TfL is spending £30m tackling noise pollution on the tube over five years

There are concerns about noise levels experienced by railcar passengers and residents living near the tracks, reports Noah Vickers, local democracy reporter

Transport for London (TfL) has spent nearly £30m tackling tube noise over the past five years, City Hall figures have revealed.

The transit authority has poured a steady stream of funding into rail-sanding work aimed at removing bumps and abrasions from the tracks that contribute to the creaking noises.

In recent months, London Assembly members have repeatedly raised concerns about the noise levels experienced by rail passengers and residents living near the tracks.

In a letter to TfL last year, the assembly’s environment committee warned that long-term exposure to tube noise can contribute to sleep disorders, heart disease, tinnitus and impaired cognitive development in children.

Responding to a written question from Labor MP Elly Baker earlier this month, Mayor Sadiq Khan said TfL spends “around £115 million on general rail improvements every year and much of this work results in reducing railway noise”.

But on rail grinding in particular, TfL spent £29.6m. Khan said this included grinding “carried out to manage rail defects and maximize asset life, as well as specifically for the purpose of noise reduction”.

In recent years, he added, TfL “has achieved efficiencies in its rail grinding programme, which means a reduction in grinding costs per metre”.

In its letter to TfL commissioner Andy Lord last year, the environment committee noted that “environmental noise” was recognized by the World Health Organization as the second biggest risk to environmental health in Western Europe after air quality .

Research assessing sound pressure levels on moving tube carts between 2006 and 2019, published in Laryngoscope journal, found that “passengers were routinely and consistently subjected to sound pressure levels exceeding 80 dBA, with levels sometimes reaching over 100 dBA,” the committee noted.

They added: “TfL classifies 80-100 decibels as ‘dangerous’, with 80-90 decibels compared to the noise level of a busy restaurant and 90-100 decibels similar to that of power tools.

“A decibel range of over 100 decibels is however designated as ‘very dangerous’, with readings compared to chainsaws, rivet hammers and even an aircraft taking off.”

London contains several hotspots where tube noise is particularly bad. Leonie Cooper, the Labor assembly member for Merton and Wandsworth, has, for example, written to the mayor several times about noise levels near South Wimbledon station.

In a written response to Cooper in May this year, Khan said: “Tackling tube noise for staff, passengers and neighbors is a priority for both me and TfL.

“The track in question is particularly complex and unique and over the years TfL has worked on a number of solutions to mitigate the noise. TfL’s acoustician has visited an affected property, assessed the affected section of track and is currently reviewing the data before compiling the results.

“TfL plans to carry out localized readings to help inform next steps. As this particular problem is unique, there are no simple options to test as mitigation, but TfL is committed to doing everything it can (to) solve the problem.”

Independent news outlets like ours – which report for the community without wealthy backers – are under threat of closure, turning Britain’s cities into news deserts.

The public they serve know less, understand less, and can do less.

If our coverage has helped you understand our community a little better, please consider supporting us with a monthly, annual or one-time donation.

Choose the news. Don’t miss the news.

Direct monthly debit

Annual direct debit

£5 a month backers get a digital copy of each month’s paper before anyone else, £10 a month backers get a digital copy of each month’s paper before anyone else and a print copy posted each month. Annual £50 backers get a digital copy of each month’s paper before anyone else.

More information about our monthly or annual support

More information about donations