custom titanium or steel bike from a builder like Saffron Frameworks, keep a couple of wheelsets in the shed, and race all of it legally on a Saturday morning. The Bugatti cannot be raced under UCI rules, comes in numbered sizes instead of your actual measurements, and is aimed, in Bugatti's own words, at collectors after "the rarest expression of performance cycling".

That last line is the tell. This is a bike bought for owning more than for riding, by the same people who buy hypercars and put six hundred kilometres a year on them. For that buyer it is precisely right. For anyone who actually wants to ride, it is a beautiful thing to look at and leave in the showroom.

The Bugatti Factor ONE is available to order through Factor Bikes. Images of the Factor ONE: Bugatti / Factor Bikes.

The post Bugatti Bikes: The 2026 Factor ONE & Chiron History appeared first on The Spoken.

 Noriyuki Haga

Regis Laconi

Foto: Facebook Group (Yamaha YZF-R7 OW02)

Foto: Heritage & Legends

Foto: Nitron Japan 

By Adam Wheeler. Photos by Jordi Wheeler Garcia.

In Arnhem you could only whisper the name 'Jeffrey Herlings'. The dream that the MXGP World Championship leader could extend his complete dominance to five consecutive Grands Prix and lay one gloved hand on a sixth title and third MXGP crown was fragile. 2014? 2015? 2019? Dutch motocross history in the making? His fans had been here before.

Judging by Saturday alone and a Qualification Heat disappearing act with a 37-second cushion, the soon-to-be 32-year-old might have been an apparition at Motorsportpark Gelderland Midden. Herlings avoided the glare of a packed crowd behind the tinted windows of HRC's 5-truck compound in the paddock. As usual, he'd enter the start gate fully geared-up, goggles on and his gaze hidden by coloured Oakley lenses only minutes before 'go time'.

"I'm very happy for it…[home Grand Prix fuss] but it's crazy," he admitted post-race. "All my fans, friends, family. All my sponsors, even my doctors and surgeons. The press. The team and the meetings. It was difficult to focus but I've been doing this thing for quite a while…so I know how to work with it."

#84 in full motion meant an education for his peers in Dutch sand for the 17th time in his career. The sustained period of 'pounding' on home turf began back in 2010 where he thrilled and prevailed at Valkenswaard as a 15-year-old: only his third Grand Prix. On this occasion he satisfied HRC management for the tenth time from sixteen rounds this season (now 122 career wins) and with a 143-point margin (with 180 left) only has to outscore Romain Febvre in Turkey in two weeks to bring Honda their fifth MXGP championship and be just the second rider in red to do so this century. He sated the fans' expectations for glory at Arnhem and was prodded for reality by bustling understudy Kay De Wolf as SMX star Chase Sexton looked on with an expression of wonder.

Herlings' Saturday authority was diluted by De Wolf's strong starts and the challenge he posed in both motos. Herlings thrust clear in the opening race but when he seemed to stall on the only downhill slope on the track (in the region?) on the last lap there was a moment of panic. "I was lucky that Kay gave up that last lap and I kept going," he explained. "I had ten seconds was able to get off the bike and move it back and forth. It was just some sand or a stone in the sprocket. It was nothing the team could have done or a bike problem. Something weird."

In the second moto De Wolf was kept at a safe distance until the last ten minutes of the 30 minute and 2 lap distance when he shrunk the gap to less than a second and both orange-livered Dutchies had to thread their way through the network of backmarkers. Only De Wolf's exhausted final lap fall decided the contest. "I didn't land the jumps clean, I didn't make the turns clean, I was struggling because I was pushing so hard," the 21-year-old Husqvarna racer recalled. "I gave it all I had and held on for dear life. In the end I could not hold on anymore. My bike kicked-out to the right and my front wheel grabbed a handful of dirt. I cannot go to bed tonight and think 'what if…?'"

"I'm just pleased to put a fight up against him. He's won 17 GPs so to beat him around a sand track is not easy…" he understated. They both lapped up to 8th and 7th positions in the races, played out in spectator zones where space was a luxury and the large TV screens nullified the lack of general viewing superbly.

Herlings' win in Arnhem lays the table for his inevitable championship feat in 2026. The five-in-a-row, 13 podiums from 16 and 16 moto chequered flags draws comparisons to his immense first MXGP title in 2018. Eight years ago, Herlings was into his second premier class campaign but his ninth term with Red Bull KTM. He proclaimed to "live like a monk" during that season where he racked up a sensational 17 victories and 19 podiums from 20 rounds (15 of those thanks to 1-1 scorecards) and missed one Grand Prix due to a broken collarbone. 2026, thus far, has been injury-free but Herlings has swapped Austria for Japan, steel for aluminium, WP for KYB. The only constant perhaps being the mentality towards excellence and the policy of placing a star athlete at the centre of a racing universe. Herlings thrives in that environment where he can religiously train and race on his own terms.

"2018: I was more confident and I was better results-wise," he reflected, "but I feel the competition was not as strong as it is today because back then I was only fighting a 32/33-year-old Tony Cairoli and right now I am facing young guys like [Lucas] Coenen, Kay De Wolf and Tom Vialle. [Also Romain] Febvre, the world champion, and [Tim] Gajser. Lucas and I have been winning most of the motos and if you take him away it would have been almost the same but, right now, I feel pretty close to 2018 level…even though I am almost ten years older!"

Against the odds and against expectation (outside of his own inner circle and perhaps that of HRC team management) Herlings has matched the performance parameters of that imperial 2018 term. "I was never outside the top three of a Sunday race and only once or twice I was 3rd," he reminded us. "All the others 1st or 2nd, so I have been very consistent." He now stands to be the first rider since Cairoli in 2010 (fittingly?) to win a premier class title the first year after switching team and brands.

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The streak was blighted by three blameless technical problems and the early threat of Lucas Coenen. The Belgian has still led more laps this year than Herlings even though his left hip nerve problem has counted him out of a moto start for five races. "It's still a shame that Lucas got hurt because I feel I have something for him now," Herlings admitted when speaking on context of the championship. "I'm not saying I would be beating him every single time but at least I could fight with him now, either in sand or hard [pack]."

Significantly, Herlings has looked secure and composed. Strategic and purposeful. 2026 so far has been one of the very few without an injury issue. His list of past physical problems would keep a class of physio students busy for an entire semester but the move out of the KTM comfort zone and into HRC red has paused any notion of degradation of speed, will or want. "I was actually driving in, and I said to my girlfriend: 'I still have so much passion for doing this'," he described. "Yeah, I like money, I'm not gonna lie…but at the same time I am not racing for money anymore. I can have a great life if I stop tomorrow but I still enjoy taking all the sacrifice. I have nothing to prove to anyone and have won the most motos and the most GPs but I keep waking up each morning with the same desire to try and be the best I can be. Even now we are considering to extend the contract, we are in negotiations. I am like an old bulldog that doesn't give up!"

Sunday and 2026 belonged to the Dutch. A corner of a field north of Arnhem hollered national pride while much of the country's motorsport fandom and national media attention was trained instead on a beachside circuit close to Amsterdam, where Max Verstappen lasted less than a lap of the final F1 GP at Zandvoort.

Saturday, to a degree, was stamped by a Spaniard. Francisco Garcia is the latest name to join the list of EMX250 European Champions. He logged the first part of another overall victory to bank Kawasaki's second title in the class in the last three years. The 18-year-old has been ruthless in the category with 15 chequered flags (missing only the round in Belgium) and gives the long-standing Bud Racing crew another feather in their considerable motocross cap. Garcia, outstripping countrymen like Jorge Prado, Ruben Fernandez and Guillem Farres to be the first from his country to pocket an EMX250 gold medal, now has to follow in the path of the last four winners; Janis Reisluis, Mathis Valin, Andrea Bonacorsi and Rick Elzinga in finding his feet in Grand Prix. Only Valin has been able to stand atop an MX2 podium, and Garcia will slot into the factory Kawasaki set-up next to the injured Frenchman for 2027.

A large segment of Europe has sizzled in Spanish-eque temperatures this summer and the Spanish theme has extended through the MXGP in 2026. Guillem Farres was 3rd in MX2 for his 10th podium of the campaign. The Catalan may look like he'd taken part in a mass brawl at a Dutch bar (a consequence of his rough crash in Sweden last week) but he rode drama-free to push his minor championship advantage to 25 points. "It was a tough week," he said. "I think I cycled one day only and the other days I was taking some therapy with Camden, playing some Call of Duty. That's pretty much all." Farres has held the red plate for five Grands Prix now and is vying to be his country's second world champion in MX2 and underline the tremendous work done by Vince Bereni's team in sharpening the TF 250-X Triumph into a Grand Prix force. In WMX Daniela Guillen, already a double world championship runner-up, will carry a six-point advantage all the way to Australia for the final date of the contest and yet another last round WMX climax. The GASGAS Spanish Federation-supported racer could become Spain's first #1 in a series that lifted from World Cup status in 2008, if she defeats Doe Kiara Fontanesi in Darwin.

The best sand rider outside of the Dutch was a South African. Farres' teammate, training partner and comrade, Camden Mc Lellan, might not have found the lines to demote Liam Everts in the second MX2 moto but his 1-2 was enough to add Arnhem to his Lommel 'overall' for win #3 and keep him in a four-way championship dispute, thanks largely to his 11 podiums; five now in a row and the highest haul of anyone in the division.

