please empty your brain below
When it comes to stupid announcements, the Underground does excel. Heard yesterday on the westbound District/Circle line platform at Monument was the news that the Waterloo & City line was not working and instead one should travel by Central to Tottenham Court Road and change for the Northern line. Submitting oneself to the fires of hell that is the tube when an air-conditioned train from the very platform you are standing on would take you to Embankment for a connection to Waterloo defies logic. 'If it makes no sense, don't say it' should be the mantra but no-one seems to do the sense check.

Brightside | 26.07.19 - 8:00 a.m. | #

I've no doubt the lovely RIAL cafe opposite West Ham station would be happy to let you have some tapwater, if they were open at the time. Come to think of it, does the app take opening times into account, or can it merrily direct you towards establishments that might be shut?

Also, do those water fountains only cater for people who've brought their own bottle, and not just people who'd like a quick drink from the tap?

martin | 26.07.19 - 8:26 a.m. | #

@martin:
There'll be no drinking from the tap - there's no profit to be gained from that practice.

Jean | 26.07.19 - 8:47 a.m. | #

And then you wonder why the good burghers of London manage to ignore the actually important announcements on public transport, while desperately trying to ignore listening to 'Refill London' or 'See it, Say it, f**k it' for the 50th time.

I have a toddler - even 'Baby Shark ' on continuous loop isn't as annoying as this.

straphan | 26.07.19 - 9:16 a.m. | #

It occurs to me to wonder if anyone has ever been refused, at any cafe or similar, who has asked for tap water. If not, then the app is pretty redundant.

Malcolm | 26.07.19 - 9:19 a.m. | #

Good to see Scotti's Snack Bar in the background of the clerkenwell Green shot. One of London's few remaining classic Italian old school cafes. Visit if you get the chance.

Johnny Topaz | 26.07.19 - 9:20 a.m. | #

On a recent visit to Edinburgh I came across a water refill station, hiding in plain sight just by the entrance to the toilets in Waverley station ...... first time I had heard of this very useful facility! (Before anyone asks, I don't use the Tube or Underground.)

ian | 26.07.19 - 9:40 a.m. | #

I was perhaps fortunate that the two water fountains I tracked down aren't the very latest model, with a giant blue plastic water droplet perched on top.

diamond geezer | Homepage | 26.07.19 - 9:42 a.m. | #

Network Rail provides water refill stations at all Network Rail managed stations.

Given the plumbing setup these are usually located near the toilets.

straphan | 26.07.19 - 9:42 a.m. | #

Water fountains made from blue and white plastic, standing out in the open all day, in the sun and the rain. What could possibly go wrong with that. Sheesh.

Andrew | 26.07.19 - 10:11 a.m. | #

Yesterday TfL were handing out bottled water and fans to air-conditioned TfL Rail passengers, but nothing to hot Central Line passengers.
Does anyone know if they got the Oxford Circus platform chillers working? Staff said they rarely work and seemed to have given up trying.

Tony | 26.07.19 - 10:15 a.m. | #

Watching ITV News at 10 last night I spotted a worker from Kölner Verkehrs-Betriebe (KVB)(Cologne's answer to TfL) standing on the street with a massive water cylinder on their back handing out free drinks. That's much more proactive than an app and a dodgy announcement.

ap | 26.07.19 - 10:16 a.m. | #

Out of curiosity, I looked at the Android app permissions. One of the them is camera use. Why would the app want camera use when displaying the location of refill stations? Apart from any other dodgy permissions (at least they didn’t want microphone access!), this is one reason for me not to install the app.
I don’t know how long the app has been out, but feedback isn’t that good.

A much better system would be to have a map on a website where all you need to do is enter location details and it would zoom straight to that area. This location method is used on a wide variety of sites. Just store the bookmark and access is almost instant. There again, it means that the firm will not be collecting all the personal details it expects to get via the use of the app and thus reducing its potential revenue.

Rogmi | 26.07.19 - 10:39 a.m. | #

The provision of easily accessible drinking water is a good idea, however how many people are really going to be bothered with carrying a bottle around with them on the off-chance that they may be lucky enough to find somewhere to fill it up without having to go on a detour? It’s much simpler (although expensive) to just pop into the local shop and buy a bottle of water, fizz or whatever.

No doubt cafes that offer refills, do so in the hope that they will gain extra business.

