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On the London Underground
The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or as the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent home counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England.
The Undergro ...
, fluffers or track cleaning teams are people employed to clean the tracks in the tunnels.
The passage of the trains through the tunnels draws in dust and rubbish, and removing this debris is essential to maintain the safety of the Underground, as it would otherwise create a fire hazard.
The work is done at night during Engineering Hours, when the trains have finished running, and the electricity is switched off. Cleaning the tunnels is a heavy and dirty job, which has traditionally been a role carried out by teams of women. In 1947, a newsreel made by British Pathé
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
* British national identity, the characteristics of British people and cultur ...
captured the fluffers on film carrying carbide lamp
A carbide lamp or acetylene gas lamp is a simple lamp that produces and burns acetylene (C2H2), which is created by the reaction of calcium carbide (CaC2) with water (H2O).
Acetylene gas lamps were used to illuminate buildings, as lighthouse beac ...
s, long brushes and scraping tools. The rubbish was removed in dustbins, loaded onto a trolley that was drawn along the rails.
In 1989, documentary filmmaker Molly Dineen chronicled the work of a team of fluffers at Angel station in Islington for the BBC2 documentary '' The Heart of the Angel''. By the mid 1990s, the fluffers were using electric torches and protective clothing, and collected the dust in plastic bags. Fluffer teams still tended to be mainly made up of women.
By 2023 the teams were using vacuum cleaner
A vacuum cleaner, also known simply as a vacuum, is a device that uses suction, and often agitation, in order to remove dirt and other debris from carpets, hard floors, and other surfaces.
The dirt is collected into a dust bag or a plastic bin. ...
s and magnetic wands, and "tube dust" (particles of iron oxide, chromium, quartz and copper produced by the wheels and tracks) was becoming a health concern for train drivers.
References
London Underground Cleaning and maintenance occupations {{London-transport-stub