The other two protagonists are Red Bull KTM pair Sacha Coenen, who was 4th in Arnhem and seething after the second moto with what he felt was "dirty riding" by his peers, and reigning #1 Simon Laengenfelder. The German's claws were blunt in the sand as he tries to hold onto a title defence but seems to lack feeling, confidence and much of an explanation for the erosion of his competitiveness. Simon has not won a moto since round four but is 75-points adrift of Farres and 180 still to win. The quartet are in their own league (perhaps with a fit and firing Everts now joining the show) and that brings repercussions for the points on offer. "I'm not far back but the next three rounds are difficult to make a difference," assessed Mc Lellan, who is 3rd and just 37 from his buddy. "The overseas are not too stacked and the tracks don't get too demanding or rough. There is never really a lot of drama overseas, like we see here."

Drama has been a semi-regular MXGP companion for Jeffrery Herlings. From teenage spats and outbursts to poor decisions, avoidable injuries, high emotion, milestone results (Iron Man) and relentless individualism. He's unique, and MXGP is still moving to his shuffle, his sand superiority and a lot more.

Foto: Heritage & Legends

Foto: Facebook Group (Yamaha YZF-R7 OW02)

Foto: Heritage & Legends 

Foto: Heritage & Legends

Foto: SuperFile Trackhouse MotoGP Team e motogp.com

Cc: Feryal Clark MP; The Rt Hon Heidi Alexander MP; Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill CBE; Siân Berry MP; Lord Hampton

Subject: London bus driver working conditions and ministerial awareness

Dear Mr Lightwood,

By way of introduction, London Bus Forums News is an independent transport news publication reporting on the policies, operations and developments shaping London's transport network, together with selected national stories of wider significance.

Further to the email sent by Bus Drivers' Bill of Rights campaigner Kevin Mustafa to Feryal Clark MP on 21 July, on which you were copied, I have reviewed the exchange in the House of Commons on 16 July concerning the impact of extreme heat on London bus drivers.

In response to Ms Clark, you commended the Mayor of London for convening a heat taskforce with bus operators and Unite the Union. However, your answer did not acknowledge the extensive evidence concerning London bus driver working conditions that ITV News London has reported since March, or the longstanding concerns raised by drivers and members of the London Assembly.

For ease of reference, I would be grateful if you would review the following 11 ITV News London reports:

1. 20 March: "Falling asleep at the wheel and urinating in jars: the reality for London bus drivers" 
2. 25 March: "Transport boss 'horrified' after ITV News London uncovers shocking conditions for London bus drivers" 
3. 27 March: "Mayor of London 'appalled' as ITV News London uncovers bus drivers working in shocking conditions" 
4. 17 April: "'So fatigued they are falling asleep at the wheel': Calls for TfL to improve bus driver conditions" 
5. 20 April: "Exclusive figures reveal extent of dangerously tired London bus drivers" 
6. 28 May: "Bus drivers suffer sweltering conditions at work during May heatwave" 
7. 24 June: "'Don't risk personal safety' Sadiq Khan tells bus drivers as temperatures soar on hottest June day" 
8. 2 July: "Bus drivers call for 'Bill of Rights' to make working conditions safer" 
9. 12 July: "'It feels like working in a microwave': London bus drivers on working in extreme heat"
10. 16 July: "London bus drivers have 'borne the brunt' of extreme heat in the city, as MP calls for change" 
11. 21 July: "Boss of London's bus network 'shocked' to hear drivers using bottle as a toilet" 

Taken together, these reports raise serious concerns about driver fatigue, inadequate toilet and welfare facilities, cab cleanliness, extreme temperatures, ineffective cab cooling and the treatment of drivers who raise safety concerns.

Having reviewed them, will you raise these matters with the Secretary of State for Transport, the Rt Hon Heidi Alexander MP, and the Minister of State, Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill CBE?

Ms Alexander served as Deputy Mayor for Transport and Deputy Chair of Transport for London from 2018 to 2021. Lord Hendy served as TfL's Managing Director of Surface Transport from 2001 to 2006 and as Commissioner of Transport for London from 2006 to 2015.

Will you ask each of them to confirm whether the concerns and working conditions described in these reports were known to them during their respective tenures and, if so, what action was taken at the time?

I would also welcome confirmation of what action the Department for Transport now intends to take to help ensure London bus drivers are provided with safe and dignified working conditions.

I look forward to receiving your response.

Yours sincerely,

Dylan Carroll

Managing Director

London Bus Forums

From: kevin mustafa <.                                          >
Subject: Why are you and Simon Lightwood 'commending' the Mayor of London and Unite the Union for their Well-Evidenced and Longstanding Failure to Protect London's Bus Drivers from Dangerous Working Conditions?
Date: 21 July 2026 at 10:05:42 BST
To: "feryal.clark.mp@parliament.uk" <feryal.clark.mp@parliament.uk>
Cc: "cc:" <simon.lightwood.mp@parliament.uk>, TfL - Chief Operations Officer <clairemann@tfl.gov.uk>, "laurenorford@tfl.gov.uk" <laurenorford@tfl.gov.uk>, "nickdent@tfl.gov.uk" <nickdent@tfl.gov.uk>, "AndyLord@tfl.gov.uk" <AndyLord@tfl.gov.uk>, Neil Garratt <neil.garratt@london.gov.uk>, Keith Prince AM <keith.prince@london.gov.uk>,Tom Kearney #LondonBusWatch <comadad1812@gmail.com>, Deputy Mayor of London - Transport <seb.dance@london.gov.uk>, Mayor of London <mayor@london.gov.uk>, Sharon Graham <sharon.graham@unitetheunion.org>, Susan Hall <susan.hall@london.gov.uk>, Lorraine Bus Driver <.                                          >, "emma.best@london.gov.uk" <emma.best@london.gov.uk>, Alex Wilson <alex.wilson@london.gov.uk>,.                                          >, Caroline Russell <caroline.russell@london.gov.uk>, Thomas Turrell - London Assembly <thomas.turrell@london.gov.uk>, Tom Edwards <tom.edwards@bbc.co.uk>, Dan Tomlinson MP <dan.tomlinson.mp@parliament.uk>, Henry Riley <henry.riley@global.com>, Connor Hand <connor.hand@global.com>, Deputy Mayor of London - Social Justice <Debbie.Weekes-Bernard@london.gov.uk>, Victims Commissioner - London <Andrea.Simon@london.gov.uk>, Will Norman <WillNorman@tfl.gov.uk>, James Varley <JamesVarley@tfl.gov.uk>, "Secretariat02@london.gov.uk" <Secretariat02@london.gov.uk>, Lilli Matson <LilliMatson@tfl.gov.uk>, London Bus Forums Press Office <press.office@londonbusforums.co.uk>, Stuart Reid <StuartReid@tfl.gov.uk>, TfL - Chief Operations Officer <clairemann@tfl.gov.uk>, Elly Baker <elly.baker@london.gov.uk>, Joanne McCartney <Joanne.McCartney@london.gov.uk>, Hina Bokhari <hina.bokhari@london.gov.uk>, Bassam Mahfouz <Bassam.Mahfouz@london.gov.uk>, Sem Moema <sem.moema@london.gov.uk>, Unmesh Desai <Unmesh.Desai@london.gov.uk>, Michael Roberts <Michael.Roberts@londontravelwatch.org.uk>, "GLA_CON_ross.lydall@standard.co.uk" <ross.lydall@standard.co.uk>, "kumail.jaffer@reachplc.com" <kumail.jaffer@reachplc.com>, "hi@ajaysmith.com" <hi@ajaysmith.com>, "Annabel.deas@bbc.co.uk" <Annabel.deas@bbc.co.uk>, "GLA_CON_adam.toms@reachplc.com" <adam.toms@reachplc.com>, "COLEMAN, Ben (MP)" <ben.coleman.mp@parliament.uk>, Gareth Corfield <gareth.corfield@telegraph.co.uk>, "guy.adams@dailymail.co.uk" <guy.adams@dailymail.co.uk>, "international@theguardian.com" <international@theguardian.com>, "jacob.freedland@telegraph.co.uk" <jacob.freedland@telegraph.co.uk>, "katie.lam.mp@parliament.uk" <katie.lam.mp@parliament.uk>, Luke Alsford <luke.alsford@metro.co.uk>, "mark@ybc.tv" <mark@ybc.tv>, "nicholas.hellen@sunday-times.co.uk" <nicholas.hellen@sunday-times.co.uk>, "Olly (MP)" <olly.glover.mp@parliament.uk>, "ruthcadburymp@parliament.uk" <ruthcadburymp@parliament.uk>, "steve.bird@telegraph.co.uk" <steve.bird@telegraph.co.uk>, Workplace Colleague Network <colleaguenetwork@londonbusforums.co.uk>, "mark@ybc.tv" <mark@ybc.tv>, "Catherine (MP)" <catherine.atkinson.mp@parliament.uk>, Rebecca Williams - ITV <rebecca.williams@itn.co.uk>, Luke Donnelly <Luke.donnelly@reachplc.com>, Issy Clarke <issy.clarke@global.com>

Feryal Clark, MP for Enfield NorthHouse of CommonsLondonSW1A 0AA
Dear Feryal Clark,
I noted with interest your 16 July request in the Commons to Bus Minister Simon Lightwood to 'commend The Mayor of London for working with bus operators and Unite the Union to convene a heat taskforce to protect drivers and keep London's bus network running safely.'
From my 13 July email exchange with TfL below, you'll note that—based on the public record—both the Mayor of London and Unite the Union have known about Dangerously-Hot Bus Cabs since at least 2018 and have done nothing about it.
Did you realise you and the Minister actually commended the Mayor and Unite for their well-evidenced failure to protect TfL bus drivers?
And the heat taskforce you mentioned? 
Maybe you should ask TfL's Chief Operating Officer Clare Mann if she knew that she would be on holiday when the taskforce met for the first time?
And while you're asking questions of the Bus Minister, perhaps Simon Lightwood might be interested in asking TfL the following questions:

• Does Graysons have the TfL Air Conditioning (AC) contract for buses? 
• If so, why is the AC not covered under the 5 year manufacturer warranty buses have? 
• What are the terms of Grayon's AC contract? 
• How often are Graysons servicing the units to make sure they work correctly? 
• What's the service level agreement as to how long they have in which to repair vehicles once they have been reported faulty?
• Can you provide copies of the TFL bus specifications list that covers in cab drivers ac from the first point it was introduced and all subsequent amendments to this to date? 
• New buses have a 3 year engine/gearbox warranty with the rest of the bus covered for 5 years
• So why would a 3 year old and 1 year old bus need the AC fixing and why did Graysons only fix this on 1200 buses?
• How many Buses actually have working AC?
• Will the heat taskforce have published minutes, agendas and lists of attendees? If not, why?

