London’s risk from rising temperatures

Buying an air conditioning unit was the only way we could stay cool. It's not very efficient, and requires us to put a tube out of the window. London should update its development regulations to allow for more air conditioning units to be installed in new builds. In particular, air to air heat pumps which can cool in the summer and heat in the winter. This also helps with out green energy transition

I think the modern electric buses have AC but it's completely useless because the windows are always opened letting the heat in

Can we remove the ability to open windows in all spaces that have AC?

Planting trees along streets drastically decreases the surface temperature along the streets and provides much needed shading during extreme temperatures.

They're also good for the environment too

Misting stations are of limited effect here... the UK is already a humid country, past a certain point misting only increases the heat index and makes the heat feel worse to living animals.

I urge you to consider funding more open water/wild swimming venues. East London Waterworks for example. As well as planting more trees, look at Singapore & Barcelona, how they have invested in public spaces, infrastructure for pedestrian and cyclists whilst planting trees everywhere, the temperature of the cities have dropped multiple degrees. 

More outdoor swimming spaces! There is only a handful in the whole of London, and they book out well in advance on a warm day! 

We need to be supporting our NHS more during heatwaves. I work in a tertiary hospital, and during these times our wards reach 30 degrees consistently. Despite fans for each patient, this is still extremely uncomfortable, and can frequently affect patients clinically too. We then have staff who have no option but to work in these conditions, and any office space for clinical staff is cramped without fans or aircon.

Let’s get real! Our neglect of global warming is detrimental to health & safefy. It’s inhumane to expect 30 pupils to sit in classrooms above 90 degrees with poor air quality. I have a respiratory health condition and cannot breathe when there’s no breeze.

I notice this survey does not include an option about adding A/C.on public transport. This is essential and should be a priority. Pretty much all other countries have A/C on public transport apart from the UK. We are not developing as a nation.

It's just hot weather and it's called summer. Nothing else.

What about the misting machines they have in other cities like Paris? Definitely more trees lining the streets. Shutters on windows and reflective paint. And more tree lined streets. 

The underground and bus is horrendous during heatwaves. Something must be done to improve AC on public transport!

The Seine in Paris is now open for swimming in the summer in Paris which is amazing for cooling off. They also advertise public swimming pool and i believe some of them are free to access in the summer. Improved access to swimming spots is essential I think.

I've also noticed tree-lined streets are noticeably cooler than streets with no trees. Perhaps planting more trees might be an option.

The tube gets horrendously hot. The  Northern line and Victoria line in particular are at extremely high temperatures. I don’t think it’s safe - they need to prioritise air conditioning on these tube lines ASAP before next summer. 

Loving in Feltham and dependent on public transport it's not always easy to cope with high temperatures when doing daily activities. Buses need to have better AC units and bus stops should have at least shade or misting units. More than once I felt sick during bus journeys because of how hot it was and how full the bus was. I also witnessed people falling ill and fainting. 

The worst is walking out to buy groceries, there's very little natural shade to protect. More trees or at least misting stations would help.

Staying at home isn't easy either. My flat is on the top floor, so I get the rising heat from underneath and the full strength of the exposure to the sun. I found myself spending more time outside the house, jumping from shop to shop chasing the ac. Landlords should be pushed to make adaptations for extreme heat, be that installing black out blinds, window covers, anything.

I travel to Japan a lot and heat is also a problem in Tokyo. Houses are better equipped, with better materials to sustain heat and AC is much more common. 

For work commutes and walking outside, the heat is an economy. There are vending machines to purchase cold drinks, convenience stores sell cooling aids such as cooling wipes and sprays, ice cups, regular bottled drinks but frozen, UV blocking parasols. Maybe we could incentivise our local shops to sell some of these during heat waves. And vending machines could unlock to provide free water during days of extreme heat.

I have started to see misting stations near public attractions and parks as well. Green areas are well kept and have facilities such as toilets and vending machines or a little shop, so people use them more often to hide in the shade throughout the day. 

Trains, buses and the metro system are equipped with AC. 

Air conditioning in public buildings, trees in urban areas, awareness campaigns around how to keep your home and pets safe, encouragement of flexible working around hot and busy periods 

Having access to water is essential when it is a heatwave. Public water fountains/stations are obviously great for this. I see these sometimes in or just outside train stations around London. It would be great if every train station could have a water fountain - that way everyone would know thirsty = find a station. 

In some other European cities they have misting stations in public areas. These spray a fine mist on you to help cool you down and are incredibly effective. I saw these in Tirana, Albania in Summer 2024. I think these would be greatly effective if implemented in high traffic areas around London. Or perhaps they would be useful at high traffic events, such as outdoor festivals that take place in the summertime.

I also think having third-spaces cooled with AC are helpful. I have found myself standing in supermarkets by the fridges to cool down, so having designated spaces with AC (such as the library, perhaps) would be ideal.

What I hear from my peers is that sleeping is the hardest part of dealing with a heatwave. Perhaps we need to adopt a culture similar to other European cities where we have external blinds which are closed to keep the heat out. Maybe a good way to implement this is to have new builds built with this feature? Or some kind of heat considered design?