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Mint
7 days ago
- Climate
- Mint
The London Tube ‘feels like hell.' Efforts to cool it just make it hotter.
A century ago, the London Underground wooed passengers during the summer with the promise it was 'cooler below." That seems like a cruel joke today. 'It genuinely feels like hell down there," said Hussein Zaaiter, a London-based student. 'It's a free sauna on the Central line," he joked, referring to one of the Tube's hottest train lines. Riding the Tube during the summer has long been an unpleasant, sweaty experience. The bad news for Londoners is that the Tube isn't just hot, it's getting hotter. And figuring out how to cool it down presents challenges that air conditioning can't easily fix. Engineers have spent decades trying everything from industrial fans to giant blocks of ice to temper the sweltering subterranean climate, but a remedy remains elusive. Heat has been steadily building below the surface ever since the world's oldest underground transportation system opened in 1863. Across all lines, average temperatures increased by 1 to 3 degrees Celsius over the past 10 years, according to measurements from Transport for London. Summer temperatures on the Tube now regularly exceed 30 degrees Celsius, or 86 degrees Fahrenheit, the legal limit for transporting cattle, pigs and sheep in the U.K. The temperature at the surface doesn't really affect the temperature in the tube. Throughout the summer, the tube maintains a fairly constant 86 degrees, while the surface wobbles between lows in the 50s at night and as high as 104 degrees during the day. The busy Central Line is one of the transit system's deeper lines, where narrow tunnels have made it difficult to add air conditioning to trains. Zaaiter has ridden the Paris Metro and the New York subway, but 'it's never as bad," he said. For Verity Walker, a musical-theater actress in London, the heat underground has a habit of sticking with her. 'I'm turning up to auditions, and I'm worried I smell," she said. 'The price should be decreased in the summer because of the conditions." Climate activists turned the Tube into their personal sauna, riding around the city in their bathrobes and hair towels to raise awareness about the heat. Experts pin the Tube's hot mess on its tight Victorian-era tunnels, which restrict air circulation, especially on deeper lines. Moreover, London's bedrock is composed of a dense, stiff clay that absorbs and retains warmth. Every day, friction from accelerating and braking trains generates more heat. Even carelessly discarded newspapers obstruct air vents behind seats and trap hot air in train cars, exacerbating the problem. In 2003, then-Mayor of London Ken Livingston launched a competition with a £100,000 prize for a tunnel-cooling solution, or about $159,500 at the time. Of the 3,400 entries, many simply suggested riders not wear clothes. Other proposals included handing out Popsicles or putting up pictures of snowmen. No practical designs emerged, and the competition was closed in 2005. Since then, TfL has spent millions of pounds on initiatives to beat the heat. Early attempts included placing large blocks of ice in refrigeration units under train seats, where the thawing ice would cool air passing over it. Groundwater was also tapped to try to cool the tunnels. Industrial fans were installed at stations. Even after the TfL discovered they slightly increased temperatures because of the heat generated by the motors, the fans remained. Surveys indicated the fast-flowing air made people feel more comfortable. 'It always perplexed me that boffins could produce mobile phones the size of a credit card yet passengers would emerge dripping with sweat from Tube trains," Boris Johnson said in 2018 during his stint as mayor. Air conditioning has now been added to roughly 40% of London Underground trains, but it is hard to install on the smaller, deeper Tube lines. It also isn't a panacea. AC simply moves heat from one place to another, so while trains may get cooler, platforms and tunnels get hotter. Engineering experts have proposed various solutions, all to cool reception. Ideas included regenerative braking, where heat from brakes is recovered to use as energy for trains or stations; improved ventilation systems; energy-efficient construction materials; and smart sensor networks to monitor and regulate temperatures in real time. Even successful solutions, such as using heat pumps to remove excess heat, have proved tricky to employ across the vast network. One London borough uses the excess heat from the local Tube station to warm nearby homes, but expanding the program faces logistical and funding challenges. A citywide heat network is at least a decade away. TfL, noting the 'stop-start nature of funding," says it's focused on areas that provide the greatest relief to passengers. Next year, after several delays, it plans to finally introduce the first air-conditioned trains on a deep tunnel Tube line. They will still fit along the Piccadilly line thanks to the AC being placed under the trains, a design that took years to master. TfL said it is also exploring the possibility of cooling panels, subject to funding. While the heat makes journeys uncomfortable for passengers, it's a prolonged punishment for staff—even with the cooling systems in drivers' cabs. Tube bosses have been encouraging train drivers to drink more water, but union organizer Finn Brennan says that's an impractical solution. 'With more water, we need the toilet more," he said, adding that drivers are often on a strict schedule with limited breaks. 'This isn't a situation that will get better." With London enduring repeated summer heat waves, some train workers are planning a 'heat strike" if temperatures rise above 96.8 degrees. TfL has sought to reassure the public, saying it has 'a comprehensive hot weather plan in place" to get through the summer. Its enduring advice: 'Please carry water with you." Write to Anvee Bhutani at