"The Right to Working Air Cooling in our cabs in the summer heat" forms just 1of 12 Safety-Critical Bill of Rights that London Bus Drivers have been campaigning for since November 2024 for the Mayor to inscribe in TfL's—negligent, in my view—Framework Bus Services Contract.
London Bus Drivers' Bill of Rights
 1.⁠ ⁠The Right to a safe work schedule without any forced overtime or loss of pay
 2.⁠ ⁠The Right to a decent and proper rest break in the working day
 3.⁠ ⁠The Right to drive a safe and well-maintained vehicle
 4.⁠ ⁠The Right to clean, serviced toilet and rest facilities on all bus routes
 5.⁠ ⁠The Right to report safety concerns without fear of retribution from TfL or employers
 6.⁠ ⁠The Right, when seriously ill and covered by a doctor's note, to not be harassed into coming into work until fit to do so
 7.⁠ ⁠The Right to relevant and timely safety training
 8.⁠ ⁠The Right to drive without being forced to answer radio messages and texts from Controllers whilst in motion
 9.⁠ ⁠⁠The Right to have all company rules in writing and clearly displayed
10.⁠ ⁠⁠The Right to be treated with dignity and respect by our employers, TfL and the public
11.⁠ ⁠The Right to Working Air Cooling in our cabs in the summer heat 
12.⁠ ⁠The Right to Working Heaters in our cabs in the cold of winter
I even had a chance to discuss the hot cabs issue directly with the Mayor on 28 July 2022. 

28 July - LBC - Bus Driver "Kevin" on #SpeakToSadiq with James O'Brien and Sadiq Khan

Please feel free to contact me if you ever feel motivated again to 'commend' the Mayor and Unite for failing to protect London's Bus Drivers from Dangerously-Hot Bus Cabs and other Poor Working Conditions. 
I've got plenty more evidence to share with you and your fellow MPs.
Yours sincerely,
Kevin MustafaLondon Bus Safety CampaignerFounding Member Bus Driver Bill of Rights Campaign
Mob .                               

-------------------------From: Claire Mann <ClaireMann@tfl.gov.uk>
Sent: 13 July 2026 10:42
To: kevin mustafa <kevinmustafa@msn.com>
Subject: Automatic reply: Bus Driver Safety, Fatigue and Accountability on London's Bus Network Thank you for your email.

 

I am on annual leave and will return on Thursday 30th July.

 

In my absence Nick Dent will be my deputy from 10th until 19th July (NickDent@tfl.gov.uk)

 

Richard Jones will cover from 20th until 29th July (Richard.Jones2@tube.tfl.gov.uk)

 

For all other queries please contact my PA, Lauren Orford on LaurenOrford@tfl.gov.uk 

 

Take care

 

Claire

------------------------- 

I see from Claire Mann's out of office reply she won't be attending today's safety critical meeting. In any case, here's the list I referred to in this morning's email which evidences that both the Mayor and TfL and the trade union have been well aware of the Dangerously-Hot Bus Cab issue since at least July 2018.

July 2026

8 July - Evening Standard - Heatwave exposes pressure on London's bus network sparking emergency response from TfL

2 July 

Video: London Assembly Unanimously Approves Bus Driver Bill of Rights Motion - Keith Prince (Reform)

Bus Driver Bill of Rights Motion - Keith Prince (Reform)

Assembly Press Release - Assembly calls for a Bus Drivers' Bill of Rights

ITV News 

Bus Drivers' Bill of Rights motion passed at City Hall after ITV News London report

June 2026

Question 2026/1999 - Bus Driver Bill of Rights: ⁠The Right to Working Air Cooling in our cabs in the summer heat - Keith Prince

26 June - Unite the Union - "Unite welcomes London Mayor's pledge to sweltering bus drivers"

25 June - LBC News - 'Too hot? Don't drive that bus': Sadiq backs bus drivers as he brands stifling working conditions 'unacceptable' 24 June - ITV News

 

'Don't risk personal safety' Sadiq Khan tells bus drivers as temperatures soar on hottest June day

Question 2026/2016 - Cooling London's Transport Network - Elly Baker

12 June - Question 2026/1908 - Bus Drivers Overheating (1) - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

 

12 June - Question 2026/1909 - Bus Drivers Overheating (2) - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

 

12 June - Question 2026/1910 - Bus Drivers Overheating (3) - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

 

 

28 May - ITV News - "Bus drivers suffer sweltering conditions at work during May heatwave"

 

April 2026

20 April - ITV News - "Exclusive figures reveal extent of dangerously tired London bus drivers"

 

Video

 

17 April - ITV News 'So fatigued they are falling asleep at the wheel': Calls for TfL to improve bus driver conditions

March 2026

26 March  - ITV News - 'Mayor of London 'appalled' as ITV News London uncovers bus drivers working in shocking conditions"

 

Video

 

26 March - London Assembly

Neil Garratt questions London Mayor about Poor Working Conditions for London Bus Drivers

25 March - ITV News - "Transport boss 'horrified' after ITV News London uncovers shocking conditions for London bus drivers"

 

Video

 

25 March - London Assembly- Neil Garratt questions Andy Lord about Poor Bus Driver Working Conditions

Video

March 2026

19 March - ITV News - "Falling asleep at the wheel and urinating in jars - the reality for London bus drivers"

 

Video

 

July 2025

3 July 2025 - Caroline Russell

Transcript of Agenda Item 3 - Question and Answer Session: Transport for London (Supplementary) [3]

Video

3 July 2025 - TfL Commissioner: TfL Bus Drivers have 'Responsibility' to Refuse Buses without Working AC

Question 2025/2619 - Leonie Cooper - Heat on Buses

17 July 2025 -Unite the Union- Unite takes action to support boiling bus drivers

1 July 2025 - Heatwave and London Bus Drivers - BBC News

 

February 2025

 

Question 2025/0591 - Bus Drivers' "Bill of Rights": "The Right to Working Air Cooling in TfL Bus cabs in the summer heat"- Keith Prince

 

January 2025

Question 2025/0146 - TfL Air Conditioning Policies (1) - Susan Hall

Question 2025/0147 - TfL Air Conditioning Policies (2) - Susan Hall   

Question 2025/0148 - TfL Air Conditioning Policies (3) - Susan Hall

Question 2025/0149 - TfL Air Conditioning Policies (4)- Susan Hall 

Question 2025/0150 - TfL Air Conditioning Policies (5)-Susan Hall 

Question 2025/0151 - TfL Air Conditioning Policies (6)- Susan Hall

October 2024

10 October 2024

Q&A with Mayor - Neil Garratt - Heating and Air Conditioning on Buses

Video

Question 2024/3101- Hina Bokhari - Employee Wellbeing - 

Video

Question 2024/3434 - Bus Drivers Dangerously Overheating: Success of EQM Process - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

September 2024

29 September 2024

BBC Inside Politics - Poor London Bus Driver Working Conditions

July 2024

Question 2024/2238 - Bus Drivers Dangerously Overheating - Neil Garratt

Question 2024/2893 - Bus Drivers Dangerously Overheating: EQM Process - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

Question 2024/2894 - Vision Zero: "Lessons Learned" from Arriva 141 Bus Crash, 13 June, Green Lanes, Islington—Neil Garratt

March 2024

Investigation of "Bus, tram and tube safety in London" by London Assembly Transport Committee

cf. pp. 25-26 "Extreme Bus Cabin Temperatures"

Recommendation 7 of the London Assembly Transport Committee Investigation

"TfL should address the issue of extreme temperatures in bus cabs through improved air conditioning and heating systems for the cab. It should monitor this by incorporating a digital thermometer in future cab designs, with data automatically recorded on iBus."

