I rode on West Midlands buses during the red weather warning - they are saunas on wheels

But this week was something else entirely - particularly in the evenings when returning home.

During the days covered by the Met Office’s rare red weather warning for extreme heat, I was travelling into the office to work in the office, where we’re lucky enough to have aircon but almost 45 minutes of feeling like I was wearing my sweat as a suit each way was the price to pay.

I’ll admit the journey to the office in the early mornings wasn’t too bad. The discomfort was mainly from people sitting too close in the heat or the bus being crowded during rush hour.

However, the journey back was almost unbearable. It felt like I was sitting in a sauna on wheels for almost an hour, despite all the windows being open. There was just no relief.

I couldn’t help but feel sorry for the drivers in their booths, spending hours a day inside these moving ovens. You wouldn’t leave an animal inside a vehicle for that long in this heat - that would be cruel.

Yet, transport workers had to power through to get their passengers where they needed to be.

I felt lucky my commute only had me in those vehicles for less than an hour despite being incredibly uncomfortable.

But if these conditions are going to start becoming more common during British summers, then changes need to be made everywhere to prepare for these extreme weather events. We’ve seen plenty of schools close because they simply aren’t equipped to deal with such high temperatures.

Our transport is the same. That’s why I’m supporting West Bromwich bus driver Gavin Hall’s campaign to make it mandatory for all UK buses to have aircon because as he said drivers are struggling to cope under “strenuous” conditions during the current heat. It would be beneficial for staff and customers alike.

Transport providers, the Department for Transport and the West Midlands Combined Authority were contacted for a response to the campaign when I wrote about it yesterday - some are yet to respond.

However, a National Express Bus spokesperson said: “The current hot weather conditions experienced across the UK are unprecedented. We recognise that bus driving in this kind of extreme heat can be unpleasant, and we would like to thank all our drivers for keeping the region moving. At National Express Bus, all our new electric vehicles have air conditioning.

“As the UK historically has had a mild climate, retrofitting air conditioning in buses was not cost-effective for the limited number of days it would have been useful. However, if current weather conditions become the norm this may need to be reviewed."

If you agree, sign the petition here.