Telegraph
29-06-2025
- Telegraph
Why Paris is trying to outlaw oversized luggage from the metro
It all started with a plant. A strelitzia, standing at a proud 130cm tall, was being carried home by a young journalist on the Paris metro, when – deeming the plant obstructive – a ticket controller for the RATP presented the journalist with a €150 (£128) fine (twice the value of the plant), and the story went viral. Following plant-gate, tourists and locals alike took to social media to protest the RATP's seemingly overzealous luggage rules, which stated that suitcases taken on the metro, RER and funicular in Paris should be smaller than 75cm in all dimensions. For context, that's smaller than what's permitted on most of France's trains, including InOui and Trenitalia, and significantly smaller than the checked baggage size allowed for airlines, including Ryanair, which allows suitcases up to 120cm in diameter. In Lyon, my home city, I've successfully transported both a bookshelf and a pizza oven on the metro at rush hour (the only complications having been getting them through the ticket barrier without getting stuck), so I was doubtful that anyone would actually enforce the excess baggage rule in Paris. Nevertheless, I was keen to see if things had changed in light of recent events. I refrained from taking my bookshelf this time, contenting myself instead with a large hiking backpack and an even larger suitcase. My partner and I were travelling back to the UK via Paris with a crate of wine to give to friends and family members, so it was the perfect opportunity. Between two, a big suitcase and hiking backpack is a pretty reasonable amount of luggage – but for the purpose of the experiment, I'd decided to lug all of it through both the metro and RER myself. It was a hot day – 35 degrees Celsius – so my partner had no complaints about crossing Paris unencumbered as I sweated through barriers and up and down escalators. He remained guilt-ridden throughout, however, walking five paces behind me and keeping up a mournful refrain of 'are you sure I can't help with the bags?' in an attempt to dissuade the critical looks of passing Parisians. Compared to what other people had brought with them, I was travelling light. Indeed, compared to what my mum brings with her when she visits me, I was travelling even lighter – and she's never received a fine. Some people had suitcases large enough to hide several bodies – not an uncommon sight in Paris, particularly as, for non-European travellers, Paris is often the first or last stop on a multi-month odyssey. I was reasonably confident that no-one was going to hassle me for my cumbersome luggage. There's an Instagram account (@lesgensdanslemetro_) with more than half a million followers dedicated to the weird and wonderful stuff people spot on Paris's metro, and anything flies. Farmyard animals (chickens, ducks, a sheep on a leash) have featured recently, alongside chairs, beanbags and even an entire DJ mixer deck. I'd probably have stood out more if I'd been travelling with no luggage at all. I took a couple of different metro lines and the RER, and as I'd suspected, no-one batted an eyelid at my luggage, and I remained unhindered by transport police throughout. But a few weeks earlier, the story might have been quite different. In typical Parisian style, my fellow commuters had not taken kindly to the rumoured crackdown. After the plant debacle, people took to social media to mock the RATP for their lack of flexibility. 'Did you know that the foundations of the metro are built with confiscated suitcases over 70cm high?' quipped one user on X. Not long after the incident, the RATP rescinded the fine, and just a week later, they also deleted all mention of specific luggage dimensions from their website. Now, they simply state that you should be able to carry your luggage yourself, and that it shouldn't hinder others. Other restrictions do, however, include not taking non-folding bikes on the metro, and avoiding rush hours with non-folding bikes on the RER, as well as not transporting furniture or household appliances (it looks like I got lucky with the bookshelf), and the rather nebulous 'no suitcases too voluminous for one person'. When contacted for comment, a spokesman for the RATP told me that 'the RATP does not impose any specific dimensions on suitcases, and no-one has ever been fined for this reason'. So panic over, it seems. If the Paris metro did, even for a moment, think it was going to stop Parisians and tourists alike taking everything but the kitchen sink on their journeys, they were much mistaken.