February 2024

Question 2024/0792 - Vision Zero: "Lessons Learned" from Arriva 141 Bus Crash, 13 June, Green Lanes, Islington- Neil Garratt

December 2023

15 December 2023

"Overheated Cabins" cf. page 9, Evidence Submission by Tom Kearney, #LondonBusWatch

Question 2023/4725 - Vision Zero: Independent Human Factors Analysis of "Longstanding Agreements" between TfL, Bus Operators and Unite the Union - Neil Garratt

October 2023

Question 2023/3649 - Vision Zero: TfL's Refusal to Mitigate Unsafe Working Environment on Buses- Neil Garratt

Question 2023/3631 - TfL's New Bus Safety Strategy - Keith Prince

July 2023

Question 2023/2824 - Vision Zero: TfL's Refusal to Mitigate Unsafe Working Environment on Buses -Neil Garratt

6 July 2023 Q&A with Mayor of London - Neil Garratt - Hot Bus Cabs

Video

Transcript

From 6 July 2023 - Hot Bus Twitter Thread

https://x.com/comadad/status/1676928661109219334?s=20

Question 2023/2109 - Independent Investigation about longstanding problems of Faulty Air Conditioning in London Bus Cabs- Keith Prince

Question 2023/2118 -Unite the Union - Too Hot Campaign-Keith Prince

June 2023

14 June 2023 - Islington Gazette - Green Lanes bus crash passenger: 'Miracle no one was hurt'

May 2023

Question 2023/1656 - Vision Zero: TfL's Refusal to Mitigate Unsafe Working Environment on Buses - Neil Garratt

February 2023

Question 2023/0927 - Vision Zero: TfL offering 'Safe Spaces' from Public Scrutiny to Bus Operators- Neil Garratt

Question 2023/0929 - Unsafe Working Environment on Buses - Neil Garratt

December 2022

Question 2022/5366 - Logistics UK 2021 Study of the State of Air-Conditioning Systems on Buses- Keith Prince

Question 2022/5400 - Unsafe Working Environment on Buses- Neil Garratt

Question 2022/5399 - Faulty Air Conditioning on Buses-  Neil Garratt

November 2022

Question 2022/4207 - Hot Weather Buses Risk Assessment- Neil Garratt

October 2022

Question 2022/3463 - Logistics UK 2021 Study of the State of Air-Conditioning Systems on Buses - Keith Prince

Question 2022/3464 - Logistics UK 2021 Study of the State of Air-Conditioning Systems on Buses - Bus Operators- Keith Prince

Question 2022/3465 - Logistics UK 2021 Study of the State of Air-Co

The Overheating Cycle: Taking a break does nothing to cool down a mechanical engine or a glass cab. The bus continues to bake in the direct sun, and the driver is forced right back into an unsafe, +40c environment the moment they step back in.

The Fear Factor: You stated that operators will not be penalised and drivers must stop the bus if they feel fatigued. Yet, as reported by the Evening Standard, drivers on the ground still feel compelled to keep driving because they fear being "called into the office" by operators who prioritise mileage over safety.

"The Right to Working Air Cooling in our cabs in the summer heat" 

 1.⁠ ⁠The Right to a safe work schedule without any forced overtime or loss of pay 2.⁠ ⁠The Right to a decent and proper rest break in the working day 3.⁠ ⁠The Right to drive a safe and well-maintained vehicle 4.⁠ ⁠The Right to clean, serviced toilet and rest facilities on all bus routes 5.⁠ ⁠The Right to report safety concerns without fear of retribution from TfL or employers 6.⁠ ⁠The Right, when seriously ill and covered by a doctor's note, to not be harassed into coming into work until fit to do so 7.⁠ ⁠The Right to relevant and timely safety training 8.⁠ ⁠The Right to drive without being forced to answer radio messages and texts from Controllers whilst in motion 9.⁠ ⁠⁠The Right to have all company rules in writing and clearly displayed10.⁠ ⁠⁠The Right to be treated with dignity and respect by our employers, TfL and the public11.⁠ ⁠The Right to Working Air Cooling in our cabs in the summer heat 12.⁠ ⁠The Right to Working Heaters in our cabs in the cold of winter

"I think it's helpful if we re-state our shared view on three key principles.  

• The first is that accountability and responsibility for bus safety must rest ultimately with TfL. It cannot be devolved to the bus operators individually.  The buck stops with us.

• The second is that our approach to bus safety must mirror the rigour and discipline of our approach to rail safety.

• The third is transparency." 

• The Admission: Andy Lord admits there are currently 5 "Priority One" routes with absolutely zero toilet provision at either end of the route, alongside 15 Priority Two and 43 Priority Three routes with severe deficiencies.
• The Contradiction: He claims TfL had "previously resolved all priority one routes" but that "access arrangements have since changed." This proves TfL's strategy is fragile and reactive.
• The Frontline Reality: His "solution" for Priority One routes is to pad the timetable for a comfort break. A longer schedule is not a toilet. Forcing a driver to hunt for a public restroom mid-route wastes time, increases stress, and fails basic workplace welfare standards.

• The Admission: Between August and October 2025, TfL inspected 290 vehicles and found 86 defects relating directly to driver cab air conditioning.
• The Reality: That is an immediate 29.6% failure rate in the small sample they took.
• The Evasion: He tries to soften this by saying a defect just means performance is "somewhat degraded" rather than broken. To a driver sitting in a glass box in summer, "degraded" cooling means cab temperatures spiking past 40C. Furthermore, shifting focus entirely to heating in October means they have no data on how many AC units seized up or failed over the winter before spring restarted.

• The Admission: TfL is flatly refusing to recognize the Bus Drivers' Bill of Rights, passing the buck by listing decades-old legislation (like the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974) and operator licenses.
• The Counter-Argument: If the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 or the Workplace Regulations 1992 were actually working on the London bus network, we would not have 28,000 people signing a petition, 5 routes without a single toilet, and a 30% failure rate on cab climate control.
• The Buck-Passing: He states that responsibility for rectifying defects "rests with the operator" and tells drivers to just complain to their employers or use CIRAS. This ignores the fact that TfL owns and controls the network. TfL sets the contracts; they cannot subcontract out their moral and legal duty of care.

From: Tom Kearney <comadad1812@gmail.com>

Subject: Your Proposed Roundtable with TfL

From: Powell Gareth <GarethPowell@Tfl.gov.uk>
Subject: RE: 4 Catalysts to Improve TfL Surface Transport Safety Culture
Date: 15 May 2018 at 10:19:12 BST
To: Tom Kearney <                       >,  "Brown Mike (Commissioner)" <MikeBrown@tfl.gov.uk>

Cc: Branks Kirsten <KirstenBranks@Tfl.gov.uk>, "McNeill David (GM&C)" <DavidMcNeill@tfl.gov.uk>, Parks Annie <AnnieParks@Tfl.gov.uk>, "Tagg Ella (ST)" <Ella.Tagg@TfL.gov.uk>, Thomson Linda <Linda.Thomson@tube.tfl.gov.uk>, Henshaw Jenna <JennaHenshaw@tfl.gov.uk>, "Van Der Nest Christian (ST)" <Christian.VanDerNest@TfL.gov.uk>

Dear Tom

 Mike has asked me to respond to you, and I am sorry for the delay in doing so.

 I enjoyed our meeting, and I'm pleased that we agree on more things than we disagree.  I hope we can work together to eradicate deaths and serious injuries on the TfL bus network. 

 Agreement on general principles

 I think it's helpful if we re-state our shared view on three key principles. 

 The first is that accountability and responsibility for bus safety must rest ultimately with TfL.  It cannot be devolved to the bus operators individually.  The buck stops with us.

 The second is that our approach to bus safety must mirror the rigour and discipline of our approach to rail safety.

 The third is transparency.

 Agreed actions

 I am happy to confirm that we will publish safety data arranged by bus operator, route and garage as you suggest.  This information will be published on our website in an accessible and easy to understand form.  I agree that it is important for transparency, but also to help the bus operators to build their own reputations for the safety of the services they provide.  My aim is that we will deliver this over the summer.  I hope you would be willing to be consulted on the design.

 We also agreed to further develop this reporting to include precursor data and bus operator staff safety.  This is a trickier area, which I think needs a slightly longer timetable to work out how this might be best delivered without counter-productive impacts. I am keen to involve you in this work.

 I am happy to tell you that we have commissioned an independent review into fatigue. It will be published later this year. 

 Our new process for assurance of bus operator safety standards will include fatigue review, and will complement our new Safety Performance Index (SPI). Individual operator results of these two measures are commercially sensitive and no operator will be able to see the scores of other operators. However, once we are satisfied that the reporting process for the SPI is fully bedded in, hopefully by the summer, we will publish the network wide score. Building on this, we would like to work with you to develop a more granular level of reporting for publishing this information.

 We agreed to name routes and companies on traffic alerts involving bus incidents, subject to the immediate circumstances on the ground. We'll deliver this by the summer.

 We will act to improve the way in which customers and road users, and potentially bus company employees, are encouraged to report safety concerns - or service concerns which might pose safety questions - through a telephone line, our website and social media channels.  This would involve not just promotion of our existing channels, but consideration of how we can make them more dynamic and user-friendly.  We will consider similar services, such as New York's 511 number.  I don't think it would be sensible to give a timetable for this programme, other than to state that the work will start this month.

 Points for further discussion

 I'm not sure we resolved the question of whether TfL or the bus operators was best placed to procure confidential reporting services, like CIRAS.  However, I think we all agreed that more work was needed to build the confidence of bus operator staff to report safety concerns.  This important issue deserves further discussion between us, and maybe an injection of new thinking.

 We began an interesting discussion on contractual incentives/disincentives that may foster a strong bus safety culture.  Again, this would be a useful topic for a future discussion.

 I hope our meeting will be the beginning of much better relationship and I hope we can carry on talking.  On the actions, David McNeill will share with you our plans as they develop.

