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The London transport system is, for the most part, a magnificent arrangement of stops, lines and stations. We traverse our city and its suburbs with ease and efficiency (except on you, bloody Thameslink). However, in the last few months TfL has reported a rapid increase in serious injuries on both the Underground and buses.
This is allegedly a result of passengers being afraid to touch escalator and bus handrails for fear of contracting Covid. TfL reported 12 serious injuries on the tube and 23 on buses between April and June 2021, more than any other quarter over the last two years. London Underground managing director Andy Lord told a safety panel that the injuries were also partly down to ‘intoxication’. Given that the majority of the incidents happened at the weekend and Londoners love a piss-up, that makes quite a bit of sense.
All jokes aside, concerns are being dealt with by TfL, which is planning to scale up the trial of UV devices that eradicate any vestiges of the virus on the handrails. This is in addition to extensive and continued efforts to cleanse the tube, although experts at Imperial College London have repeatedly tested the transport network for traces of Covid without finding any evidence.
So, to paraphrase the modern philosopher Drake: just hold on, you’re going home.
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