Local France
26-06-2025
- Climate
- Local France
Two dead and a dozen injured after violent storms hit France
After an early June heatwave broke, storms lashed much of France on Wednesday, bringing a trial of destruction and two deaths. A 12-year-old boy died near Montauban in south-west France after being hit by a falling tree, while in Mayenne a 59-year-old man died when his quad bike hit a tree that had fallen onto the road. At least 17 other serious injuries were reported, with one person in a critical condition, including an inhabitant of Dordogne who was hit by a falling roof tile. Advertisement Around 100,000 households were without power on Thursday morning, most in the south-east of the country. The storms left a trial of destruction with numerous sites closed on Thursday while repairs are ongoing, including the Paris zoo which is dealing with fallen trees around its site. There are some disruptions on the railways on Thursday, several Paris Metro stations were closed on Wednesday evening due to flash flooding, but all have reopened on Thursday. Across the country winds of up to 120km/h were reported, while hailstorms also struck - in the Pays Basque locals photographe d "hailstones the size of pigeon eggs". In the capital, the sky turned an eerie yellow hue as lightning flashed above the Sacre-Coeur cathedral and fierce winds sent Parisians rushing for cover. And rain leaked through the roof of the lower house of parliament, forcing lawmakers to suspend talks on conflict in the Middle East. "It's raining in the chamber... I repeat: it's raining in the chamber," wrote MP Maud Petit on her X account. The storms followed a sweltering heatwave with temperatures passing 35C. More extreme heat is expected over the weekend and into early next week.
Local France
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Local France
Paris Metro drivers call strike over working conditions
Unions representing drivers on the Paris Metro have called for a one-day strike on Friday, June 20th over what they say are 'unacceptable' changes in working conditions for drivers on one of the capital's lines. The strike is over changes to working conditions for drivers on Line 3, which is introducing extra services in a bid to avoid overcrowding. The one-day strike is set to affect three lines; Line 3 - half of normal services will run Line 3b - no services all day Line 13 - three out of four of the normal services will run The rest of the Metro lines are set to run as normal on Friday, and the action will not affect city bus, tram or RER services. The strike comes the day before the Fête de la musique, which this year falls on Saturday - transport operator RATP has announced that lines 1, 2 4, 6, 9 and 14 will run all night on Saturday/Sunday night. There will also be a special Fête de la musique ticket which costs €4.20 and allows unlimited travel between 5pm on Saturday, June 21st and 7am on Sunday.
Local France
01-06-2025
- Lifestyle
- Local France
June in France, apéro tips and the smoking ban: 6 essential articles for life in France
It's June! Or, more accurately, as we're in France, juin . Here's what's in the diary this month – from Pride, to the impressive collection of French summer festivals via rail strikes, the summer sales, final tax deadlines, new mobile phone rules, pretty major TV channel changes … and an ambiguous public holiday. Everything that changes in France in June 2025 Speaking of that ambiguous public holiday, it's one of several French public days off that are linked to Catholicism. So, in case you idly wondered, we've dug back into our archives for this explanation of why famously, determinedly, secular France has so many religious public holidays. Reader question: Why does secular France have so many Catholic holidays? June also means it's the official start of summer, according to the weather forecasters' calendar. And summer in France means many things – trips to the beach, empty cities, works on the Paris Metro – but it also ushers in rosé and spritz season. Here are some of the best options to drink in France this summer. Rosé, spritz and pressé: 5 things to drink in France this summer The downside of all that outdoor living is that you could find yourself more often in the proximity of smokers. France might have an international reputation as the 'chimney of Europe' but it has in fact had a ban on smoking in indoor public spaces since 2007. The French government recently announced an extension of those rules – here's what they have to say about smoking and vaping in public places in France. Explained: France's new smoking ban rules Advertisement No screeching segue, this time, just a straight change in direction… Having a second home in France is a dream for many foreigners, whether it's a place in a beautiful, peaceful French village, or an apartment in an elegant and cultured city (there are, apparently, a few of those in France). But the property-buying process is not always easy, so ideally you only want to do it once. As part of our series on buying a second home in France, here are some questions we suggest you ask yourself before signing on the dotted line. 5 questions to ask before buying a French second home Yeah, we know. French grammar is hard. It takes up a notable part of the section on The Local website that tries to demystify the French language in general . The editor recently took a pop at Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau after he suggested any learner struggling to get to grips with French wasn't really trying . So, here's an article explaining the crucial difference between 'bon' and 'bien', which both mean good in slightly but crucially different ways. French grammar tips: When to say 'bon' and when to use 'bien'