 Yours sincerely

 Gareth Powell

Managing Director - Surface Transport

  From: Tom Kearney                                    
Sent: 29 March 2018 16:44
To: Brown Mike (Commissioner)
Cc: Branks Kirsten; Powell Gareth; McNeill David (GM&C); Parks Annie; Tagg Ella (ST); Linda.Thomson@tube.tfl.go.uk
Subject: FW: 4 Catalysts to Improve TfL Surface Transport Safety Culture

 

Mr. Mike Brown, MVO, Commissioner

Transport for London

Windsor House

42-50 Victoria Street

London SE1 2AA

 Dear Commissioner Brown,

 Thank you, Gareth and David for your time today. I am heartened by the substance and candor of our discussion and am looking forward to a response to my common-sense proposals.

 

For reference, here is a link to the June 2014 Straits Times article "Operating public buses: Lessons from London" from which I derived my Bus Cost data (which, you'll see from the article, comes directly from Bus Company executives James Trayner and Sean O'Shea.)

 

I'm in regular touch with the article's author and am pushing him to write an update comparing some of the safety issues that might be common to both Bus Systems. I'll let you know how that goes. 

 

With kind regards and gratitude,

 

Tom Kearney

#LondonBusWatch

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Blog: www.saferoxfordstreet.blogspot.co.uk

 

2016 Winner, Transport - Sheila McKechnie Foundation SMK Campaigners Award

 From: Tom Kearney                                                       
Date: Wednesday, 28 March 2018 at 20:50
To: Mike Brown <MikeBrown@tfl.gov.uk>
Cc: Branks Kirsten <KirstenBranks@Tfl.gov.uk>, Gareth Powell <GarethPowell@tfl.gov.uk>, "McNeill David (GM&C)" <DavidMcNeill@tfl.gov.uk>, Parks Annie <AnnieParks@Tfl.gov.uk>, <Ella.Tagg@TfL.gov.uk>, <Linda.Thomson@tube.tfl.gov.uk>
Subject: 4 Catalysts to Improve TfL Surface Transport Safety Culture

 Mr. Mike Brown, MVO, Commissioner

Transport for London

Windsor House

42-50 Victoria Street

London SE1 2AA

 Dear Commissioner Brown,

 In preparation for our meeting tomorrow, I am writing this briefing note to you to read beforehand so that the limited time we both have made available for our meeting can be used most efficiently. 

 As I think you already know, I would like this meeting to focus on 4 "Catalysts" to Improve TfL Surface Transport Safety Culture.

 I believe these Catalysts are:

 

1. Improving Transparency & Data Reporting

 2. Improving Safety Reporting & Monitoring

 3. Improving Understanding of how Bus Driver Working Conditions affect Safety Performance

 4. Improving Safety Incident Investigations

 

Accordingly, I'd like to see if we might be able to agree on the following concrete steps tomorrow:

 1. Actions to Improve Transparency and Data Reporting

• On each bus route website page, TfL will publish the contact details for senior responsible officers and latest safety performance numbers for that Bus Operator on that route.

• TfL to publish consolidated bus collision and injury data by Bus Garage every quarter.

• TfL to publish consolidated bus collision and injury data by Bus Operator every quarter: this data would identify the Bus Operator by its national brand name, not its local franchise name.

• TfL to publish consolidated data on how many KSI collision incidents are occurring per bus in each operators' fleet.

• @TfLBusAlerts and @TfLTrafficAlerts to tweet Bus Operator name, route number and location (borough) of any bus involved in a collision in real-time (that is, if a TfL contractor is involved then all TfL twitter feeds alert the public what route, what borough & if it involves a human being).

• On its Bus Safety Data Website, TfL to publish how much it is paying each contractor every quarter - as above, this data would identify the Bus Operator by its national brand name, not its local franchise name.

• TfL to provide the complete contact details (telephone, email and social media) of all TfL and contractor (Bus, Tram and other road-based sub-contractors), Managing Directors and key operations managers on a well-publicised and easily-accessible TfL web page.

2. Actions to Improve Safety Reporting and Monitoring

• All TfL Bus Operators would subscribe directly to a bona fide independent and confidential transport safety reporting service (instead of TfL subscribing on its Bus Operators' behalf, as is currently done with CIRAS). Bus Operators' direct subscription to a bona fide transport confidential reporting service (like—but not restricted to—CIRAS) would be made an immediate contract requirement as per Section 5 of the existing Framework Bus Contract which stipulates inter alia "in providing the Services the Operator shall take all steps necessary to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all persons."

• TfL to create a single telephone number (New York has "511") which members of the public can call to report any dangerous behaviour or incident involving a TfL Surface Operations Contractor. Callers to this number would receive a traceable case number and a call back or return email to confirm when and what mitigating action was taken by the TfL Contractor. Every quarter, this incident information (reporter anonymised but showing route, operator, location, date, type of incident) would be published on the TfL Website.

• To encourage real-time witness reporting of any Surface Transport Safety Incident involving a TfL Contractor, @TfLBusAlerts will tweet the contact details of the Metropolitan Police Service (https://beta.met.police.uk/report/report-a-road-traffic-incident/) to any report received from the public on Twitter.

3. Actions to Improve Understanding of how Bus Driver Working Conditions affect Safety Performance

• I would like you and Gareth Powell to consider participating in a confidential information session with TfL Bus Drivers facilitated by former Head of CIRAS Paul Russell (perhaps conducted under the auspices of the SSHR Panel). I personally think it is crucial that you both are informed on this issue directly by TfL Bus Drivers who are not compromised by having too close an association with either their employers or Unite the Union.

4. Catalysts to Improve Surface Transport Safety Incident Investigations

• TfL to create an independent body to investigate serious incidents on the bus network similar to the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) in the railway industry. IA 17 780 shows TfL already has such expertise. 

• As the RAIB Investigation and IA 17 780 so plainly revealed, TfL already knows these above-mentioned "Catalysts" are crucial for a safe Tram Operation: I'd like to see precisely the same kind of Internal Audit exercise performed at each Contracted Bus Operation. I believe such a TfL-led "Bus Safety Audit" which systemically reviewed the nuts & bolts of each Bus Contractors' Operational Safety Reporting and Monitoring System and would provide TfL with a sound basis to prescribe the kind of specific actions sought from TfL Surface Transport and its Bus Contractors as IA 17 780 so lucidly did for Trams. 

In conclusion, have always felt it was well within TfL Surface Transport's power and capability to do good for safety, but that it manifestly lacked leadership at the top (In fact, that's why I've campaigned "relentlessly" since 2010.) 

 You've given me some hope that the situation has now changed.

 If so, then let's get to work on changing TfL Surface Transport's Safety Culture for the better and —please—put me out of a "job" I certainly don't need and certainly never wanted. 

 Yours sincerely,

 Tom Kearney

#LondonBusWatch

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Blog: www.saferoxfordstreet.blogspot.co.uk

 

2016 Winner, Transport - Sheila McKechnie Foundation SMK Campaigners Award

 

Dear Lorna/AndyFor years, bus drivers, safety campaigners and members of the public have raised serious concerns about the working conditions faced by London bus drivers. Yet every time these issues are raised with TfL or through the media, the response appears to be the same: that TfL "takes the safety and welfare of bus drivers seriously" and that there are "a range of measures" in place.The question that needs answering is: what exactly are those measures, and why are drivers still reporting the same issues year after year?If the current measures are effective, why are drivers continuing to raise concerns about:

• Excessive heat in driving cabs during periods of hot weather.
• Inadequate heating and poor conditions during winter.
• Lack of proper access to toilet facilities during duties.
• Fatigue caused by long duties, demanding schedules and insufficient recovery time.
• Pressure caused by operational demands, performance expectations and controller intervention.

These concerns have been raised repeatedly over many years. If the same problems continue to occur annually, then simply repeating that TfL takes safety seriously is not enough. Words and statements do not improve working conditions — actions and measurable improvements do.Emails bouncing back and forth, and simply telling us that we are wrong, isn't yielding the results that we all need. Therefore, I am proposing a Roundtable meeting between TfL leadership, myself, and the other activists and safety campaigners who have been fighting for the betterment of bus drivers for years. I am more than happy to take time out to meet so we can have a proper discussion. Collectively, we could actually set out a real plan.In preparation for that discussion, I would like your response to the London Assembly motion passed unanimously on 2 July, calling for a Bus Driver Bill of Rights to be incorporated into the framework agreement. What is TfL's position on this?To be absolutely clear: this Bill of Rights is not a myth, it is not made up, and it is not going away. Launched on November 5th, 2024, and subsequently submitted to City Hall, the petition for this Bill of Rights has been signed by 24,000 bus drivers and over 4,000 members of the public. This represents an undeniable mandate from the frontline workforce. These 28,000 voices are a statement of fact that the current system is failing. Putting clear rights and minimum standards into tender contracts would provide the exact accountability needed to ensure that operators are contractually required to protect drivers' safety, welfare, and working conditions. A Bill of Rights provides a clear, enforceable framework covering safe working conditions, adequate facilities, reasonable recovery time, and protection from unsafe pressures.TfL must recognise its responsibility. Operators may be awarded contracts to run services, but TfL owns and controls the London bus network. These routes are TfL's responsibility. If contracted operators are failing to provide safe conditions, TfL cannot simply pass responsibility elsewhere.So I ask you directly ahead of our meeting:

1. What specific measures are currently in place?
2. Why have these measures not prevented the repeated concerns being raised by drivers?
3. What measurable improvements can TfL demonstrate?
4. Will TfL support the introduction of a Bus Driver Bill of Rights within future tender agreements?

