Budapest in brutal heat – AC not working on buses, trams, trains?
Budapest is currently experiencing one of the most gruelling heat waves in years. In the brutal 37-40 degrees Celsius heat, travelling by public transport can often be a hellish experience. From barely working air conditioning to none at all, public transport is becoming a group sauna experience. Continue reading below for pedestrian accounts of the unbearable heat on BKK vehicles.
Budapest is heating up
Our perception of heat and the actual temperature around us is fundamentally influenced by how warm the surfaces around us are. If the air is hot, we should create or look for an environment where the surfaces are cooler than the air around us, and we will feel better, writes enbudapestem.hu.
Where there is little shade and many surfaces that heat up easily, a heat island is formed. The temperature of such an island will be much warmer than, for example, a forest. In most parts of Budapest, there is almost no grassland, with green areas mainly on the outskirts of the capital. To ensure that Budapest remains a liveable place for decades to come, we must work on reducing the effects of urban heat islands at all costs. This includes more green spaces in the downtown districts of Budapest.
- Read Also: Heat alert extended until Monday midnight
Pedestrian accounts
An older married couple complained that the heat restricts their journey through the city. “We often take bus line 99, but the AC barely works onboard. It is simply not worth it,” comments the husband. “I once had to get off the bus, the air was just that unbearable,” says the wife. In fact, temperatures on bus 99 can go up to 31.7 degrees Celsius, reports Blikk. The couple must find shelter against the heat. They enjoy the 25 degrees Celsius climate of an M4 metro station though.
On trams 4 and 6, passengers are subjected to an uncomfortable 29.6 degrees Celsius. But one public transport service rivals all others in terms of how hot it is onboard. On Budapest HÉV, commuter rail lines, there is a scorching 35 degrees Celsius. These train cars are long overdue for a replacement, seeing as none of them was designed with air conditioning. Even with open windows, there is barely any air passing through the vehicle.
BKK has yet to publicly announce how many of its vehicles have no air conditioning. On a brighter note, MÁV’s press department came forth with their answer. 67 percent of their suburban trains and 42 percent of their total train cars do have working air conditioning.
Source: enbudapestem.hu, blikk.hu
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2 Comments
Another example – of the Government – the inability to Get its PRIORITIES Right – serving the PEOPLE – instead of building new sports stadiums – not PROVIDING essential services such as Air Conditioning – on all Public Transport operated by MAV & BKK public transportation.
21st century – we live, and Global Warming, but that is a problem for the present Hungarian Government, under its present Prime Minister – Victor Orban – who has extreme DIFFICULTY accepting Global Warming – is Occurring.
Public Hospitals in Budapest, Hungary – what the FACTUAL percentage of them being Air Conditioned ?
Governments are APPOINTED to Serve the People – in the BEST Interest(s) of the People.
None Air-conditioning of Public Transport – Hospitals just (2) two examples – that GOVERNMENTS should ALWAYS Prioritize – ensuring CITIZENS are Provided – in there NEEDS.
Its 21st century – come on board Government – move on from “embedded” pre 1989 – dictatorial based Political Ideas & Philosophy – and Serve – Lisen to the People.
Democracy – is Dialogue.
It’s so pathetic not giving priority to AC. The M3 renovation is ridiculous. They just change the looks of the metro stops but they didn’t do the most important, install AC in their trains. I’m lucky I don’t have to use the M3 but most of people does. The same with trains or buses. Pathetic public transport.