In message .com,
Mizter T writes

I think Livingstone is just thinking aloud on this issue - which is
fair enough, given that much of the Underground system wasn't built
with the possibilities of sustained heatwaves in mind.

Although average temperatures are now one degree higher than a century
ago, there were several heatwaves in the Edwardian period - particularly
1911, which saw five months' of sustained high temperatures with a
number of days exceeding 35C.

But in those days much of the rolling stock was better designed for a
through-flow of air, with relatively large "hopper" windows and, in a
number of cases, open (but gated) platforms at the ends of carriages.

I also suspect that staff were able to be much more pragmatic in dealing
quickly with breakdowns. These days, H&S procedures often seem to
endanger health and safety by causing long delays.

As for all the reminders about carrying water (I was bombarded with them
on the tube yesterday) - what next? Will nanny remind us to wrap up warm
in cold weather and check that we have tied our shoelaces for fear that
we might drip and fall down the gap?
--
Paul Terry