After years of raising these concerns, drivers deserve more than reassurance. They deserve transparency, accountability and meaningful change.I would like to arrange this Roundtable meeting to include yourself, and Transport Commissioner Andy Lord. Given the scale of workforce dissatisfaction and the 28,000 signatures representing the frontline, it is vital that TfL's top leadership is present.Please let me know your collective availability over the next 4 weeks so we can sit down together and address these facts constructively. I am available between the 3rd - 14th August .Yours sincerely,Kevin MustafaLondon Bus Safety CampaignerFounding Member Bus Driver Bill of Rights Campaign
Mob                                 

No Vehicle Mitigation: A cooling-off break does nothing to lower the temperature of the vehicle itself.
The Overheating Cycle: The bus remains stationary in the direct sun, continuing to bake.
Immediate Danger: Once the break is over, the driver is forced back into an identical, unsafe, and dangerously overheated environment.

TO: London Bus Forums

FROM: Tom Kearney, #LondonBusWatch

RE: TfL's Annual Dangerously-Hot Bus Cab Crisis (2018-2026)—A Briefing Note 

DATE: 8 July 2026

RE: TfL's Dangerously-Hot Bus Cab Crisis (June 2018-July 2026)

I read London Bus Forums's thoughtful editorial—"Sadiq Khan backs London bus drivers as TfL questioned over cab cooling checks"—with a great deal of interest.  While about a year ago this month last year, the TfL Commissioner Andy Lord admitted that London's bus contracts prioritised on-time performance over safety, the Mayor's 25 June statement on LBC—

"We've also said to the bus operators that they shouldn't use the excuse of bus performance indicators to put pressure on their bus drivers. They've been suspended." 

—marks the first time the Mayor's publicly admitted that TfL Bus Contracts financially incentivise Bus Operators to force Bus Drivers to operate Buses in working conditions that are dangerous for their and the public's safety. 

In other words, it appears the Mayor was telling us that the "buck" stops with TfL.

Or did he? 

On 2 July, TfL announced the roll-out of its newest ("next generation") Bus Safety Standard, which—just like the old Bus Safety Standard announced in October 2018—contained zero requirements for ensuring Air Conditioning functioned in London Bus Drivers' cabs.   Since the Mayor has already told us that "Air conditioning is equipped for the driver's cab of all London buses. Since 2006, the bus vehicle specification required the air conditioning to reduce a temperature of 35 degrees Celsius to 25 degrees Celsius...", one can only hope against hope that the technical specifications detailed in the Bus Safety Standard live up to TfL's public relations hype better than its Bus Vehicle Specifications do for Air Conditioning. 

According to the Singapore's Ministry of Transport, the last public bus without Air Conditioning in that city was retired over 13 years ago. Meanwhile, in 2026 TfL does not even have a plan for ensuring London Buses have working Air Conditioning in Drivers' cabs. 

Wouldn't you have thought the Mayor and Transport Commissioner would have made good use of their recent Taxpayer-funded trip to Singapore  to—at a minimum—discover how that 'World City' International Bus Benchmarking Group Peer achieved having 100 percent of its public Bus Fleet installed with working Air Conditioning over a decade ago? 

As you know, 'Right' Number 11 in the London Bus Drivers Bill of Rights is—

"The Right to Working Air Cooling in our cabs in the summer heat" 

—and forms just 1 of 12 Safety-Critical Human Rights Bus Drivers have been campaigning for since November 2024 for the Mayor to inscribe in TfL's—negligent, in my view—Framework Bus Services Contract.

London Bus Drivers' Bill of Rights

 1.⁠ ⁠The Right to a safe work schedule without any forced overtime or loss of pay

 2.⁠ ⁠The Right to a decent and proper rest break in the working day

 3.⁠ ⁠The Right to drive a safe and well-maintained vehicle

 4.⁠ ⁠The Right to clean, serviced toilet and rest facilities on all bus routes

 5.⁠ ⁠The Right to report safety concerns without fear of retribution from TfL or employers

 6.⁠ ⁠The Right, when seriously ill and covered by a doctor's note, to not be harassed into coming into work until fit to do so

 7.⁠ ⁠The Right to relevant and timely safety training

 8.⁠ ⁠The Right to drive without being forced to answer radio messages and texts from Controllers whilst in motion

 9.⁠ ⁠⁠The Right to have all company rules in writing and clearly displayed

10.⁠ ⁠⁠The Right to be treated with dignity and respect by our employers, TfL and the public

11.⁠ ⁠The Right to Working Air Cooling in our cabs in the summer heat 

12.⁠ ⁠The Right to Working Heaters in our cabs in the cold of winter

Despite the Mayor and TfL Commissioners having parroted on about Vision Zero, Climate Change and Pollution since May 2016, it's obvious that neither have—or has had—a plan to (a prioritise safety and safe working conditions for Bus Drivers (b) get rid of diesel buses or (c) manage London's public bus operation with extreme care during heatwaves. Year after year, London suffers more predictably intense and frequent heat waves, and London's Bus Drivers are subjected to the Mayor's and TfL's collective failure to act to take well-evidenced measures to protect London Bus Drivers' —and Londoners—lives and livelihoods from "institutionally unsafe" Bus Operations. 

From the Timeline below, you'll see that both the cause and the effect of TfL's Annual Dangerously-Hot Bus Crisis have been known to the Mayor and TfL Commissioner for years, yet TfL has not changed its Framework Bus Services Contract since before Sadiq Khan was elected in May 2016. Furthermore, despite repeated requests from London Assembly Members since early 2025 to consider inscribing the Bill of Rights into that document, the Mayor has contemptuously rejected the idea without providing any credible granular evidence to support his position. As you study the years of Mayor's Questions and news reports about London's predictable and solvable Annual Hot Bus Cab Crisis, I hope you'll find that the words Martin Luther King Jr. wrote in his sermon Love in Action— "Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity."— provide an apposite description of both the Mayor of London's and Transport Commissioner's behaviour toward Bus Drivers and the general public. 

TIMELINE of TfL's DANGEROUSLY-HOT BUS CABS CRISIS (June 2018-July 2026)

July 2026

2 July 2026

Video: London Assembly Unanimously Approves Bus Driver Bill of Rights Motion - Keith Prince (Reform)

Bus Driver Bill of Rights Motion - Keith Prince (Reform)

Assembly Press Release - Assembly calls for a Bus Drivers' Bill of Rights

ITV News 

Bus Drivers' Bill of Rights motion passed at City Hall after ITV News London report

June 2026

Question 2026/1999- Bus Driver Bill of Rights: ⁠The Right to Working Air Cooling in our cabs in the summer heat - Keith Prince (Reform)

26 June - Unite the Union - "Unite welcomes London Mayor's pledge to sweltering bus drivers"

25 June - LBC News - 'Too hot? Don't drive that bus': Sadiq backs bus drivers as he brands stifling working conditions 'unacceptable'

24 June - ITV News

'Don't risk personal safety' Sadiq Khan tells bus drivers as temperatures soar on hottest June day

Question 2026/1908 - Bus Drivers Overheating (1) - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

Question 2026/1909 - Bus Drivers Overheating (2) - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

Question 2026/1910 - Bus Drivers Overheating (3) - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

Question 2026/2016 - Cooling London's Transport Network - Elly Baker (Labour)

May 2026

28 May - ITV News - "Bus drivers suffer sweltering conditions at work during May heatwave"

April 2026

20 April - ITV News - "Exclusive figures reveal extent of dangerously tired London bus drivers"

17 April - ITV News 'So fatigued they are falling asleep at the wheel': Calls for TfL to improve bus driver conditions"

March 2026

26 March  - ITV News - 'Mayor of London 'appalled' as ITV News London uncovers bus drivers working in shocking conditions"

26 March - London Assembly

Neil Garratt (Conservative) questions London Mayor about Poor Working Conditions for London Bus Drivers

25 March - ITV News - "Transport boss 'horrified' after ITV News London uncovers shocking conditions for London bus drivers"

25 March - London Assembly- Neil Garratt (Conservative) questions Andy Lord about Poor Bus Driver Working Conditions

19 March - ITV News - "Falling asleep at the wheel and urinating in jars - the reality for London bus drivers"

July 2025

3 July 2025 - Caroline Russell (Greens)

Transcript of Agenda Item 3 - Question and Answer Session: Transport for London (Supplementary) [3]

3 July 2025 - TfL Commissioner: TfL Bus Drivers have 'Responsibility' to Refuse Buses without Working AC

Question 2025/2619 - Heat on Buses - Leonie Cooper (Labour)

17 July 2025 -Unite the Union- Unite takes action to support boiling bus drivers

1 July 2025 - BBC London News - Heatwave and London Bus Drivers

February 2025

Question 2025/0591-Bus Drivers' "Bill of Rights": "The Right to Working Air Cooling in TfL Bus cabs in the summer heat"- Keith Prince (Conservative)

January 2025

Question 2025/0146 - TfL Air Conditioning Policies (1)  - Susan Hall (Conservative)

Question 2025/0147- TfL Air Conditioning Policies (2) - Susan Hall (Conservative)  

Question 2025/0148 -TfL Air Conditioning Policies (3)  - Susan Hall (Conservative)

Question 2025/0149 -TfL Air Conditioning Policies (4) - Susan Hall (Conservative)

Question 2025/0150-TfL Air Conditioning Policies (5) - Susan Hall (Conservative)

Question 2025/0151-TfL Air Conditioning Policies (6) - Susan Hall (Conservative)

October 2024

10 October 2024

Q&A with Mayor - Neil Garratt (Conservative) "Heating and Air Conditioning on Buses" (Video) - Transcript

Question 2024/3434 - Bus Drivers Dangerously Overheating: Success of EQM Process - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

Question 2024/3101-- "Employee Wellbeing" - Hina Bokhari (Liberal Democrat) (Video)

September 2024

29 September 2024

BBC Inside Politics - Poor London Bus Driver Working Conditions - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

July 2024

Question 2024/2238 - Bus Drivers Dangerously Overheating - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

Question 2024/2894 - Vision Zero: "Lessons Learned" from Arriva 141 Bus Crash, 13 June, Green Lanes, Islington—Neil Garratt (Conservative)

Question 2024/2893 - Bus Drivers Dangerously Overheating: EQM Process - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

March 2024

Investigation of "Bus, tram and tube safety in London" by London Assembly Transport Committee

cf. pp. 25-26 "Extreme Bus Cabin Temperatures"

Recommendation 7 of the London Assembly Transport Committee Investigation

"TfL should address the issue of extreme temperatures in bus cabs through improved air conditioning and heating systems for the cab. It should monitor this by incorporating a digital thermometer in future cab designs, with data automatically recorded on iBus."

