Key information
Request reference number: MGLA270723-2829
Date of response:
Summary of request
Your request
Can you please provide the "pollution" rates on the London underground as that is far higher than "car pollution.
Our response
This information is publicly available, Transport for London (TfL’s) annual monitoring shows that levels of Tube dust are all within legal limits set by the Health and Safety Executive, and on most of the network are below the significantly lower limits recommended by the Institute of Occupational Medicine.
TfL’s cleaning teams reduced in-station Tube dust by 19 per cent and in-cab by 37 per cent in 2021 compared to 2020. In-cab levels are monitored every three months. The Mayor recently answered a question on pollution on the Underground: Pollutants on the London Underground | London City Hall
Pollution on the Underground is very different to pollution above ground, both in the particle size distribution and in the chemical composition of particulate air pollution.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified outdoor air pollution, especially particulate matter in outdoor air pollution, as carcinogenic to humans and causing lung cancer. That’s not true of Tube dust.
Transport for London (TfL) has published a number of monitoring reports about air quality on the Tube network. These are available here: Environment monitoring & reporting - Transport for London (tfl.gov.uk).
As noted, a further report is due later in 2023. TfL is the Mayor's transport authority and is responsible for implementing the Mayor's Transport Strategy. You may wish to send a further request to TfL at [email protected].