Water / drinking fountains are the most convenient as a turn-up-and-slurp means of thirst quenching, no container needed. These decorative fountains used to be everywhere but, like public toilets, have almost disappeared. The modern stainless steel version can occasionally be found, but are still rare and usually in toilets.

Rogmi | 26.07.19 - 10:45 a.m. | #

Spare a thought for the homeless/rough-sleepers. My local council activated its SWEP (Severe Weather Emergency Protocol) yesterday. Normally used in winter but thoughtfully utilised due to the heat. Providing free sunscreen, hats and water.

Grumpy Anon | 26.07.19 - 10:50 a.m. | #

The company which supplies London's water fountains has tweeted enthusiastically about today's post, perhaps without reading it.

diamond geezer | Homepage | 26.07.19 - 11:23 a.m. | #

TfL is probably getting a kickback from Refill London each time they play the message.Revenue over relevance.

Cornish Cockney | 26.07.19 - 1:11 p.m. | #

Today, the announcement was still being played at Northumberland Park station just now after heavy rain. Not TfL, I know.

Bob L-S | 26.07.19 - 1:23 p.m. | #

Instead of installing an abundancy of water fountains, I feel like people should just have the bottle and common sense to go into cafes and coffee shops and ask them to refill their bottle. I do it all the time.

Eiffel | 26.07.19 - 1:27 p.m. | #

There was a recording of 38.7°C at the botanic garden in Cambridge yesterday, which if confirmed would be a national record. Phew, what a scorcher.

Andrew | 26.07.19 - 5:19 p.m. | #

Many people, me included, CAN "be bothered with carrying a bottle around with them..". It has water in it!
And when it is empty, it gets refilled.. to avoid the plastic waste inherent in the suggestion that one should "..pop into the local shop and buy a bottle of water, fizz or whatever".

Frank F | 26.07.19 - 5:47 p.m. | #

...and if you go to the O2 for a concert they confiscate your water bottle lid for some spurious safety reason (apparently a dropped full bottle could be a trip hazard there but not on LU) so it's no use on the way home unless you're crafty enough to have hidden a spare.

Andrew S | 26.07.19 - 6:04 p.m. | #

When I was a child, I was warned against using public drinking fountains because of health risks.
Are these modern fountains / water dispensers / whatever we like to call them nowadays, any more hygienic? (Or at least, less unhygienic.)

Kent Railman | 26.07.19 - 6:58 p.m. | #

A new version of the Refill app was launched today "unveiling a new look", but it still doesn't recognise those Farringdon water fountains and it still crashes every time I use it, so I've deleted the app.

diamond geezer | Homepage | 26.07.19 - 7:23 p.m. | #

Apparently there are issues with providing water fountains at tube stations - the plumbing, as mentioned, tends to be near toilets, and at tube stations those are mostly in staff areas, not passenger areas. Plus apparently there's the whole legal side of things and ensuring people don't get sick.

Matt Buck | 26.07.19 - 10:52 p.m. | #

There is a modern dispenser at Manchester Piccadilly station. Hidden near the toilets but now they are free are much better used. You just press a button and cold water comes out. It’s all electronic and no need to touch the bottle on the dispenser.

Rick | 27.07.19 - 12:13 p.m. | #

Sounds entirely typical of so many local/national govt "initiatives" that it's all about "partnerships" that drive business to commercial companies such as Starbucks rather than anything remotely like public service. To add insult to injury, the photo of a refill point with blue water droplet that you link to shows the one near Kentish Town station -- right next to an original Victorian drinking fountain which local people have for years campaigned to get reconnected, without any success. Funnily enough, that's not in the carefully-angled photo.

Don | 27.07.19 - 6:37 p.m. | #

On the 100 (or in reality 28+) public water fountains for a city of 9 million people, I went to Wimbledon this year, they claim - and I reckon they're telling the truth - over 100 water fountains just within the grounds (they had 80 or so last year apparently, and the ground capacity has increased slightly due to the Court 1 rebuild, from a max of 39,000 to 42,000 each day, depending on how many courts are in use).

Also, Network Rail put out a press release over a year ago about installing water fountains at London rail stations, but so far this year I've been unable to find any (if anyone knows where the one at Victoria is - toilets being rebuilt last I looked - or Marylebone, or Charing Cross - I'd be grateful.)

William | 28.07.19 - 11:26 a.m. | #











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