February 2024

Question 2024/0792 - Vision Zero: "Lessons Learned" from Arriva 141 Bus Crash, 13 June, Green Lanes, Islington- Neil Garratt (Conservative)

December 2023

15 December 2023

"Overheated Cabins" cf. page 9, Evidence Submission by Tom Kearney, #LondonBusWatch

Question 2023/4725 - Vision Zero: Independent Human Factors Analysis of "Longstanding Agreements" between TfL, Bus Operators and Unite the Union - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

October 2023

Question 2023/3649 - Vision Zero: TfL's Refusal to Mitigate Unsafe Working Environment on Buses- Neil Garratt (Conservative)

Question 2023/3631 - TfL's New Bus Safety Strategy - Keith Prince (Conservative)

July 2023

Question 2023/2824 - Vision Zero: TfL's Refusal to Mitigate Unsafe Working Environment on Buses - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

6 July 2023 Q&A with Mayor of London -  Hot Bus Cabs — Neil Garratt (Conservative)

Video

Transcript 

6 July 2023 - Hot Bus Twitter Thread                                           

Question 2023/2109 - Independent Investigation about longstanding problems of Faulty Air Conditioning in London Bus Cabs- Keith Prince (Conservative)

Question 2023/2118 -Unite the Union - Too Hot Campaign-Keith Prince (Conservative)

June 2023

14 June 2023 - Islington Gazette - Green Lanes bus crash passenger: 'Miracle no one was hurt'

May 2023

Question 2023/1656 - Vision Zero: TfL's Refusal to Mitigate Unsafe Working Environment on Buses - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

February 2023

Question 2023/0927 - Vision Zero: TfL offering 'Safe Spaces' from Public Scrutiny to Bus Operators- Neil Garratt (Conservative)

Question 2023/0929 - Unsafe Working Environment on Buses - Neil Garratt (Conservative)

December 2022

Question 2022/5366 - Logistics UK 2021 Study of the State of Air-Conditioning Systems on Buses- Keith Prince (Conservative)

Question 2022/5400 - Unsafe Working Environment on Buses- Neil Garratt (Conservative)

Question 2022/5399 - Faulty Air Conditioning on Buses-  Neil Garratt (Conservative)

November 2022

Question 2022/4207 - Hot Weather Buses Risk Assessment- Neil Garratt (Conservative)

October 2022

Question 2022/3463 - Logistics UK 2021 Study of the State of Air-Conditioning Systems on Buses - Keith Prince (Conservative)

Question 2022/3464 - Logistics UK 2021 Study of the State of Air-Conditioning Systems on Buses - Bus Operators-  Keith Prince (Conservative)

Question 2022/3465 - Logistics UK 2021 Study of the State of Air-Conditioning Systems on Buses - Bus Operators - Failure to Mitigate-Keith Prince (Conservative)

Question 2022/3475 - TfL-UCL Joint Study to 'understand thermal comfort on buses - Keith Prince (Conservative)

September 2022 

Question 2022/2930 - Excessively hot bus driver conditions - Siân Berry (Green)

Question 2022/2931 - Audit of bus cooling systems- Siân Berry (Green)

Question 2022/2993 - Lack of Air Conditioning on TfL Buses- Keith Prince (Conservative)

Question 2022/2992 - TfL's Independent Assurance of the Condition of the Bus Fleet through 'Engineering Quality Monitoring'-Keith Prince (Conservative)

Question 2022/2812 - Bus Driver Working Conditions - Caroline Pidgeon (Liberal Democrat)

July 2022

Unite the Union - 18 July - UK heatwave: Unite calls on government to 'get a move on' with clear law on working in hot temperatures

28 July - LBC - Bus Driver "Kevin" on #SpeakToSadiq with James O'Brien and Sadiq Khan 

September 2021

Question 2021/3713 - Lack of Air Conditioning on Buses (1) -Keith Prince (Conservative)

Question 2021/3714 - Lack of Air Conditioning on Buses (2) -Keith Prince (Conservative)

July 2021

23 July 2021 - Unite the Union - "Unite demands independent bus audit as London drivers warn of heat distress"

22 July 2021 - Express - 'You're not talking to us!' London bus driver rages at Sadiq Khan for turning off cold air

22 July 2021 - LBC - Bus Driver "Jason" on #SpeakToSadiq with James O'Brien and Sadiq Khan

19 July 2021 - My London - 'I boarded a London bus with no open windows in 28C and it was the worst 25 minutes of my life'

November 2020

23 November 2020 - Evening Standard - New fresh air system protects bus drivers against Covid-19

20 November 2020

Unite the Union - New London bus air conditioning system a major victory in driver Covid safety campaign

September 2020

Question 2020/3247 - Working Air Conditioning for Bus Drivers - Murad Qureshi (Labour)

Question 2020/2615 - Bus driver welfare during heatwaves-Caroline Russell (Green)

September 2018

Question 2018/2455 - Air conditioning on London buses (3) - Caroline Russell (Green)

July 2018 

Question 2018/1764 - Air conditioning on London buses (1) - Caroline Russell (Green)

Question 2018/1765 - Air conditioning on London buses (2) - Caroline Russell (Green)

28 June 2018 - Evening Standard - Scorching London buses 'as hot as pizza ovens' see commuters travel in 35C heat

27 July 2018 - LBC - Bus Driver "Yazu" on #SpeakToSadiq with James O'Brien and Sadiq Khan

26 July 2018 - BBC London News - Bus Drivers in Heat Wave

19 July 2018 - Evening Standard - TfL London bus driver claims temperatures in his cab reached 48C during heatwave

#LondonBusWatch is a volunteer-run blogsite established in 2012 and is unaffiliated with any political party or Labour union.  If you would like to know more than the spin being offered by TfL in its Press Releases, please get in touch.

Tom Kearney

#LondonBusWatch

E: comadad1812@gmail.com

Twitter: @comadad

Bluesky: @comadad.bsky.social

Blog:  www.saferoxfordstreet.blogspot.co.uk

Bus Services [No. 2] Bill Evidence Submission [July 2025]:  https://bills.parliament.uk/publications/61937/documents/6837

London Assembly Transport Committee Investigtation [April 2024]: https://www.london.gov.uk/about-us/londonassembly/meetings/documents/s110115/Appendix%201%20-%20Letter%20from%20Tom%20Kearney%20received%2015%20December%202023.pdf

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BetterBuses - and https://www.youtube.com/@tomkearney955

2018 Winner, Community Hero Award — The Johns Hopkins University Alumni Association

2016 Winner, Transport - Sheila McKechnie Foundation SMK Campaigners Award

From: Kevin Mustafa (busbillofrights@hotmail.com)

• What measures are being taken to protect drivers during periods of extreme heat.
• What maximum cab temperatures are considered acceptable.
• What monitoring of cab temperatures is currently undertaken.
• What investment programme exists to provide effective cooling systems across London's bus fleet.
• What timescales are in place for implementation.

Date: 26 May 2026 at 09:56:39 BST 

To: Mayor of London <mayor@london.gov.uk> 

From: Kevin Mustafa, Bus Driver Bill of Rights Campaign  

CC: TfL Commissioner <AndyLord@tfl.gov.uk>, Deputy Mayor for Transport <seb.dance@london.gov.uk>, TfL Board Members <Secretariat02@london.gov.uk>,  Elly Baker AM <elly.baker@london.gov.uk>, Lorna Murphy - TfL Bus <lornamurphy@tfl.gov.uk>, Keith Prince AM <keith.prince@london.gov.uk>, Neil Garratt AM <neil.garratt@london.gov.uk>, Tom Kearney <comadad1812@gmail.com>, Rebecca Williams - ITV, Michael Liebreich, Connor Hand, Workplace Colleague Network <colleaguenetwork@londonbusforums.co.uk>, Emma Best AM <emma.best@london.gov.uk>, Sara Brady - ITN, Caroline Russell AM <caroline.russell@london.gov.uk>, Dan Tomlinson MP <dan.tomlinson.mp@parliament.uk>, Tom Edwards-BBC, Lorraine Robertson - Bus Driver Activist, Henry Riley, London Travelwatch, Warren Kenny - GMB, Nick Owen - TFL <nick.owen1@tfl.gov.uk>, Lee Odams - RMT, Susan Hall AM <susan.hall@london.gov.uk>, Alex Wilson AM <alex.wilson@london.gov.uk>, Sharon Graham - Unite, Eddie Dempsey - RMT   

RE: Ongoing Failure to Address Dangerous Heat Conditions on London Buses  

Good Morning,
I am writing yet again regarding the ongoing and unacceptable issue of excessive heat and lack of effective air conditioning on London buses.
This is not a new complaint. I, along with many other drivers and passengers, have repeatedly raised this issue since at least 2017 through emails, public discussions, radio appearances, and direct engagement. I have personally raised this matter with you on LBC and have contacted both your office and Transport for London numerous times over several years.
Despite this, little appears to have changed in practice.
Every summer, drivers and passengers are subjected to unbearable temperatures inside buses. Drivers are expected to work long shifts in conditions that would not be tolerated in most other workplaces. Passengers, including elderly people, children, pregnant women, and those with medical conditions, are also being placed at unnecessary risk during periods of high temperatures.
What is especially frustrating is the continued public messaging suggesting the issue is being "addressed" while frontline experience shows otherwise. Announcements about "new buses," "future upgrades," or "investment plans" do not help the driver sitting in extreme heat today, nor the passenger trapped on an overheated vehicle now.
This issue has been ongoing for years. By this stage, the repeated assurances without meaningful widespread improvement are becoming impossible to distinguish from avoidance and deflection.
There are several points that require clear answers:

1. How many buses operating across London currently have fully functioning and effective air conditioning systems for both drivers and passengers?
   
2. How many complaints regarding overheating and failed air conditioning systems have TfL received since 2020?

3. What enforceable standards are currently imposed on operators regarding maximum cabin temperatures?
   
4. What immediate measures — not long-term aspirations — are being implemented before this summer to protect drivers and passengers?
   
5. Why has this issue been allowed to continue unresolved year after year despite constant warnings from frontline staff?
   

London bus drivers are repeatedly told safety is a priority, yet many continue working in conditions that are exhausting, distracting, and potentially dangerous. Heat fatigue directly impacts concentration, alertness, wellbeing, and ultimately public safety.
This is not simply a comfort issue anymore. It is a workplace welfare issue, a passenger safety issue, and increasingly a public health issue.
I would appreciate a direct response addressing the questions above rather than another generic statement about future investment or climate commitments.
For reference I added below the correspondence I received from Tom Cunnington after I spoke to you on LBC radio in July 2022.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8L1T_JzYwVg
We are reporting the issue year on year
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCheBW3fVAI
Yours sincerely,
Kevin MustafaLondon Bus Safety CampaignerFounding Member - Bus Driver Bill of Rights Campaign

 

---

From: Cunnington Tom (ST) <Tom.Cunnington@tfl.gov.uk>
Sent: Thursday, August 4, 2022 5:24:26 PM
To: Kevin Mustafa
Cc: Bus Ops FOIs & Inquiries <BusOpsFOIsInquir@tfl.gov.uk>
Subject: RE: Air-Conditioning London Buses

 

Dear Kevin,

 

Thank you for your email of 23 July 2022 and for taking the time to pass on your concerns regarding the operation of air conditioning on London buses and our subsequent phone call.

 

As we discussed I would like to reassure you that bus driver welfare is a priority for Transport for London (TfL), as set out in our recent Bus Action Plan: https://content.tfl.gov.uk/bus-action-plan.pdf.

 

Climate change mitigation is a key area of concern for TfL. We have been working with bus operators to improve the maintenance of the air conditioning system on buses.  In addition, when severe hot weather is forecasted, TfL writes to all bus operators instructing them to perform air-conditioning checks on all their buses and to flag any concerns to us.

 

Following complaints from a bus driver to the Mayor on LBC radio, TfL conducted audits on approximately 10% of the bus fleet - over 850 buses. These inspections checked for air conditioning output and a conditional assessment of the pump/drive belts was performed. These inspections indicated that most of the buses passed the checks, the buses where faults were found were reported to the relevant operators for rectification.

 

Isolation of the drivers' cab Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system from the saloon has also been introduced following  advice from University College London (UCL) on Covid-19 transmission. As those systems that recirculated air from the vehicle saloon have been modified to fresh air only in some cases the system performance suffered as a result. This was done to give bus drivers a significantly safer work environment during the height of the pandemic.

 

TfL has also conducted an extensive study, in partnership with UCL, to understand the thermal comfort on buses in a controlled climatic test chamber with a number of passengers on board. From the analysis of the study, several measures have been added to TfL's Bus Vehicle Specification for new buses including automatic interior temperature control based on ambient/outside temperatures. In addition, TfL have been working with suppliers of drivers' air conditioning systems and an improved HVAC specification has been incorporated to the latest Bus Vehicle Specification which will significantly improve thermal comfort for drivers.

 

Bus drivers on all routes in London have access to at least one toilet. TfL has made significant progress since 2018 with 64 new toilets provided for bus drivers. Further work continues, within the available funding, to focus on making sure driver welfare facilities are in good condition, are fit for purpose and have the capacity required to meet the demand of all users.

 

TfL has agreed with the bus drivers' union, Unite, and bus operators to use a criterion of no more than 150 minutes round trip time to determine where a toilet at either end of a route is sufficient. This enables TfL to prioritise its limited funds on providing facilities at locations that have the greatest benefit to drivers. Where opportunities arise, such as a third-party development, we will always seek to further improve the number of facilities available.

 

It is a legal requirement for places of work to provide a supply of drinking water (Regulation 22 of the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992).  Therefore, if you are aware of any bus operator facilities that are not meeting that obligation, I would encourage you to raise it directly with the operating company in the first instance, through Unite or to the Confidential Incident and Reporting Analysis Service (CIRAS).

 

I hope this helps to address the concerns you raised.

 

Regards

 

Tom

 

 

Tom CunningtonHead of Bus Business DevelopmentTransport for London

 

 

 

From: Kevin Mustafa
Sent: 23 July 2022 12:57
To: Cheeseman Louise <LouiseCheeseman@tfl.gov.uk>, Tom Cunnington - TfL<tomcunnington@tfl.co.uk>, Lilli Matson - Chief Safety Officer, Mayor of London <mayor@london.gov.uk> 

Cc: Tom Kearney <comadad1812@gmail.com>; Keith Prince <Keith.Prince@london.gov.uk>; Neil Garratt <Neil.Garratt@london.gov.uk>; Nick Rogers AM, Seb Dance - Deputy Mayor, Peter Kavanagh <Peter.Kavanagh@unitetheunion.org>; Sharon Graham <sharon.graham@unitetheunion.org>; Sian Berry - AM <sian.berry@london.gov.uk>; 

RE: Air-Conditioning London Buses

 

Good Afternoon,

 

London bus drivers have for many years reported that air-conditioning on TFL buses is failing and does not work.Operators fail to maintain these systems and or have them switched off/ belts removed. AC increases fuel usage.are drivers' being overlooked due to fuel costs?

 

Sadiq Khans been contacted by 2 Bus drivers whilst answering questions on LBC radio. once in July 2018 and again last year in July 2021.Both drivers have reported this issue yet still one year later nothing's changed the AC still does not work . I have personally tweeted the Mayor on numerous occasions raising AC.

 

Unite the Union reported on their website in November 2020 that Grayson's Thermal had had been instructed to attend bus garages and carryout upgrades to London's buses to ensure fresh air was drawn from the external of the bus into the cabs . This was advised after the investigation in to Covid-19 carried out by the University College London. 1200 buses required upgrading. They were completed in November 2020.

 

If this task was put in to place to protect London bus driver from Covid-19, can you explain to me why when drivers needed to turn on the AC in the heat of summer 2021 it did not work? Can you also explain to me why just a week ago when temperatures within London bus cabs reached 44C/ 111.2F AC still does not work? 

 

Covid-19 cases are currently increasing. The alleged upgrades to protect drivers in their cabs is obviously not working can you explain why and will you be requesting Grayson's Thermal refund TFL every penny of pubic money you paid them?

 

Do you agree that TFL and the Mayors failure to ensure all AC upgrades advised by the UCL allegedly completed were not checked and still do not work? This In my Opinion breached advice and breached drivers Health and Safety!! I am of course Trained to a very High level in health and safety. I am fully aware those at TFL who make safety critical decisions are not!

The above of course without external fresh air put drivers at risk of Omicron and in January 2021 there was a mass infection across Metroline Travel garages 170 drivers off at once in January at my Potters Bar garage myself included. Metroline lost more drivers to Covid-19 than any other operator.

 

In my opinion Transport for London have breached bus drivers' safety throughout Covid-19 by not policing face coverings on London buses and what is absolutely clear after Advice from the UCL the upgrades to bus AC were in my opinion a tick box exercise because for at least 8 years AC on London buses hasn't worked. 

 

Unite the Union put a post-up on their website in July 2021 requesting the Mayor carryout an audit on AC at operators across London.Can you confirm if this actually took place? What were your findings? AC is still not working!!!

 

London's Bus drivers are Sick, Tired and Fatigued. 25% of bus routes don't have toilet facilities at both ends of their routes to cool down or obtain water. 

Driving in a bus cab that is 44C/ 111.2F or in the mid 30s is absolutely unacceptable and it is about time TFL sanctioned Bus operators for not maintaining London's buses appropriately.  It is time that Visits were made to garages and buses inspected. Cold buses in the winter and sweat boxes in the summer.

 

Drivers across London are demanding that the Mayor and TFL get this matter resolved once and for all. We will not back down until you do

 

Please can you provide me feedback.

 

Many Thanks

 

Mr Kevin MustafaLondon Bus activist

 

 

 

  

 

 

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